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Steve_BradyFlag for United States of America

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Questions about how to use Dropbox

Hello,

Can someone explain a couple of things about Dropbox for me—specifically, what should happen when I upload folders and files?

I recently began using Dropbox as according to my understanding, it can store selected folders & files in a remote location both as a backup for security and to allow me to access them from any location where I have internet access.

Is that basically the gist of it?

My main C:\ drive is a 125 GB solid-state drive which I have to watch closely in order that it does not get too full. I try to use it only for software applications. My data is stored on my E:\ drive which has a 500 GB capacity.

When I installed the Dropbox software, I noticed that it created a folder named Dropbox under Favorites in Windows Explorer. Yesterday, after upgrading Dropbox to the 100 GB capacity, I dragged a 15 GB file from my E:\ drive to the new Dropbox folder in Favorites. Then, today I logged into my Dropbox account online to verify that the file showed up there (which it did).

However,  I also noticed (by selecting Computer in Windows Explorer) that the free space on my C:\ drive had decreased by about 15 GB (which was enough to cause the indicator to turn red). Therefore, as far as I can tell, I now have three copies of the 15 GB file:

1) the original on my E:\ drive,
2) the uploaded copy which is presumably on the Dropbox server and
3) the new copy on my C:\ drive (which is utilizing space there that I cannot afford to have tied up).

Questions:

• Is the above description consistent with how Dropbox works?

• Will there always be a new duplicate copy created on my hard drive of anything I upload to Dropbox?

• Is it necessary for the Dropbox folder to reside on drive C:\ or can I move it to some other drive?

• If changes are made to a file in the Dropbox folder, are those changes automatically synched into the uploaded copy on the Dropbox server?

Thanks
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Chris Millard
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Exactly the info I was after. Thanks.