How can app be saved in storage without data

[GrumpyYorks]

Apologies if this has benn covered before but if so I cannot find it.
My storage on the iPad is getting full and this is because two apps save all the data too, which I don't want. The apps are Dropbox and Eyefi Mobi. The only way I can see to delete the data is to delete the app, which I don't want to do as I use them very frequently. Another app, My Cloud, does not do this (just as well as it has more than a tB of data saved). Is there a way to keep the app but not have the data backed up to the IPad storage; back up to iCloud would be fine as I have space there, though it's not necessary.

 

[J. A.]

Dropbox should not save the whole amount of data you save in the app to your iPad, except if you chose to view then offline. If you have files in the app, in the Offline tab, remove them from there.

When you remove an app like Dropbox from your iPad, and reinstall it, all you have to do is login again. You won't lose files, because they are stored online. Removing and reinstalling Dropbox could also help reducing the amout of storage it needs on your iPad.

 

[GrumpyYorks]

Many thanks for the reply. In fact I have very little in off-line so from what I think you are saying the problem is perhaps that I never log out of the app on the iPad, I just close it. I'm trying to get my head round this. On the laptop (MacBook) or desktop (iMac) all the files are 'off-line' in that they are sync'd with the Dropbox folder on the laptop and desktop and available even when working offline. So if I delete a file on the laptop or desktop when off line it will be deleted from the data on the Dropbox server next time I go on line. But if I've understood correctly what you said this does not happen with the app on the iPad - if I uninstall the app all the data files are deleted from the iPad storage but not from the iPad server. If this is so then it makes working with the Dropbox app on the iPad rather different to working with it on the Macbook or IMac.

 

[J. A.]

When you uninstall the app from the iPad, the files won't be lost, because they are still in Dropbox, not on the iPad server, or iCloud, or something like this.
Dropbox is online storage. The files are stored "in a cloud". The app on the iPad syncs to this cloud. If you delete files on your iPad or another device connected to this cloud, they will also be removed from Dropbox.
It's different if you just remove the app, but not a file. Then all your files are still available online, and if you set up Dropbox again, you'll get them all back to your device.

 

[GrumpyYorks]

Many thanks again. I'll be trying that. If you go into 'manage storage' the only option is to delete the app and you get a warning that this will delete the data, which is why I've never done it. If I understand you correctly it should say something like 'data stored on the iPad will be deleted but that on the app server will not'.

 

[J. A.]

Correct.

 

[GrumpyYorks]

It worked; the 5gB+ of iPad storage taken up by data in Dropbox is now available but, having reinstalled Dropbox, all my folders and files are there as before.
Many thanks J.A. I would never have worked that out.
I'm really impressed with the responses and help on iPadFORUMS, exceptional!

 

[J. A.]

Glad to help.