Skip to main content

Why am I having issues importing files from Dropbox?

In order to import files from Dropbox, the files have to be downloaded and stored locally in the Dropbox app on the iPad. Dropbox calls these files offline files.

If you open the Dropbox app on your iPad it will display a list of your files, but this does not mean that the files are downloaded and stored locally. When you tap on a file in the Dropbox app it starts to download the file from the Dropbox cloud, and you may see a progress bar, or spinner, as the file downloads. You can make your files available offline by following these directions: https://help.dropbox.com/installs-integrations/mobile/access-files-offline 

Using TrialPad for this example, when you open a Case File and choose Plus > Import Documents, the popup window that appears is Apple's file picker which is part of the built in Files app. Our apps use Apple’s file picker to access your files in Dropbox, this is a security feature of iPadOS and not part of our app. TrialPad is passing the request to iPadOS which in turn is what prompts you to select the files. (It is the exact same dialog you see when you choose Attach File when drafting an email in the Mail app.) Once you navigate to the Dropbox location, if any of the files you want to import have a cloud icon with a down arrow, that indicates the files are not stored locally, but are in the Dropbox cloud, and they need to be downloaded.

If you try to import any of the files that have the cloud icon and a down arrow, the Files app will try to access them from the Dropbox app, but the Dropbox app may not allow them to be imported because they are not downloaded from the Dropbox cloud, i.e. they are not offline files. Sometimes it does work, but what you may get is a never-ending spinner in the file picker window that represents this back and forth between Dropbox and the Files app. 

To put this in context, TrialPad uses the Files app file picker as a conduit to access Dropbox. However Dropbox is showing files stored in the Dropbox cloud, and these files cannot be pulled into TrialPad because they don’t exist on the iPad.

Once you get the back and forth process with the never ending spinner, you might try to quit TrialPad to try the import process again. However, doing that will prevent you from accessing Dropbox from the file picker at all the next time you try. That’s because closing TrialPad didn’t do anything to interrupt the previous back and forth between Files and Dropbox. The Files app and Dropbox app are continuing to try to connect in the background. Because file picker extensions are loaded by the operating system, force-quitting the Dropbox app, Files app, or TrialPad is not effective. We have found that restarting the iPad does resolve a lot of issues, and is highly recommended whenever you encounter import issues: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT210631.

Unfortunately this means we cannot control anything that happens within that file picker dialog, which means it is not an issue with TrialPad, but with iPadOS and/or the Dropbox app. Many Dropbox features are not available on the Files app. See this Dropbox support article for more information: https://help.dropbox.com/installs-integrations/mobile/ios-files-app

Dropbox is working to improve the integration with the Files app. In the meantime, here are some best practices to import files from Dropbox into the LIT SUITE.

Before importing any files, you may want to take a look at our video on importing files into the LIT SUITE apps: https://support.litsoftware.com/hc/en-us/articles/1500002364102-How-do-I-download-and-import-files-into-the-apps-

The options below will ensure that any files you are trying to import from Dropbox are considered offline files in the Dropbox app on your iPad.

 

COMPRESSING THE DROPBOX FOLDER

This forces Dropbox to download the files, which makes them offline files. This has the added benefit of allowing you to bring in an entire folder in one step:

  • Open the Files app on your iPad.
  • Tap on Dropbox in the Locations sidebar, and navigate to the folder you want to import.
  • Long-press on the folder, and choose Compress from the dropdown menu, to create a .zip folder.
  • Tap on On My iPad in the Locations sidebar, and navigate to the folder with your Case File.
  • Open the TrialPad Case File you want to import the folder of documents into. Press on the Plus button at the bottom of the Document List, then tap on Import Documents.
  • In the file picker window that appears, navigate to Dropbox, then to the location of the folder you compressed.
  • Tap on the More Options button at the top of the popover, tap on Select, and tap on the .zip file you created, then tap on Open.
  • You will receive an Import Complete confirmation when the files have finished importing.

 

DOWNLOAD FILES USING THE DROPBOX APP

If you can only access your Dropbox files on your iPad, follow these steps:

  • Ensure that the folder or file in Dropbox is available offline on your iPad by opening the Dropbox app, tap on the three dots beside the folder or file name, and turn on the Make Available Offline switch. This downloads the file(s) to the Dropbox app on your iPad. Depending on file sizes this may take some time, so be sure to allow enough time to finish downloading before going to the next step.
  • Open the TrialPad Case File you want to import the folder of documents into. Press on the Plus button at the bottom of the Document List, then tap on Import Documents.
  • In the file picker window that appears, navigate to Dropbox, then to the location of the files you made available offline.
  • Tap on the More Options button at the top of the popover, tap on Select, and tap on the files, then tap on Open.
  • You will receive an Import Complete confirmation when the files have finished importing.

 

COPY YOUR DROPBOX FOLDER INTO THE FILES APP

This allows you to save the files to the On my iPad location in the Files app:

  • Open the Files app on your iPad.
  • Tap on Dropbox in the Locations sidebar, and navigate to the folder you want to copy.
  • Long-press on the folder you want to copy to the Files app, tap on Copy from the dropdown menu.
  • Tap on the On my iPad button in the Locations sidebar and long-press in a blank area, then tap on Paste. Allow enough time for the file(s) and folder(s) to be pasted to the new location.
  • Open the TrialPad Case File you want to import the folder of documents into. Press on the Plus button at the bottom of the Document List, then tap on Import Documents.
  • In the file picker that appears, navigate to On My iPad, then to the location where you pasted the files.
  • Tap on the More Options button at the top of the popover, tap on Select, and tap on the files or folder you want to import, then tap on Open.
  • You will receive an Import Complete confirmation when the files have finished importing.

 

USE A USB

If you can access your Dropbox files on a laptop or desktop computer, and copy them to a USB drive, follow these steps:

  • Copy the files from your computer to a USB drive.
  • Connect the USB to your iPad: https://support.apple.com/guide/ipad/external-storage-devices-ipad75b7b23f/14.0/ipados/14.0.
  • Open the TrialPad Case File you want to import the folder of documents into. Press on the Plus button at the bottom of the Document List, then tap on Import Documents.
  • In the file picker that appears, navigate to the USB drive, then to the location of the files you copied.
  • Tap on the More Options button at the top of the popover, tap on Select, and tap on the files or folder you want to import, then tap on Open.
  • You will receive an Import Complete confirmation when the files have finished importing.

Related articles