Box Drive

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What is it?

Box Drive brings your entire Box folder tree to your desktop. All the files you can access on Box are also accessible from your desktop Box folder. Box Drive also supports making files available offline, so you can work on them while disconnected from the Internet.

Box Drive, strongly recommended by Information Technology Services, provides a convenient means of accessing and managing your Box files, using Windows Explorer or Finder on a Macintosh computer.

Here's what Box Drive looks like on a Windows computer:

Screen shot of Box Drive in Windows-

How Do I Install It?

Installing Box Drive is usually fast and straightforward - follow these instructions. Contact the Information Desk (help@wlu.edu) if you need assistance.

How Do I Organize Folders and Files?

In Box Drive, personal and shared folders have the same appearance. To avoid confusion, use a clear and descriptive name such as "My Name personal files" or just "Personal." Put all your private files and folders here.

Screen shot - file names in Box Drive

How Do I Make Content Available Offline?

To make content available offline, navigate to your Box folder in Explorer or Finder. Right-click on the folder you want. **Important - Only folders to which you have download permission can be made available offline. In the context menu that displays, click Make Available Offline (see red arrow below). Box Drive immediately begins downloading the contents of the folder to your device. When items finish downloading they display with a green Available Offline icon when you view them in Explorer or Finder.

Box Save Content for Offline Use

How Do I Use Search?

You can use Box Drive to search all your personal and shared folders and files in Box.

In Windows, open Box Drive by clicking in the lower right portion of your screen ("show hidden icons") and then select the Box symbol:

Screen shot - search in Box Drive

On Mac, just click the box icon in the top right corner of the screen.Then, type and enter your desired search in the generated window.

Shows using Box Drive search on a Mac Computer

Known Issues

  • Errors will result if you attempt to name files using special characters that are not supported in the Mac and Windows operating systems. Box does not support "/" and "\" in a file or folder name, or white spaces at the beginning or end of a file or folder name.
  • Box Drive and Box Sync will not run simultaneously on a single device; uninstall Box Sync prior to installing Box Drive. Box Drive includes an option to make selected files available for offline use.

Additional Resources