Dropbox doesn't always start on Windows 10 PC

[silverback]

I've installed Dropbox on my Windows 10 PC and some Android devices. It works OK provided Dropbox is running on the PC.
The problem is that it's 50/50 whether Dropbox starts on the PC.

I've looked in Task Manager | Start up and the Dropbox status is Enabled.
I need help to find out why it doesn't always start on the PC, please. (if I double click on the PC Dropbox icon, it starts and runs OK)
Thanks
Silverback

[HansV]

Click the Start button or press the Windows key.
Type startup apps and press Enter.
Is the slider for Dropbox set to On?

S3206.png

[silverback]

Yes.
Silverback

[HansV]

Do you mean "yes, it was already on" or "yes, it helped"?

[John Gray]

I have Dropbox running on a number of mixed machines (Windows 10 Pro and WS2008R2SP1) and I find that every so often I have to start/restart it using a BATch file on one or other machine. Perhaps one day in 20.

Code: Select all

@echo off

:: +----------------+
:: I DropboxRestart I  should Dropbox icon show "Connecting..."
:: +----------------+    or if the Dropbox service shows as stopped
::                       then terminate Dropbox and restart it

:: note that Dropbox has two images:  
::   Dropbox.exe *32  in C:\Program Files (x86)\Dropbox\Client (64-bit)
::                       C:\Program Files\Dropbox\Client       (32-bit)
::   DbxSvc.exe       in C:\Windows\System32   (the service)

::   Dropbox.exe should be running 'all the time'
::   sc query dbxsvc (usually?) shows that the service is stopped

setlocal

:: check whether Dropbox is actually running, and stop it if it is
set task=Dropbox.exe
tasklist /fi "imagename eq %task%" | find /i "%task%" > nul && (
  echo %~n0: %task% is being terminated...
  taskkill /im %task% /f /t 
) || echo %~n0: %task% not terminated because it wasn't running 

:: determine in which Program Files directory Dropbox.exe is located
::   for 32-bit, it will be in Program Files       [no suffix]
::   for 64-bit, it will be in Program Files (x86)
set sfx=
if /i "%processor_architecture%"=="AMD64" set "sfx= (x86)"

echo.
echo %~n0: restarting Dropbox...
start "" "%programfiles%%sfx%\Dropbox\Client\%task%"
echo %~n0: errorlevel from start of Dropbox was %errorlevel%
ping -4 -n 5 127.0.0.1 > nul

echo.
echo %~n0: checking that Dropbox started...
tasklist /fi "imagename eq %task%" 
ping -4 -n 11 127.0.0.1 > nul

endlocal

I haven't looked at the code recently, so the comments may not be correct in all details...

[silverback]

Do you mean "yes, it was already on" or "yes, it helped"?

Very sorry. I meant it was already on.

John G
Dropbox starts OK when I use the icon on the PC. It's just that I have to notice that it isn't running, which is usually just after I've updated a Dropbox file. I'm trying to train myself to check Dropbox before I update.
Silverback

[silverback]

Googled for this problem and it appears relatively well known. Followed the 'sure fire' fix of putting a shortcut to Dropbox in
C:\<Username>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup but it's still refusing to start by itself. Manual starting always works.
Will now try uninstalling and reinstalling - another 'fix' which sometimes works.
Silverback

[JoeP]

instead of having DROPBOX start automatically, you could try creating a scheduled task which executes at user login using Batcher's batch run as a model of the task to execute.

[silverback]

Hans, John G, Joe
I have reinstalled Dropbox and, so far, everything is working OK, with Dropbox starting when I start the PC. I have used belt and braces and put a shortcut in C:\<Username>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup as well, but all seems to be fixed at the moment.
Let's hope I don't regret saying that!
Silverback