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kitingChris's avatar
kitingChris
Helpful | Level 6
5 years ago

Android: Kdbx files can only opened with Google Drive-PDF-Viewer which is wrong!

Why can I open Keepass *.kdbx files only with Google Drive-PDF-Viewer?? It is no PDF. Why does the dropbox app does not let me choose a different App to open the file with? Why not use the android default app open selection??

  • tputkonen's avatar
    tputkonen
    Helpful | Level 5

    I have stored my KeePass password file (.kdbx) in Dropbox, but cannot anymore open it with KeePassDroid. My setup has worked flawlessly for several years, but this week I noticed that Dropbox tries to open the file with "Drive PDF Viewer". I have not done any changes to settings, in Dropbox -> Settings -> Manage default apps there are no default apps set, and if I choose "Open with..." for this file, the PDF viewer is the only application I can select.

     

    I'm using Android, Dropbox version 190.2.2.

     

    • DrRob's avatar
      DrRob
      Explorer | Level 4

      Hi,

       

      I'm having trouble opening .kdbx (KeePass) files from Dropbox on an Android phone.  I was originally using the KeePassDroid app, and switched to KeePassDX to try to resolve the issue, but have since found the problem occurs with that one too.

       

      The way it manifests is that I open Dropbox on my phone and tap my .kbdx file and expect it to open in the KeePass app.  The file downloads, the screen goes blank momentarily, and then I am returned to the file list.

       

      I can work around it by using the "..." icon to open the menu on the .kdbx file, toggle the "Make available offline" off, then do it again and toggle it back on.  Then when I tap the .kdbx file, a dialog pops up to ask which app to use to open it.  I select KeePassDroid or KeePassDX and tap "always", and the file opens in the app as expected.  If I close it and try again, it works a second time.  However, if I try again another day, it fails to open and I have to apply the workaround again.

       

      I did on one occasion see a "toast" message when trying to open the file - something about it not being a valid PDF file I think...?

    • Jay's avatar
      Jay
      Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

      Hi tputkonen, thanks for messaging the Community!

       

      It’s possible that the file cannot be directly opened by the third party app any longer. Could you try instead exporting the file to the app to see if this is possible?

       

      If it doesn't work, I'd recommend contacting the app developers to see if they can assist on this matter in more detail.

       

      Keep me posted!

      • Qwerty59's avatar
        Qwerty59
        New member | Level 2
        I was having the same problem on one phone, but not another. On the problem phone I uninstalled dropbox and reinstalled it. I was then able to get it to prompt me to select the option to open the file with keepass once. After a few trial and errors, I found that I should not select "ALWAYS" on the "open with" screen when selecting Keepass, always select "JUST ONCE", otherwise it reverts to trying to open up the file with a PDF reader. I also looked at settings > Manage Default Apps and that list is empty no matter what
  • phoenixbound's avatar
    phoenixbound
    Helpful | Level 6

    More than a year ago Dropbox updates broke the ability to open up keepass files.  You guys fixed it that time.

     

    Today, the same issue has occured.  On both of our S7's, I tried deleting both apps and re-installing.  No joy.

     

    We are going to NEED to switch to another online data storage program if this isn't fixed really soon, as access to our respective keepass password file managers is what we need most, and we need it often.

     

     

    • Walter's avatar
      Walter
      Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

      Hi phoenixbound; thanks for posting on our Community!

       

      As your query seems to echo the discussion under this thread, I just merged your post here. 

       

      Can you please let me know the version of our mobile app on your devices and if you're able to export those files to the mentioned 3rd party app? 

       

      While we're at it, would it be OK with you if we used the email address for your Community's profile to reach out so we can further investigate? 

       

      Let us know here when you get the chance, and we'll take it from there. 

       

      Thanks!

    • kitingChris's avatar
      kitingChris
      Helpful | Level 6

      phoenixbound 

      I tried Google Drive that works as expected with keepass files. 
      But then switched completely to nextcloud since dropbox now wants money for using on more than 2 devices. 
      It was a great service. But now it is trash. Keeping my account only for being able to share with friends still stuck on dropbox

      • Daphne's avatar
        Daphne
        Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

        Thanks for all your updates here!

         

        We'd like to have a look further into this with you. So if you haven't already, please submit a ticket with our Support team from here.

         

        You'll get a ticket number (eg. #1234567) that you can let me know here and I can pass along the info you've provided here.

         

        If you have any troubles with this, let me know and I'd be happy to help out with this.

         

        Keep me posted!

  • Jay's avatar
    Jay
    Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

    Hi kitingChris, thanks for joining the Community!

     

    I've had another user contact us about this matter.

     

    Could you check the info in this thread to see if this helps.

     

    Keep me posted!

    • kitingChris's avatar
      kitingChris
      Helpful | Level 6

      Hello Jay unfortunatelly the answers do not help. Mainly because they are wrong. Other apps - that use the android internal "open with" dialog - do open .kdbx files correctly. Only Dropbox INSISTS on opening them with Google Drive PDF Viewer. 
      Since other apps open them correctly this issue is caused by dropbox. 
      Unfortunatelly I rely on dropbox to synchronize my keepass files and need to open it from there. 
      Please fix this ASAP. At least let users freely choose the app they want to use or better use the android system "open with" instead of trying to invent the wheel new.

      • Jay's avatar
        Jay
        Icon for Dropbox Staff rankDropbox Staff

        As mentioned in the other thread, some users have experienced similar issues with other cloud providers, so it isn't related to Dropbox. 

         

        I'd recommend contacting the developer of the Keepass app for further assistance on this matter.

  • Desiboy681's avatar
    Desiboy681
    New member | Level 2

    Hi,

    I too faced the same issue after updating Dropbox.  Then today I realized every time I open .kdbx file, it would open the .pdf program instead of Keepass.  As wmacghee mention, he toggle the setting but couldn't find it.  So, I checked in Dropbox and selected the 3 dots next to the .kdbx file and selected "Make available offline".  Then when I open that file, it automatically open the KeePassDroid app.  Then I close everything and went back to same place and disable "Make available offline".  Then I was able to open the file again without issue.  Hope this work for others.  Hopefully the developer fix this permanently in the next update.

     

    Thanks.

    • hhorak's avatar
      hhorak
      New member | Level 2

      The work-around with "Make available offline" mentioned above works for me as well. 

  • midas's avatar
    midas
    Explorer | Level 4
    Same here, keepass is not in the list of available open with apps. Used to work about a week ago. Reinstall of both did not fix it. Hapl...
  • This is still a problem as of November 1st, 2020. I haven't been able to figure out how to reproduce the issue consistently, but have confirmed the offline toggle workaround. The Dropbox app will sometimes just switch back to opening kdbx files with pdf apps after extended periods of working correctly, or nearly immediately after applying the offline toggle workaround.

     

    I have currently figured out one more workaround, for Androids, that I think I will be able to stick to. Using the Keepass2Android Password Safe app developed by  Philipp Crocoll (Croco Apps), I set the app to open with the Dropbox app and pointed it to the file. This app allows you to access the kdbx file specifically and will remember it, as well as sync the changes when you save. It also notified me the copy of the kdbx I was working on changed when I created a new save on my computer, as well as letting me resync and open the new file without me needing to enter the password again.

     

    Make sure you are using "Keepass2Android Password Safe" and not "Keepass2Andorid Offline"

  • DrRob's avatar
    DrRob
    Explorer | Level 4

    This problem seems to have been quietly fixed now.  I'm not sure since when but I can now open Keepass files correctly, and it remembers the app I've selected to do it.

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