KB ID 0001489

Problem

If you are here, you have probably already found out that Dropbox is not supported on Windows Server platforms. You can install it and set it up happily but it stops working and needs to be relaunched all the time (manually).

I love dropbox! So much I actually pay for it! I run it on my management server and its handy for copying file up into my test network, so I can appreciate how annoying it is having to restart it all the time. So to fix the problem we have to use a piece of software that’s over 15 years old! 

Running Dropbox as a Service on Windows Server

First you have to stop dropbox running.

Then download srvany and extract the executable to the Dropbox install directory (C:\Program Files (x86)\Dropbox). Note: This file is form the old Server 2003 resource kit.

From an elevated command prompt run the following command;

[box]sc create Dropbox binPath= “C:\Program Files (x86)\Dropbox\srvany.exe” DisplayName= “Dropbox Service”[/box]

Run services.msc > locate the dropbox Service  > And set its ‘LogOn’ to the account you were logged in with, when you installed the Dropbox software.

Change the startup type to Automatic, (Don’t start the service yet!) > OK.

Execute the following three commands;

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New-Item -Path HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Dropbox\Parameters

New-ItemProperty -Path HKLM:\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Dropbox\Parameters -Name Application -PropertyType String -Value “C:\Program Files (x86)\Dropbox\Client\Dropbox.exe”

Start-Service Dropbox

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Update:

You also need to execute the following from an ‘Administrative command window’, (or Dropbox will stop synchronising after a few hours).

[box]

SETX /M QT_OPENGL software

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Related Articles, References, Credits, or External Links

Special Thanks to Frédéric for the SETX command to fix the timeout.