Dropbox is useful, but it is intended to be a synchronization service, not a backup service.

Dropbox is currently the ONLY service that supports the Scrivener file structure for syncing. Therefore it is the only service recommended by Literature and Latté for use in syncing between iOS (and possibly soon Android) devices and Windows or Mac Computers. If you are going to sync between multiple devices with Dropbox, I do not recommend using it as your sole location for backups. I believe live projects (the items you are syncing) and backups should never be on the same drive/location unless you also back up elsewhere. Why? In the event of catastrophic failure if they are in the same location you may lose both your live projects and backups.

Dropbox rules

1. Always close the project before syncing to the cloud. Make sure backup is completed BEFORE shutting down your computer.

2. Must allow your Dropbox sync to be complete BEFORE shutting down the computer. (Do not shut down your computer, or allow it to sleep before syncing is complete.)

3. When you open on a different computer, the changes will be reflected in the project.

4. ONLY ONE computer can be using a given project at one time.

5. Maintain a local backup separate from the Dropbox folder as an additional backup. This can be to external drive/USB key as well. Use the Menu command File > Backup > Backup to -to choose your local backup location outside of Dropbox.

6. Make sure Dropbox is configured to store your Dropbox files offline on your computer. This will avoid potential sync issues that can affect a Project’s integrity. (see detailed instructions on this at the end of the article)

7. You can sync between iOS and Win/Mac without the iOS device being registered as one of the three, provided you do not log in via the Dropbox app on the iOS device.

8. Strongly consider backing up your Scrivener projects to an external drive or a USB key as an additional precaution.

9. Note: Damage to one copy of the project can propagate to all of the synchronized copies. In one case, a user forgot to de-authorize his work computer when he changed jobs. When his former employer wiped the hard disk, they wiped out both the “cloud” copy and his own local copy of his work. Dropbox by itself is not a secure backup strategy. Set the number of backups to a large number if you can to minimize this risk.

10. Dropbox by itself is not a secure backup strategy.

Using Dropbox on Windows:

Install Dropbox on windows. It will create the main Dropbox folder and subfolders. For ease, you can create an “App” subfolder in your new Dropbox, and add the entire scrivener project (image folders etc. as well as the .scriv). Classically, IOS/IPAD will look for an App folder and keep Scrivener projects inside. (I strongly suggest default folder should be Apps/Scrivener.)

Once you create this folder, now drag/upload the Project folders you wish to share into this folder. If the upload stalls, pause the upload process for 30 minutes and try to resume. This will often finish the process.

Using Scrivener on the Ipad or Iphone.

Now install Dropbox on your iPad/Iphone/device. Make sure all your folders are properly synced. [This may take time.] Link device to Dropbox. You will need to allow time for the sync process to finish before opening a project on the Ipad, or I phone.

Setting Up Dropbox Sync

To set up Scrivener for iOS so that it can sync with Dropbox, follow these steps:

In Scrivener for iOS, make sure you are viewing the Projects list and that you do not have a project open.
Tap the sync button.
Tap Link Dropbox in the menu that appears.
If you have the Dropbox app installed on your iOS device, it will now be opened and you will be asked to grant Scrivener access to your Dropbox account. If you don't have Dropbox installed, a sign-in form will appear inside Scrivener. Either way, follow the in-app instructions and give Scrivener permission to access Dropbox.
Once Scrivener has been allowed access to Dropbox, a Dropbox Settings panel will appear, asking you to choose a Dropbox folder. This is the folder you will use to sync projects between devices. Only projects stored inside this folder will be synced.
For now, we'll leave the default folder selected (Apps/Scrivener) and tap Done. Just note that you could have chosen another folder if you wanted.

Scrivener is now linked with the Apps/Scrivener location in Dropbox, but the folder is not created until you add a project to the folder on iOS and sync.

To add a Project to Dropbox do this:

Tap the + button at the top of the screen.

Enter a title for the new project and tap Create.

Choose Dropbox as the location to save.

The new project opens automatically. Tap < Scrivener (or < Projects on iPad) in the upper left to return to the projects screen.

Tap the sync button.

Preparing Projects for Syncing

The most important thing to remember is this: to sync projects between your desktop and iOS device, projects must be inside the Dropbox folder you selected when setting up sync on your iOS device.

See this Scrivener article on this https://scrivener.tenderapp.com/help/kb/cloud-syncing/using-scrivener-with-cloud-sync-services

You want to make sure Dropbox is set to save files offline. (This keeps a local copy of the backup on your computer.)

How to set Dropbox to store local files offline:

There are two methods to store the files offline on your computer:

Method One-

You can right click on the Dropbox folder on your computer after you have installed the desktop app. Now you will see Dropbox options to Make files offline or to Manage Hard Drive Space. If you click this, you can view your Dropbox items as individual files or as folders (Use the folder view option).

In the situation below, Dropbox is already storing your files offline. This is shown by the green check next to the option Dropbox on hard drive. If it was online, you would have the option to make any folder you check offline as well.

Method 2-

Right-click on the app icon in your computer taskbar.

Click on the your avatar/name in the right upper corner of the newly opened screen.

Click Preferences and then click the Sync tab. See images below.

The Sync screen gives you multiple options. If you have the room choose Available offline and all the files will be available locally and in the cloud.

For more information about storing your Dropbox files offline look here.

Note computer backup services like Carbonite, IDrive, etc can also back up scrivener files to the cloud. Make sure where you store your zipped backups are included in the folders/files being backed up by these type of services.

The best way to make sure the Dropbox version is appropriately synced is to save the project in the Dropbox folder. This will place a copy both on the local hard drive and on the Dropbox server.

It would be wise to also arrange a backup to some non-Dropbox location, such as an external hard drive.

Check the Dropbox icon to make sure your project has fully synced to the cloud BEFORE shutting down the computer. This process will take a few moments and the syncing icon on the Dropbox app will show when the sync is complete.

Using Dropbox with Scrivener