Dropbox is cloud-based storage where you can store the files remotely. The company was founded in 2007 by Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. Apart from cloud storage, the company also provides services like file synchronisation, personal cloud as well as client software.
The cloud-based storage comes with a free as well as a host of paid plans. The free plan provides users with 2 GB of storage. In case, like me, you’re on the free plan and are running low on storage, here is a short guide to help you delete files from Dropbox to free up space.
You can do this from the Dropbox website, your PC or from the Dropbox smartphone app. Check out all the three guides below.
Delete files from the Dropbox website
To delete the files from Dropbox, first, you will have to log in with your account. Once you are done with the login, continue with the steps that are given below.
Step 1: Select the files that you want to delete.
Step 2: Click on the three horizontal dot icon at the end of the file.
Step 3: From the drop-down menu, select the Delete option.
Step 4: Confirm the process by again clicking on Delete.
Your file will now be deleted and free storage available. If this didn’t work out for you, continue reading the article for other ways to delete files on Dropbox.
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How to delete files from the computer’s local storage?
Dropbox also features a synchronisation feature where you can delete the files directly from the dropbox folder itself. To delete the files from the Dropbox folder, follow the steps mentioned below.
Step 1: Locate the Dropbox folder on your computer.
Step 2: Right-click on the file that you want to delete.
Step 3: From the drop-down menu, select the Delete option. Alternatively, you can press the Delete button on the keyboard then click on Delete everywhere.
The file or files will be deleted from the cloud storage as well.
The files that you have just removed are not deleted permanently. Rather, Dropbox gives a window of a few days between which you can restore the files. The time frame depends on the plan that you have selected — for the free plan, the you get 30 days to restore the data and 120 days on the the professional plan.
How to delete the files permanently?
In case you want to permanently delete the files, follow the instructions given below.
Step 1: Log in to the Dropbox.
Step 2: On the same left panel, click on Deleted files.
Step 3: Click on the checkbox on the left of the file or files that you want to delete and then click on Permanently delete option at the right.
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How to delete files from Dropbox on Android and iOS?
To delete the files using the Dropbox app, follow the steps mentioned below.
- Long press the file that you want to delete.
- Tap on the three-dot button at the top right of the screen.
- Select the Delete option from the drop-down menu.
Note that you cannot delete the content shared with others. Only the Dropbox team can permanently delete the contents that others have edited. Also, in a shared space, the deleted files are not counted against your storage quota which means that deleting them will not have any effect on the storage.
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Former Senior Editor at Candid.Technology. Hemant has a keen interest in social issues and international relations.
You can contact Hemant on email: [email protected]