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Dropbox size increases ~ Why?

Beards

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I have noticed over the short period of using my first iPad that Dropbox has slowly been increasing in the size reported in Usage.
Where I do not understand is how this increase is being met.
I do not have any files associated with Dropbox Favourites.
I do however open Dropbox files then transfer into the Kindle App for reading.

Thinking it was here where Dropbox was increasing in it"s size I deleted the file in Kindle and had another look at the Usage stats.
Whilst Kindle had reduced it's usage size Dropbox however had not.
More weird was when I then told Dropbox to again open the same file in Kindle, after the transfer and back to Usage Kindle had increased proportionately but Dropbox had now increased for the second time..
In other words Kindle first increased on transfer then reduced the size on deletion, finally increasing the size on the re-transfer.
Dropbox however simply increased the Usage size twice. Once when I opened and transferred the first time and again when I transferred the second time.

Any ideas on why Dropbox keeps increasing and more importantly how to reduce it's size?
At this rate it won't be long before Dropbox becomes the main usage app on the iPad and ever increasing......
 

Nolander07

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It's the app cache. If you delete the app, then re-install it the app size will shrink back to when you first got it. It will then slowly build itself back up as you open the app and use it. There may be a better way to do this, but this is the way I know.
 
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It's the app cache. If you delete the app, then re-install it the app size will shrink back to when you first got it. It will then slowly build itself back up as you open the app and use it. There may be a better way to do this, but this is the way I know.
Yes, I agree it is the cache increasing, just as it does in Android devices.
The difference here though is with Android you can control the cache size whereas with iOS there does not appear to be any control other than wiping the App and reinstall, which to be truthful is not a very professional way in handling the usage.
 

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It's not just Dropbox that does this. I have found several other apps that show this behavior. The most recent was FileExplorer. This one was reporting using a whopping 1.5 GB on my iPad though I had no files stored in its space. I finally wrote to the developer and learned that it has a temporary cache that you need to purge once in a while if you are moving large files around. Sounds like Dropbox needs to add a simular purge function and/or do better job at house cleaning. Another app I use, Pimp Your Screen, did the same thing. I had to delete and reinstall the app to get my space back. I wrote to the developer and they seem to have fixed the problem.
 
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It's not just Dropbox that does this. I have found several other apps that show this behavior. The most recent was FileExplorer. This one was reporting using a whopping 1.5 GB on my iPad though I had no files stored in its space. I finally wrote to the developer and learned that it has a temporary cache that you need to purge once in a while if you are moving large files around. Sounds like Dropbox needs to add a simular purge function and/or do better job at house cleaning. Another app I use, Pimp Your Screen, did the same thing. I had to delete and reinstall the app to get my space back. I wrote to the developer and they seem to have fixed the problem.

Thanks..... I agree Dropbox is not alone in this particular problem but I'm not convinced the blame should entirely be cast at the App in question. It also convinces me that with iOS there is no easy way to handle the cache.
With Android it is simple, when you hit clear cache within the App it goes to the place on the device where the cache is stored and clears said area.
The same can be achieved using any one of the many cache cleaners available for Android.
However with iOS it is different, where exactly would the cache area be stored? To prove this try searching for a cache cleaner in iOS.

It does seem extreme that the only way to clear the cache is by uninstalling the app then reinstall.
 

AQ_OC

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FileExplorer has a button to clear its own cache, so it is not an iOS problem, its an app problem. Just because you can't see a cache cleaner in iOS doesn't mean it can't be done.
 
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Okay, got that thanks..... However, surely iOS must share part of the blame otherwise we would have Cache Cleaner Apps available in the App Store?
 

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Okay, got that thanks..... However, surely iOS must share part of the blame otherwise we would have Cache Cleaner Apps available in the App Store?

You should not need Cache Cleaner apps. Apps should do their own housekeeping. Most of them do...as I mentioned, this used to be a problem in Pimp Your Screen....I wrote them, they fixed it. Those cleaners are there because some app developers aren't doing their jobs right.
 
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I have not seen any cache cleaning in any of the Apps I have so how it's cleared for mine is a mystery.
Again in Android even if you do not install a dedicated cleaner you can drop into the device's settings where every single installed app has a Clear Cache button.

I Admit there is a big difference between iOS and Android but as far as cleaning goes I definitely prefer Androids method.
 

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I have not seen any cache cleaning in any of the Apps I have so how it's cleared for mine is a mystery.
Again in Android even if you do not install a dedicated cleaner you can drop into the device's settings where every single installed app has a Clear Cache button.

I Admit there is a big difference between iOS and Android but as far as cleaning goes I definitely prefer Androids method.

It's fine for you to prefer Android's method, but why should a user have to worry about clearing a cache? That's the entire point of iOS...users are free from such issues. Programmers and apps developers are supposed to deal with such. Most apps don't have cache cleaners, but app developers who are active and trying to do a good job can definitely fix issues like these. That's why I write them to let them know when their app is going wonky.
 
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It's fine for you to prefer Android's method, but why should a user have to worry about clearing a cache? That's the entire point of iOS...users are free from such issues. Programmers and apps developers are supposed to deal with such. Most apps don't have cache cleaners, but app developers who are active and trying to do a good job can definitely fix issues like these. That's why I write them to let them know when their app is going wonky.
That's right, users shouldn't have to worry about increased unknown sizes. Ive never had worry about it in Android I just select and periodically clear.
I'll send a message to the Devs at Dropbox and see what they have to say. :)
 

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That's right, users shouldn't have to worry about increased unknown sizes. Ive never had worry about it in Android I just select and periodically clear.
I'll send a message to the Devs at Dropbox and see what they have to say. :)

The very fact that you are clearing a cache is just wrong....it's a waste of time that a user should not have to be concerned about.
 
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I just found another..... Flipboard.
Just checked it's usage and it's 81MB. Loaded the app let it update today's news then went back to usage and it's increased to 82MB and there's no method to stop the increase other than delete and reinstall.
Did the same in Android which reported a cache size of 5.6MB. I cleared this, loaded Flipboard then downloaded today's news, closed it and again checked the cache size which had increased by 812KBytes. Again cleared it.
Apps increase on both Android and IOS. The only difference is you don't have to uninstall and reinstall with Android.
 

vadimkolchev

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There is no need to reinstall Dropbox to clear cache - it is enough to logout and login again and the size should decrease. Mind that starred items are always kept in cache. Found this solution suddenly)) and I think it is more acceptable than reinstallation.
 
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There is no need to reinstall Dropbox to clear cache - it is enough to logout and login again and the size should decrease. Mind that starred items are always kept in cache. Found this solution suddenly)) and I think it is more acceptable than reinstallation.
Interesting..... How though do you log out and back in?
Couldn't ind this in Dropbox, only 'Unlink'.
 

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