DropboxPortableAHK

[Ruby]

Not really sure if older Dropbox versions are a security liability; IMHO they have just been adding new features since the version DPAHK uses.

The changes listed there are for the 1.4.x version, however DPAHK uses 1.1.x version

If you go HERE and scroll down to 1.1.45 (9/1/2011), you can see the next build above it 1.2.48 (10/31/2011)

1.2.48 10/31/2011
Security enhancements, an attacker will not be able to steal your computer's account credentials just by copying configuration files to another machine.
New encrypted database format to prevent unauthorized access to local Dropbox client database.
Enhanced Lion integration

1.1.45 9/1/2011
Fix regression from 1.1.40 that caused tray menu to not update on Ubuntu Unity 11.04
Fix to bug that would cause Dropbox to not function correctly on some proxies.

https://www.dropbox.com/release_notes

~Ruby

[Midas]

The changes listed there are for the 1.4.x version, however DPAHK uses 1.1.x version

[...]

https://www.dropbox.com/release_notes

True (DPAHK is using v1.1.45 -- released in ISO-2011-09-01 -- to be more specific).

And thanks for that link, Ruby. I did a quick search which didn't find the complete changelog at the forum, so I posted a snippet that looked relevant.

After reading the rest of that changelog, and although it's rather extense, I still think most changes aren't that significant for the knowledgeable portable user who's running DPAHK in a Windows environment, like me -- apart from that major change early on that totally curtailed further development of DPAHK by preventing copying of files and at the same time encrypting the database.

So for completeness, here's the changes made after the version DPAHK is using (I highlighted changes that seemed relevant to me, security-wise; feel free to point to others):

Spoiler!   

1.4.7 5/24/2012

* Add missing translations.

1.4.6 5/23/2012

* Fix importing of files larger than 2GB on OS X.
* Better handling of the "never" option on Windows.
* Fix for infinite syncing on really really long paths.

1.4.5 5/12/2012

* Fix bad arg list exception introduced in 1.4.4.
* Fix database is locked errors.

1.4.4 5/11/2012

* Add "Never" button to Windows camera splash screen.
* Fix for Linux App Indicator going unresponsive.
* Public links now send you to https.
* Fix syncing of really really large files.
* Fix infinite sync on certain files with resource forks on OSX.

1.4.3 5/4/2012

* Fix performance problem when syncing a lot of files
* Fix inability to leave shared folder bug
* Fix Dropbox not starting on OS X sometimes

1.4.2 5/2/2012

* Fix Menu not updating on Ubuntu 12.04
* Fix performance problem when syncing a lot of files on Linux

1.4.1 4/28/2012

* Fix Dropbox not starting on OS X

1.4.0 4/26/2012

* Importing of photos from cameras, phones, and SD cards.
* Batch upload/download of files.

1.3.44 4/26/2012

* Fix importing from Sony DSC-W170
* Fix issue where progress window would show up on boot.
* Enable Keyboard navigation in Camera Uploads UI
* New Camera Uploads and Photos folder icons
* Other small fixes

1.3.43 4/25/2012

* Fixes for photo import from Nokia smartphones
* Fixes for PTP folders on XP
* Assorted instrumentation and other fixes

1.3.41 4/24/2012

* Fix longstanding issue where Dropbox would take a long time restarting after a lot of use.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.39 4/21/2012

* New icon for Camera Uploads folder.
* Fix Preference Window sometimes not showing.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.38 4/20/2012

* All strings are now translated into Spanish, French, German and Japanese.
* Fix Windows XP not importing from iPhone issue.
* Add a special folder icon for the Camera Uploads folder.
* Better error handling when disconnecting devices during import.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.36 4/12/2012

* Better handling of photos taken in the same second.
* Fix for certain non-standard date formats.
* Better rendering of thumbnails (retains aspect ratio) and general improvements to the import progress window.
* Better estimation of how much time is remaining while importing.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.34 4/6/2012

* New prettier graphics in photo splash screen!
* Better handling for out of quota issues while importing.
* Better detection for passcode locked devices on OSX.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.31 4/5/2012

* Fix for attaching new devices on Mac.
* New error splash screen when quota is nearly full.
* New error dialog for out of disk space and corrupt files on photo import.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.30 4/3/2012

* Added a splash screen for Windows.
* Beautified the Windows progress bar.
* Improvements to quota handling.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.27 3/28/2012

* Better UI when import is large (show number of files scanned so far, etc)
* Translations for non-English users
* Retry autoupdate even if it fails once for this build
* Fix tray icon for even more people
* Warn Windows users who use Run As to install

1.3.28 3/28/2012

* Nothing, this version will discriminate auto-updated early release users from forum users

1.3.26 3/22/2012

* Fixes for Camera Upload on Windows XP and 2003
* Fix out of quota issue
* Improve Camera Upload text
* Memory usage improvements
* Other small fixes

1.3.25 3/19/2012

* Nothing, this version will discriminate auto-updated early release users from forum users

1.3.24 3/16/2012

* Fix Finder beach-balling issue

1.3.23 3/14/2012

* Large files (up to 4GB) can be uploaded to WIndows XP
* Remember device metadata even when feature is disabled
* Better unicode handling
* New splash screen strings
* Make sure autoplay works after autoupdate
* Other small fixes

1.3.21 3/8/2012

* Fix unable to finish downloading large files issue.
* Add a Camera Uploads element on windows preferences.
* Import 3gpp files
* Other small fixes

1.3.20 3/7/2012

* Fix naming of files from Galaxy Nexus.
* Fix inability to import photos because of Unicode names.
* Make autoupdate more robust
* Other small fixes

1.3.18 2/24/2012

* Fix Autoplay issue in Windows Vista 64-bit.
* Photos will appear correctly rotated on all platforms.
* Improved performance. Less CPU usage during import.
* Windows: Warn user when iPhone is locked.
* Other small fixes

1.3.19 2/24/2012

* Windows: Fix importing from SD cards with no name

1.2.52 2/24/2012

* Provide more help information in the extremely rare case that Dropbox cannot start on Windows

1.3.17 2/17/2012

* Don't import on OS X if screen is locked.
* Consistent names for cameras which shoot RAW/JPG pairs in the same second
* Fix issue where Finder would crash when opening the Dropbox folder.
* Remember 'always import' setting per device.

1.3.16 2/15/2012

* Support AVCHD (Note: most of these devices need to be plugged in using PC mode for this to work.)
* Fix Finder crash in 10.7.3
* Don't autoupdate while photo import is happening
* Better UI responsiveness while Importing
* On install wait for file transfers to finish before restarting Windows Explorer.
* Fix missing msvcr71.dll issue
* Offer to install Autoplay proxy on first restart after autoupdate.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.15 2/10/2012

* Handle disconnecting devices on Windows 7 better.
* Raise Progress window to top if you click on the tray menu and progress window is already open.
* Other small fixes.

1.3.14 2/8/2012

* Fix for random crashes on OS X.
* Fix i18n issue in Windows 2000.
* Fix issue where you couldn't unlink if you weren't connected.
* Fix issue where you couldn't import photos if you had gotten all 5GB.
* Fix possible double import when devices disconnect and connect quickly.
* Fix failure to import on certain devices on 10.5
* Fix for UI not updating in selective sync.

1.3.13 2/4/2012

* Fix crashes when importing raw files
* Better handling of disconnecting a device in Windows.
* Fix case where we could create multiple Camera Uploads folders
* Fix progress windows being too small on Windows
* Add support for importing wmv, m4v, mkv, mts, 3gp in DCIM directory.
* Other small fixes

1.3.12 2/2/2012

* Cleanup UI in Windows non admin installation.
* Fix infinite restart of Dropbox when database was corrupted.
* Fix import error on iPhone with lots and lots of photos.
* Better Handling of out of quota issues on first photo import.
* Other small fixes

1.3.10 1/31/2012

* Fixes for Galaxy Nexus.
* Rename an existing Camera Upload folder if it exists and it's your first time importing photos ever.
* Fixed small race when two devices connect around the same time.
* Cancel import if user disables camera import using the preferences.
* Better messaging on Selective Sync Camera Import dialog
* Fix issue where auto update won't work.
* Fix incorrect registry keys that were being written in Windows.
* Other small fixes

1.3.11 1/31/2012

* Fix import loop when two devices are connected at the same time.

1.3.9 1/20/2012

* Fix inability to start Dropbox on Linux
* Show error message when trying to import photos and user has selectively synced out the Camera Uploads folder.
* Make Camera Uploads folder look pretty on OS X.
* Improved logging.
* Other small fixes.

1.2.51 1/18/2012

* Add missing translations.

1.3.7 1/15/2012

* Fix another very rare issue where Dropbox wouldn't start on Windows.
* Give better error message for common Registry issues on Windows.
* Fix rare import issue on Windows with SD Cards.

1.3.6 1/13/2012

* Fix up/down arrow regression on Mac tray menu.
* Fix for SD cards that have Unicode names in them.
* Fix cases in which duplicated photos weren't being detected properly after a restart.
* Support Photo Importer on OS X 10.5
* Better notification timing on Photo Imports
* Don't import photos if it will take you over Quota.

1.2.50 1/13/2012

* Fix another very rare issue where Dropbox wouldn't start on Windows.
* Give better error message for common Registry issues on Windows.

1.3.5 12/29/2011

* Duplicate photos on a device does not cause false-positive import error
* Better experience uploading large number of files from Windows SD cards and mounted devices

1.3.4 12/21/2011

* First build with photo importer
* Selective sync for Windows 8 fixed

1.2.49 12/5/2011

* Fix very rare issue where Dropbox wouldn't start on Windows.
* Fix Selective Sync not working on Windows 8 Developer Preview.

1.3.2 11/1/2011

* Fix an xattr syncing issue when unlinking / relinking
* Better check for xattr support in Linux
* Fix issue on Linux where overlay icons were not being updated

1.2.48 10/31/2011

* Security enhancements, an attacker will not be able to steal your computer's account credentials just by copying configuration files to another machine.
* New encrypted database format to prevent unauthorized access to local Dropbox client database.
* Enhanced Lion integration

[Nh]

One of the disadvantages of this program is that it duplicates all of the folders and files in its subfolder "\Dropbox". FYI there is a perfect solution - through Windows 7 command "mklink", which creates symbolic links to folders. For example, if your DropboxPortableAHK is here:

D:\Sync\DropboxPortableAHK

then to synchronize the folder "D:\Music\FreddieMercury" with your dropbox.com folder "GreatestHits\Freddie", you have to open the command prompt and write in it:

Code: Select all

mklink /D D:\Sync\DropboxPortableAHK\Dropbox\GreatestHits\Freddie D:\Music\FreddieMercury

then press Enter. That's all. No extra duplicate folders and files will be created in your local Dropbox folder.

Just pure sync and you are happy instantly

P.S. The folder "D:\Sync\DropboxPortableAHK\Dropbox\GreatestHits" must exist before you run mklink.

[webfork]

Weirdly dropboxportableahk is still in development. I was sure that was a flash in the pan idea that would fade with some Dropbox system changes, but here we are:

http://nionsoftware.com/dbpahk/

... it remains in beta after all this time but still seems to be fighting the good fight.

[Midas]

It remains in beta after all this time but still seems to be fighting the good fight.

And hooray to that!

[webfork]

Background: I'm not a fan of the Dropbox service generally due to a lot of problems with unpublished link expiration. You may still find some of my old posts here in forums that have dropbox links that have died, as I don't think I was able to find/update them all. However, after some lobbying from someone unwilling to try other methods, I gave in and decided to retest. Still, I can use it as an opportunity to test the DropboxPortableAHK ...

---

Setup process

Download and launch, go with the defaults (though I turned off auto-update notification). The Wizard-style setup worked easily, but does require download of the enormous Dropbox setup file.

Unfortunately the program requires restarting Explorer:

... and then it recommends a computer restart, not something I see a lot of in the portable world.

---


Status: Portable, I'm not used to restarting my computer so my test may not be comprehensive, but I'm confident all settings are local. Stealth: Unknown. EDIT: ongoing use introduced a program that would not shut down or allow deletion from my machine. Recommend avoiding.

Resource usage:

• Download: 4 megs
  Disk space (thanks to auto-downloader): 800 megs. This has got to be some kind of record. In exchange for access to a handful of shared files.
  RAM: 200 megs across 4 processess. The base program (DropboxPortableAHK) is only 3 megs

I'm not sure there's much the developer can do as I think the space hogs are built into the program. I tried deleting the DropboxClientInstaller.exe program from the directory structure, but that seemed to prevent program launch.

Other notes

To close the program, click on the taskbar icon, select the profile button and choose Exit Program

EDIT: You may have to manually shut down the dropbox update process. You can do this via the excellent Nircmd in a batch file: nircmd killprocess dropboxupdate.exe

[Midas]

FTR, DropboxPortableAHK currently at v1.6.9 released 2019-09-20 (release announcement at https://nionsoftware.com/dbpahk/beta-v1-6-9; download and full changelog at https://nionsoftware.com/dbpahk/download).

[webfork]

It didn't seem to be an issue when I ran my first test, but ongoing use appears to have installed the dropbox program, and it's not easy to remove. I'm recommending against use of DropboxPortableAHK.

On a related note, I tried to make a go of Dropbox's collaborative "Paper" editor via web/mobile, and was really frustrated with both the tool and connecting to the service.