
Dropbox is a popular cloud storage service that lets you access your files from anywhere. One useful feature is the ability to automatically upload photos and videos from your iOS device's camera roll. This allows you to easily backup and synchronize your photos across devices.
Enabling background photo uploading is simple, but does require a few steps to get set up properly. In this comprehensive guide, we'll walk through everything you need to know to enable background photo uploading from your iPhone or iPad to Dropbox.
Before getting started, make sure you meet the following requirements:
As long as your iOS device meets these requirements, you should be ready to enable background photo uploads.
Enabling background photo uploads is a quick three-step process:
Open up the Dropbox app on your iPhone or iPad. Tap the "Settings" tab located along the bottom toolbar.
This will open up the Settings page for the Dropbox app.
Next, tap on "Camera Uploads" about halfway down the list of settings options.
Tapping Camera Uploads will open up a page specific to background photo and video uploading.
On the Camera Uploads screen, toggle the switch next to "Background Uploading" on.
With the Background Uploading switch turned on, your Dropbox account is now enabled to automatically upload new photos and videos in the background.
You're all set! New photos you take will now start auto-uploading to Dropbox. Keep reading for additional tips on managing background uploads.
By default, photos will upload to a Dropbox folder named "Camera Uploads". You can change the destination folder in the Camera Uploads settings.
Some things to keep in mind when selecting an upload folder:
Background uploading will consume cellular data when not on WiFi. To minimize data usage:
Uploading only on WiFi is recommended for most users with limited data plans. But you can allow cellular uploading if you need access to your photos at all times.
In the Camera Uploads settings you can change how often new photos are uploaded:
Immediate uploading ensures your photos backup almost instantly. Less frequent options help reduce battery usage and data consumption.
By default, photos from all apps and sources will automatically upload. You can change this by tapping "Choose apps" under "Upload Photos and Videos From:"
This will let you disable uploads from specific apps. For example, you may not want screenshots or photos from messaging apps to upload.
The same background upload process applies to both photos and videos. But videos consume much more bandwidth.
To manage video uploads:
You can check the status of recent and pending uploads in a few ways:
Monitoring the upload status allows you to confirm your files are backing up properly through background uploads.
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If you're having issues getting background uploads to work properly, try the following troubleshooting tips:
Following troubleshooting steps can typically get background uploading functioning again if disabled.
Automatically uploading photos and videos from your iPhone or iPad to Dropbox is a breeze with the proper background upload settings configured. Simply toggle on background uploads within the Dropbox app settings and you'll start effortlessly backing up your camera roll. Just be mindful of your upload destinations, cellular data usage, battery drain, and available storage as you enable this useful feature.
Yes, background uploading can work over both WiFi and cellular data connections. But uploading only on WiFi is recommended to avoid excessive cellular data usage. The Camera Uploads settings give you options to restrict background uploads to WiFi only.
Background uploading requires your iOS device to stay awake periodically when not plugged in, which uses extra battery life. So you can expect some reduction in battery life, but performance optimizations by Dropbox minimize the impact. Setting uploads to WiFi only or a less frequent interval can further reduce battery drain.
The storage space needed depends on the size (megapixels), quality (compression), and quantity of your photos and videos. Typical photos may average 2-5MB each. Videos take up much more room. You may need to upgrade your Dropbox storage plan to accommodate your total upload volume.
Unfortunately the background uploading feature only works from your iOS camera roll and not directly from the camera. You'll first need to save photos and videos to the camera roll before Dropbox can auto-upload them in the background.
Yes, Dropbox supports automatic background uploading of Live Photos from iOS. The .mov video component of the Live Photo will upload along with the standard .jpg still image.
Open up the Camera Uploads folder on dropbox.com to browse your uploads. You can also view pending uploads from the Camera Uploads settings page in the mobile app. Completed uploads will show the uploaded date.
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