Cloud platforms have made sharing files and other media attachments very easy. You can share your data with others and collaborate with teams efficiently. This is a good platform to store data. People even use it to store important software setup files.
However, it is a platform to store data. It is not a backup service. It means that your data could be at risk of loss. This makes it important for you to take backups at your side. If you want to learn how to backup Dropbox to external hard drive, then below are some quick methods to do so.
4 Ways to Backup Your DropBox to an External Hard Drive
1] Use Dropbox’s Web App
Dropbox also provides a web app. You can use that to interact with your data, upload files whenever you want, and download them when you need to. You can download the data to your PC locally and then transfer it to your hard drive.
Or you can directly download in the hard drive by setting the download path. Follow these steps to start taking the backup to your external hard drive.
- Connect your external hard drive with your PC.
- Open a web browser that you use.
- Open the website of Dropbox.
- Provide your login details so you can log into your account.
- Before selecting your files, change your download path if you want to directly download to your external hard drive. Click three dots, navigate to ‘Settings → Downloads’ and change th path.
- Select the files and click the download button.
2] Use the Dropbox Desktop App
You can also use the desktop application made by Dropbox, which allows you to download files, upload files, and manage files from the app. Follow these steps to take a backup of your Dropbox using the desktop app.
- Open the desktop app.
- Click ‘Settings’ and then click ‘Preferences’.
- Click the icon that says ‘Sync’ to synchronize the data.
- Click the ‘Move’ button.
3] Use the Dropbox Folder in Your File Explorer
This option is applicable if you have installed the desktop application, you will see a Dropbox folder in your File Explorer. Whatever is in that folder will be synced and added to your Dropbox account.
You can copy data from there and paste it into your external hard drive. To reach this folder, you can use the %HOMEPATH%\Dropbox path in your File Explorer.
4] Via Finder in Mac
If you use a Mac or are new to Mac, then you can also take a backup of your Dropbox in no time. In Windows, you used the File Explorer option. In Mac, you will use the Finder option, which is equivalent to the File Explorer feature of Windows. Follow these steps to move data to your external hard drive.
- Connect your external hard drive with your Mac.
- Open Finder.
- Click the Dropbox option in the left pane.
- Click the Dropbox icon from the top. You will then see a list of options.
- Click on the icon of Settings.
- Select ‘Preferences’.
- Click the ‘Account’ tab on the window that was opened.
- Select the location of your external hard drive.
Conclusion
Dropbox offers a good platform and cloud service to share files, upload data, and download when needed. However, Dropbox is not a backup service. It only stores your data. That is why you should take a backup of your Dropbox.
If you want to do so, then follow the methods mentioned above and transfer your data to your external hard drive.
