How To Unshare a Dropbox Folder? [3 Working Ways]

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When you share a dropbox folder with other people, all the subfolders and files under it are accessible by those members. If you don’t want them to access some files or subfolders under the shared folder, you have to unshare that dropbox folder entirely. Once you unshare a dropbox folder or remove the access of a particular member, they won’t be able to access it further. There are two practical ways to remove someone from the shared dropbox folder or unshare it. Let’s see both of them.

How To Unshare a Dropbox Folder With Members [3 Working Ways]

When you unshare a shared dropbox folder, it gets permanently removed from other people’s dropbox accounts along with their connected devices the next time the app syncs. If you are the creator of a shared folder or file on dropbox, you can remove or transfer ownership of the dropbox folder anytime. Apart from unsharing the folder, dropbox gives you two more options to remove participants’ access from a shared folder. As you can share dropbox files in two ways: by sharing links with people or by giving them access directly to their dropbox account; there are two ways to remove their shared dropbox folder, i.e.

By deleting a link to the shared file or folder
By removing members’ access from the shared dropbox folder

So, in total there are three ways to unshare folder dropbox. Here is the step-by-step guide for all of them.

Method 1: Delete a Link to the Shared Dropbox File/Folder

If you have shared a dropbox folder with others through a shared link and now you want to remove their access, you have to delete the link so that it no longer works for anyone. After deleting a shared link, if you click on the “Share” icon next to that file or folder, you can still see the list of previous members there; however, the link won’t work further for any of them. Note: Only the person who has created the shared link can delete it on dropbox to remove everyone’s access. Follow these steps to delete the shared file/folder link on dropbox:

Log into your dropbox account through dropbox.com or desktop app and click on the “all files” section on the left sidebar.
Choose the shared folder you wish to unshare with others and click on the share icon (rectangle icon having an arrow upwards).
Open the share settings for that folder by clicking on the “gear” icon on the top right of the pop-up dialogue box.
Now choose from the two options depending upon which one you wish to remove: Link for editing or Link for viewing.
Click on “delete link”, and now that link will no longer work for the shared participants.

Note: In a dropbox folder if there are shared links and the creator leaves that folder, the links will be broken and no longer working. In that case, any of the remaining members have to create new links for that folder to share files.

Method 2: Delete access of one or more members from a shared dropbox folder

If you don’t wish to remove access to everyone from the shared folder or file on dropbox by deleting the shared link, you can opt for this method. Through this method, you can remove the access of one or more people whom you have invited directly (not through the shared link) to the shared folder. Once you remove their access, they won’t be able to view or edit that folder through their invite or dropbox.com. However, if you give them a choice to keep a copy while removing their access from a shared folder, they can access that copy but it will no longer sync with other accounts. To delete a member’s access from a shared dropbox folder, go to that file and then follow these steps:

Tap the “Share” icon and click on the “Who can Access” option in the pop-up dialogue. If you are using the dropbox mobile app, right-click on that folder to access the Share option.
From the list of shared participants, click on the dropdown menu next to the member’s name whom you wish to remove.
Select whether you want to leave a copy of that file/folder for the member and click on the “Remove” option. That person will no longer be able to view or edit that shared file or folder on their account.

Note: If the “remove” option is in gray and non-clickable, it is because the member is invited to access that file/folder through a shared link and not directly through its dropbox account. In that scenario, you get a message stating, “People who viewed via link can’t be removed from files”. You have to remove a shared folder dropbox by deleting the shared link (using Method 1) in such cases.

Method 3: Unshare Dropbox Folder to permanently remove it from all members’ accounts

Choose the folder you want to unshare and follow these steps:

Click on the Share icon, go to its settings and choose the “Unshare folder” option. If you want team members to keep a copy of it, you can opt for that option.
Click on “Unshare” to confirm that you want to delete that folder from all shared participants’ accounts, and it no longer syncs on any connected devices on dropbox.

How to see who has access to a shared folder on Dropbox?

The person who creates a shared folder on dropbox by default becomes its owner unless the folder is not created under someone else’s shared folder. To check who all can access a particular shared folder on dropbox, simply follow these steps:

Select that folder and click on the Share or rectangle icon with the arrow next to its name. In the desktop app, right-click on the folder to access the “share” option).
Click on the “Who can Access” option to see the list of all participants.

If you are using the dropbox mobile app, follow these steps:

Click on the three-dots ellipsis icon next to the folder.
Go to the “Folder Settings”
Click on the area below the [x] members to see the list.

How to remove your access from a shared folder on Dropbox?

If you no longer want to be a part of a particular shared dropbox folder, you can leave the shared folder dropbox by removing your access from it temporarily or permanently. Here is how to do it:

Temporarily remove it to add it back later

To temporary remove your access, sign in to your Dropbox account and follow these steps:

Go to that folder and click on the three-dots ellipsis icon next to its name.
Choose the “delete” option to delete the dropbox folder from your account temporarily. If you wish to restore it later, go to the deleted files tab and restore it within 30 days.

Permanent remove

However, to remove that folder permanently from your account, follow these steps:

Go to that folder and click on the share icon next to its name.
Tap on the “[x] people have access” option to see the participants’ list.
Go to your name on the list and click the “Remove My Access” option.

If you want to gain access to that folder anytime in the future, ask the owner to invite you again.

What happens when you delete a shared folder from Dropbox?

There can be different outcomes of deleting a shared folder from dropbox in various scenarios, like:

Suppose you are the owner of a shared folder and delete it from your dropbox by removing your access and giving others the option to keep a copy of it. In that case, the folder will no longer be available for other participants and you. However, they can access a copy of it.

Alternatively, you can transfer ownership of the dropbox folder to someone else and then remove your access so others can access it.

If you are not the owner and delete a shared dropbox folder from your account, it gets deleted for you only while others can access it. You can later rejoin that folder by asking the owner to invite you.
If you are the owner and you unshare the dropbox folder, it gets deleted for everyone, and no one can restore files or view the dropbox logs.
If you remove member access from a shared dropbox folder, they can request you again to join that folder later.

Conclusion

We hope now it is clear to you how to remove someone from a shared dropbox folder by deleting their member access or unsharing the folder with everyone. Depending upon your requirements, you can opt for any of the suitable methods mentioned above. You might not get a “Share” window pop-up if you use an ad-blocker or any browser extension. In that case, disable that extension/blocker and then try the aforementioned steps. For any further queries related to it, get in touch with us in the comments.