Move your files off Dropbox without losing the ones you never downloaded.

WORK THROUGH THE MOVE

Copy, check, delete, then cancel

1. 1

   Choose how to take the copy. Dropbox says you can only download a folder from dropbox.com if it is smaller than 250 GB uncompressed and contains fewer than 10,000 files, with files in nested folders counting toward that limit, and that folders download as compressed .zip files. Individual files have no download size limit, but Dropbox recommends the desktop app for large ones.

2. 2

   If you use the desktop app, let it finish. Every folder should be selected in selective sync and actually downloaded before you treat your hard drive as the copy. Dropbox describes online-only files as placeholders on the desktop, and a placeholder is not a copy.

3. 3

   Deal with shared folders one at a time. Take your own copy of anything you need from a folder someone else owns before you leave it: Dropbox says that after you leave a folder its contents no longer count toward your storage quota, and that if you leave one by accident you have to ask the owner to invite you again. If you own a shared folder, Dropbox says permanently deleting it deletes the folder from every member’s account and permanently removes their access, so tell them first or hand the folder over.

4. 4

   Upload with the destination’s own app rather than a browser when the files are large. Microsoft says the OneDrive website accepts files up to 250 GB depending on your browser, and recommends adding files to the OneDrive desktop app for large files or lots of files. Google Drive stores files up to 5 TB, and Drive for desktop syncs folders from your computer.

5. 5

   Fix the names the destination will refuse. Microsoft says OneDrive and SharePoint do not allow " * : < > ? / \ | in file or folder names, nor leading or trailing spaces, nor reserved names such as .lock, CON, PRN, AUX, NUL, COM0–COM9, LPT0–LPT9, desktop.ini, or names beginning with ~$. Apple says file names and paths should be less than 256 characters to sync to iCloud Drive on Windows; in iCloud for Windows 10.8 or later the file that is too long will not sync while your other files continue to.

6. 6

   Check the copy before you delete anything. Open real files from several folders, not just the folder names. Some things were never in Dropbox to copy: it does not sync files ending desktop.ini, thumbs.db, .ds_store, icon\r, .dropbox, or .dropbox.attr, temporary files beginning ~$ or .~, or symlinks, shortcuts, junction points, resource forks, and networked folders.

7. 7

   Delete from Dropbox only once the copy checks out. Dropbox keeps deleted files for 30 days on Basic, Plus, and Family; after that it says they can no longer be recovered or restored.

8. 8

   Cancel last. Dropbox says your account changes to Basic at the end of the current billing cycle and you are not charged again. Basic is 2 GB. Over that, Dropbox says you may not be able to sync, upload, share, move, or preview files, that it sends email notifications first, and that if the account stays over it may delete your least recently modified files first — only files you own. Shared folders you do not own are removed from your account without deleting their contents.

9. 9

   Delete the account only if you are certain. Dropbox says an active subscription must be cancelled first, that files in private folders are deleted from its servers and are non-recoverable as soon as the account is deleted, and that files in shared folders stay accessible to the other members but not to you. The account cannot be restored.