Open and Save Word document in DropBox Cloud Storage

4 Feb 202524 minutes to read

Prerequisites

Create a DropBox API App, by following the official documentation provided by DropBox link. The process involves visiting the DropBox Developer website and using their App Console to set up your API app. This app will allow you to interact with DropBox programmatically, enabling secure access to files and data.

Open Word document from DropBox Cloud Storage

Steps to open a Word document from DropBox Cloud Storage.

Step 1: Create a new ASP.NET Core Web Application (Model-View-Controller).

Create a ASP.NET Core Web App project in visual studio

Step 2: Name the project.

Name the project

Step 3: Install the following Nuget packages in your application from NuGet.org.

Install Syncfusion.DocIO.Net.Core NuGet Package
Install Dropbox.Api NuGet Package

Step 4: Add a new button in the Index.cshtml as shown below.

CSHTML
@{Html.BeginForm("EditDocument", "Home", FormMethod.Get);
    {
        <div>
            <input type="submit" value="Edit Document" style="width:150px;height:27px" />
        </div>
    }
    Html.EndForm();
}

Step 5: Include the following namespaces in HomeController.cs.

C#
using Dropbox.Api;
using Syncfusion.DocIO.DLS;

Step 6: Include the below code snippet in HomeController.cs to open a Word document from DropBox Cloud Storage.

C#
public async Task<IActionResult> EditDocument()
{
    try
    {
        //Retrieve the document from DropBox
        MemoryStream stream = await GetDocumentFromDropBox();

        //Set the position to the beginning of the MemoryStream
        stream.Position = 0;

        //Create an instance of WordDocument
        using (WordDocument wordDocument = new WordDocument(stream, Syncfusion.DocIO.FormatType.Docx))
        {
            //Access the section in a Word document
            IWSection section = wordDocument.Sections[0];

            //Add new paragraph to the section
            IWParagraph paragraph = section.AddParagraph();
            paragraph.ParagraphFormat.FirstLineIndent = 36;
            paragraph.BreakCharacterFormat.FontSize = 12f;

            //Add new text to the paragraph
            IWTextRange textRange = paragraph.AppendText("In 2000, AdventureWorks Cycles bought a small manufacturing plant, Importadores Neptuno, located in Mexico. Importadores Neptuno manufactures several critical subcomponents for the AdventureWorks Cycles product line. These subcomponents are shipped to the Bothell location for final product assembly. In 2001, Importadores Neptuno, became the sole manufacturer and distributor of the touring bicycle product group.") as IWTextRange;
            textRange.CharacterFormat.FontSize = 12f;

            //Saving the Word document to a MemoryStream 
            MemoryStream outputStream = new MemoryStream();
            wordDocument.Save(outputStream, Syncfusion.DocIO.FormatType.Docx);

            //Download the Word file in the browser
            FileStreamResult fileStreamResult = new FileStreamResult(outputStream, "application/msword");
            fileStreamResult.FileDownloadName = "EditWord.docx";
            return fileStreamResult;
        }
    }
    catch (Exception ex)
    {
        Console.WriteLine($"Error: {ex.Message}");
        return Content("Error occurred while processing the file.");
    }
}

Download file from DropBox cloud storage

This is the helper method to download Word document from DropBox cloud storage.

C#
/// <summary>
/// Download file from DropBox cloud storage
/// </summary>
/// <returns></returns>
public async Task<MemoryStream> GetDocumentFromDropBox()
{
    //Define the access token for authentication with the Dropbox API
    var accessToken = "Access_Token";

    //Define the file path in Dropbox where the file is located. For ex: "/Template.docx" or "/Apps/Template.docx"
    var filePathInDropbox = "FilePath";

    try
    {
        //Create a new DropboxClient instance using the provided access token
        using (var dbx = new DropboxClient(accessToken))
        {
            //Start a download request for the specified file in Dropbox
            using (var response = await dbx.Files.DownloadAsync(filePathInDropbox))
            {
                //Get the content of the downloaded file as a stream
                var content = await response.GetContentAsStreamAsync();

                MemoryStream stream = new MemoryStream();
                content.CopyTo(stream);
                return stream;
            }
        }
    }
    catch (Exception ex)
    {
        Console.WriteLine($"Error retrieving document from DropBox: {ex.Message}");
        throw; // or handle the exception as needed
    }
}

You can download a complete working sample from GitHub.

By executing the program, you will get the Word document as follows.

Output Word document

Save Word document to DropBox Cloud Storage

Steps to save a Word document to DropBox Cloud Storage.