Top 2 Ways to Backup Files to Dropbox in Windows (Free)

User Case: How Do I Backup Files to Dropbox?

“Hey, I used the Dropbox to store almost all my data. But I have a question recently. I want to backup all my personal image and video files and others in hundreds of different directories on my computer to my dropbox. What should I do? Any suggestion will be appreciated.”

Is Dropbox Good for Backup?

Dropbox is a famous cloud sync tool operated by American company Dropbox, Inc., which is widely used for storing data on cloud storage, sync files across systems, etc. Here are some features of this tool.

• You can take your docs anywhere, because everything you keep in Dropbox is synced automatically to all your devices, including desktop or laptop dropbox folder, tablet and mobile app.

• It is easy to share or send large files with anyone with a simple link.

• Your data is much safer, even in case of computer meltdown, because it keeps away from the local computer.

• You can share changed data easily. When you edit a file in the shared folder, others will get the update automatically.

From the overview of Dropbox, you can clearly get it's not a backup tool at all. Why Dropbox is not a backup solution? There are 3 main reasons in the following.

• In the first place, it's designed to sync files, not to backup entire computer or other devices, and recover files in the event of a disaster.
• Then, it limits the number or size of files to be uploaded. For example, you cannot upload files larger than 50GB to dropbox.com.
• Moreover, if you delete files or folders from either dropbox.com or your computer, it will remove data from both and the deleted files or folders will only be kept for 30 days. 

How to Backup Files to Dropbox Automatically

Sync files to Dropbox for easy access

If you just need to access files flexibly, you can still use Dropbox to sync files. The simplest way is to download and install Dropbox desktop app, then copy and paste files to Dropbox desktop folder, and it will be synced to dropbox.com automatically.

The problem is that it's time-consuming, especially when you send large files to cloud storage. And it will take a lot of space on your computer. 

Backup files to Dropbox for disaster recovery

If you want to add extra protection for your files and folders, you could consider using a free backup software like AOMEI Backupper Standard.

• With it, you can backup PC files to Dropbox automatically in simple steps. You can also backup system, disks or partitions as per your need.
• The backed up files will be compressed to an image file that can avoid any unwanted deletion or modification. You cannot make any changes before restoring the created image file. 
• You can back up an unlimited number of files or large files as long as your Dropbox has enough space.
• Besides, this software offers you a cloud drive named AOMEI Cloud and 1TB of free cloud storage in 15 days after you register an AOMEI account. So you can also backup files to AOMEI Cloud in this software.

The way to backup files to Dropbox will be introduced in detail later.

Step by Step Guide: Backup PC Files to Dropbox with AOMEI Backupper

Now, let's have a closer look at how to backup your PC files to Dropbox. Please download Dropbox desktop app and AOMEI Backupper Standard for preparation. 

Step 1. Launch free backup software, and click Backup and File Backup in order.

Step 2. Click Add File or Add Folder to select the data to be backed up. 

Note: If you don't want to backup some file types in a folder, you can backup files with a certain file extension by using "Filter Setting". You may upgrade to advanced versions to enjoy this feature.

Step 3. Click the inverted triangle and Select a cloud drive to find Dropbox and choose it as the destination. If you can't find Dropbox in the list, you can manually select the Dropbox local folder as the destination path.

Step 4. To automatically backup files to Dropbox, you can click Schedule Backup > Enable Schedule Backup. The default setting is daily incremental backup to backup only changed files after the first full backup.

Notes ✎...
• If you think the daily backup interval is too short, you can change it to weekly or monthly, depending on how often you will change your files.
• To backup files during off-peak hours, check Wake the computer to run scheduled tasks, and it will wake up your computer 2 minutes before the scheduled backup starts.
• Incremental backup requires all backups to be intact. If any of these backups are damaged, subsequent backups are invalid. To avoid this situation, you could use differential backup (supported by the professional version) instead.

Step 5. Then, click Start Backup to launch the progress.

This software also supports other cloud storage like Google Drive and OneDrive. And you can backup cloud files to another place if the need ever arises, such as backup Dropbox files to external hard drive.

The first backup may take a long time, depending on the number of files and your network speed. Then, you can restore files from backup at any time with Restore option when unexpected things happen. 

Over to you

Now, you may already know Dropbox is not a backup solution and how to backup your PC files to Dropbox with AOMEI Backupper. The process can be automatic and does not require human intervention, which can free your hands. Also, this software only backs up changed files with daily incremental backup by default.

Besides, you can backup system, disk, and partition in case of unexpected situations, such as system crash, virus attack, disk failure, spilled milk, etc. Meanwhile, if you want to protect unlimited PCs with a company, you could try AOMEI Backupper Technician. It covers all the excellent features, including daily differential backup, command line backup & restore, dissimilar hardware restore, real-time sync, and so on. 

Still don't have a backup for your files? Don't hesitate and create one immediately.