How to Move a Folder Without Disrupting Permissions

I believe it is true that if you are not the owner of the folder, you cannot move it back.  They will need to do it (and they will also need to make sure that any/all open documents in the folder are closed before they move it).

I totally agree, so you will be needing to coordinate with the folder owner. However, it will not be a ‘simple move back’ due to inherited permissions and ownership changes.

When moving a folder:

• The owner of the destination parent folder becomes the owner of the moved folder.
• Collaborators on the destination parent folder inherit access to the moved folder.
• Box uses a waterfall permission model, so parent-folder permissions flow down to subfolders.

We’ll check on this and will get back to you.

Also, if you require further troubleshooting and has account-specific concerns, please submit a ticket to our Product Support. Thank you!

“Collaborators on the destination parent folder inherit access”

If you don’t want to inadvertently give people permission to (an)other folder(s) it might be best to create a dummy folder to move it to. You can then strip the unwanted permissions and then move it to the right folder. Then delete the dummy folder.

Thanks for sharing your insights ​@jorowi. Our Support also advises the following to help avoid unintended permission changes when moving folders:

• Creating a new folder in the original location and moving the content (files/subfolders) individually, rather than the entire folder, to minimize inherited permission changes.
• Adjusting permissions manually after the move to ensure only the intended users have access.
• If the folder is large or contains many files, moving content in smaller batches may help avoid errors.

I see that you’ve opened a case with our Support team. Regarding the issue with moving and deleting the folder, please continue coordinating with them for further assistance. Thank you!