Install Dropbox on Ubuntu Server and Desktop
Dropbox is the online storage service supports Linux distros. Dropbox provides online storage to backup and store data automatically with security. It has both free and paid plan. In the free plan, it provides 2GB storage if you want more storage then you can buy paid plans. In this tutorial, you are going to learn how to install Dropbox on Ubuntu.
Prerequisites
Before you start to install Dropbox on Ubuntu 18.04. You must have the non-root user account on your server/desktop with sudo privileges.
1. Install Dropbox With GUI
First, Update apt package manager index by typing following.
sudo apt update
Install Dropbox by running following command
sudo apt install nautilus-dropbox
After installing Dropbox, launch Dropbox from Activities.
Now it will start downloading main Dropbox binaries.
It will prompt you to enter credentials and login or register with Dropbox. After Successful Sign in you are ready to use Dropbox
Now start using Dropbox by visiting Dropbox menu.
2.Install Dropbox from Terminal
Enter following command to dowload Dropbox on system. It will create .dropbox-dist in HOME directory.
For 32 bit:
cd ~ && wget -O - "https://www.dropbox.com/download?plat=lnx.x86" | tar xzf -
For 64 bit:
cd ~ && wget -O - "https://www.dropbox.com/download?plat=lnx.x86_64 | tar xzf -"
Start Dropbox daemon by typing following
~/.dropbox-dist/dropboxd
Output should be:
This computer isn't linked to any Dropbox account... Please visit https://www.dropbox.com/cli_link_nonce?nonce=dhjsjchy89ksf5372828c03709 to link this device.
Now open above link in your favorite browser. Note you can also open above link on any other system.
Enter username and password and Sign In to the account. Once the server connects to the Dropbox account you can see following output
This computer is now linked to Dropbox. Welcome Smart
Now folder named Dropbox will be created in HOME directory. List files inside folder typing
ls Dropbox
It’s time to install Dropbox CLI (Command Line Interface). Dropbox CLI requires Python should be installed. Enter following commands to install Python and Dropbox CLI.
sudo apt install python
sudo wget -O /usr/local/bin/dropbox "https://www.dropbox.com/download?dl=packages/dropbox.py"
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/dropbox
3. Manage Operations with Dropbox CLI
To Manage Dropbox operations on the server side you should use Dropbox CLI (Command Line Interface).
List all commands available with Dropbox CLI by typing:
dropbox
Output should be,
Output: Dropbox command-line interface commands: Note: use dropbox help <command> to view usage for a specific command. status get current status of the dropbox throttle set bandwidth limits for Dropbox help provide help puburl get public url of a file in your dropbox's public folder stop stop dropboxd update download latest version of dropbox running return whether dropbox is running start start dropboxd filestatus get current sync status of one or more files proxy set proxy settings for Dropbox autostart automatically start dropbox at login exclude ignores/excludes a directory from syncing lansync enables or disables LAN sync sharelink get a shared link for a file in your dropbox ls list directory contents with current sync status
If you want more information about a specific command enter following command
dropbox help sharelink
Above command will provide you more information about sharelink command.
dropbox running Returns 1 if running 0 if not running.
Check status of dropbox by typing
dropbox status
If Dropbox is not active then start service by running following command
dropbox start
To stop dropbox service enter following command
dropbox stop
Get sync status of Dropbox file by typing
dropbox filestatus Dropbox/test.txt
Generate shareable link for a file by typing
dropbox sharelink Dropbox/test.txt
You can exclude the directory from syncing by using the following command
dropbox exclude add Dropbox/dir1
To list excluded directories type following command
dropbox exclude list
Remove directory from excluded list typing
dropbox exclude remove Dropbox/dir1
4. Start Dropbox After Reboot
To start Dropbox after every reboot you should create systemd service inside your Ubuntu. Create a service by running the following command
sudo nano /etc/systemd/system/dropbox.service
Copy following code inside that file by typing. You should Replace User, Group and Dropbox CLI path /usr/local/bin/ with our own values.
[Unit]
Description=Dropbox Service
After=network.target
[Service]
ExecStart=/bin/sh -c '/usr/local/bin/dropbox start'
ExecStop=/bin/sh -c '/usr/local/bin/dropbox stop'
PIDFile=${HOME}/.dropbox/dropbox.pid
User=smart
Group=smart
Type=forking
Restart=on-failure
RestartSec=5
StartLimitInterval=60s
StartLimitBurst=3
[Install]
WantedBy=multi-user.targetReload Systemctl daemon typing
sudo systemctl daemon-reload
Now enable Dropbox service by typing following command
sudo systemctl enable dropbox
Start Dropbox service using
sudo systemctl start dropbox
Get status of the Dropbox service by
sudo systemctl status dropbox
Conclusion
You have successfully learned how to install Dropbox on Ubuntu 18.04. If you have any queries don’t forget to comment below.
