How to create a new app in Dropbox with Full permissions

Question

I'm trying to change my Dropbox application permission from 'App folder' to 'Full Dropbox'. By application I mean 'My apps':

I'm doing this to access all the functions provided by Dropbox API, otherwise an error is shown, for example:

Error in call to API function "sharing/get_folder_metadata": Your API app is an "App Folder" app. It is not allowed to access this API function.

Anyway, I've read that the only way to change the permission to an app is by creating a new one . Therefore, what I did was, created a new app with permission type 'Full dropbox' but for some reason it didn't even show up under 'Dropbox > Apps' directory.

According to developers guide if app has permission App folder then it is moved under Apps folder automatically. I tried also that but the folder didn't appear there for some reason. So, why the first application is showing..

Can there be only one active app, like, should I download all the data from first one, delete it and then create new app with Full permissions?

Answer 1

It's not possible to switch the permission on an existing Dropbox API app.

If you want to change the permission used for an app that hasn't been released to users, you can do so by deleting the current API app registration and registering another with the desired permission. Deleting an API app in development mode frees up the name so you can register it again. Once you do, just be sure to update your app accordingly to use the new app key and secret. Access tokens for the deleted app will also no longer work.

If your app has already been released to users, we do not recommend disabling your API app, as it would break the integration for existing users. Instead, we recommend you register another API app for the other permission and add that as an option in your app.

You can register a new API app here:

https://www.dropbox.com/developers/apps/create

There isn't a limit on the number of API apps that can be owned by or linked to a particular account.

Your second App Console screenshot shows that you do own two API apps: one with the "app folder" permission, and one with the "full Dropbox" permission.

Note that only apps with the "app folder" permission get a special "app folder" automatically created under "/Apps". Apps the with "full Dropbox" permission do not, and instead can access any path in the account.