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Part 3: How to Repair External Hard Drive on Mac. To repair external hard drive on Mac, there are two options, Disk Utility and Terminal. Now, let's move on and take a look at how to fix external hard drive on Mac.
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Most of the time, when you connect an external hard drive to your Mac’s USB port, you soon see it mount on the desktop. Apple likes to ensure these are easy to find, so they also appear in the Finder in the left-hand column under Devices, since Mac’s treat them the same way as another computer.
However, sometimes, an external hard drive doesn't show up. It’s annoying, especially when you need to transfer something right then. And besides, there can be a risk that data on the external USB pen, hard, or flash drive is corrupt, which means you can’t transfer what you need between devices at all.
Corrupt data can be one reason your Mac won't recognize an external drive, but there are other reasons too. Let’s take a look why this is happening and how you can get an external drive to appear on your Mac and get recover data to access to your documents.
How to fix an external disk drive that won't show up on a Mac
Why an external disk drive is not showing up? There could be a few reasons why a USB flash drive isn’t making an appearance.
Open an External Drive Not Showing on Mac
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Start with the basics:
Check whether the drive is properly plugged in. It sounds obvious, but since this relies on a wire - either a USB cable or HDMI cable - if it’s not connected properly then it won’t appear on your desktop.
Faulty cable. Assuming it’s plugged in correctly, not wobbly or loose, the cable could be at fault. Try connecting the same device with a different cable.
Damaged USB or flash drive port. It could be a hardware issue with the Mac. If you’ve got another port, try connecting the device to that one.
Reboot your Mac. Sometimes, if a USB disk won't boot, the cause is macOS issue. Hopefully, some data damage that can be fixed by restarting. Choose the Apple menu > Restart. Or press and hold the power button and, when a dialog box appears, click the Restart or press R. Restarting your Mac essentially clears your macOS’s memory and starts it up fresh.
Incorrectly formatted drive. Not every external drive is optimized for Macs. It could be that you are trying to connect something only fit to interact with Windows devices. If you’ve got a PC or laptop, it’s worth connecting and seeing if you can access the files through another device. The best way to look for an incorrectly formatted drive is to go to Apple (in the top toolbar menu) > About This Mac > Storage. See if the external drive shows up here. For more information, go to the same menu option, then select System Report.
Mac not formatted to display external drives on the desktop. It could be that your Mac already recognizes the device, but just isn’t showing its icon on the desktop screen. Even if that is the case, the drive will still appear in the left-hand column of the Finder menu under Devices. You should be able to access your drive that way, and, in the Finder menu under Preferences > General, you can check External Drives to ensure that from now on it shows up on your desktop too.
Reset NVRAM. To do this, shut down or restart your Mac, switch it back on and immediately press these four keys together for at least 20 seconds: Option, Command, P, and R. It should look as though your Mac has started again; if it has, release the keys when you hear the second startup chime. Hopefully, the hard drive has shown up now.
Check Apple’s Disk Utility to see if an external drive is showing up. Disk Utility is within System Preferences, or you can find it using Spotlight. If it is visible, then click the option to Mount, which should make it visible on the desktop and in the External Drives option in the Finder menu.
Unfortunately, if none of those options has worked and the external drive still isn’t visible, then it could have crashed, or be well and truly broken. But there might still be a way you can recover the data on the external drive.
How to show connected devices in Finder
Go to the Finder menu and select Preferences (Cmd+comma).
From General tab tick External disks to ensure that from now on it shows on the desktop.
In the Sidebar tab you can choose which folders and devices will be shown in the left-hand column of the Finder window.
How to add cloud storages to Finder
Albino 3 vst download crack. You can also mount cloud storage as local drive on your Mac. By connecting Google Drive, Dropbox, or Amazon to your computer, you get more space for securely accessing and sharing files. For your ease, add cloud drives to Finder with CloudMounter app, so that you keep them close at hand. You can read detailed instructions on managing cloud storage as local drives here.
Repair the failed external drives with First Aid
If your drive is having problems, you can try to fix them yourself with First Aid and therefore get access to your files. First Aid tool will check the disk for errors and then attempt a repair as needed. It helps to verify and repair a range of issues related to startup HD and external drive problems. If you are able to fix the hard drive or SSD in your Mac (or an external drive) using Disk Utility you will hopefully be able to recover your files.
To run Fist Aid on an external hard drive:
Open Disk Utility. You can searching for it using Spotlight Search or via Finder > Application > Utility
Check on your external hard drive, click the First Aid tab and select Run to start running diagnostics.
If First Aid successful in fixing errors, the external drive should be available to mount. If the utility unable to repair issues, your drive truly is broken or formatted using a file system that the Mac cannot read - in this way we suggest you follow the next steps to recover data from a damaged disk drive.
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An easy way to recover lost files on an external hard drive
Providing you already have Disk Drill Pro version, which you can get automatically by downloading from Setapp:
Connect your drive to the Mac.
Quit all other applications on the Mac, especially those that may be trying to access the external drive (e.g. iPhoto, Words)
Launch Disk Drill.
Click on the external drive that you are trying to recover files from. If it has partitions, you will see all of them. If, however, you still don’t see any volume to the external drive then you may need to try some of the steps above again or read the Disk Drill Scanning FAQs.
To avoid the external drive being accessed during the recovery process, click Extras next to the drive or drive partition or file, then select Remount Volume As Read Only. A padlock will appear, protecting the drive during the process.
Now click Rebuild (or Recover) next to the file(s) you are trying to recover. Once the scan is finished - it may take some time if the files are large - a list of files will appeal.
Next, click Mount Found Items as Disk button on the bottom-left below the scan results.
Disk Drill “strongly suggest saving the files to a different drive than the one you are trying to recover files from. Saving to the same drive substantially lowers your chances of recovery.”
A drive icon will appear, which once you double click will give you the option to open the files as you would do before they were lost. Drag them to another location, such as your desktop or a folder on your Mac.
Open the files to ensure they have been recovered properly and safely eject the external drive.
Disk Drill does have other ways to recover lost files but assuming there aren’t complications, this method is the most effective. Disk Drill Pro recovery app is available from Setapp, along with dozens of Mac apps that will make your life easier. Never have to worry about a crashed or corrupted external drive again.
A few more tips on getting your files back
Macs and third-party apps that look after Macs, such as Disk Drill and iStat Menus come with a S.M.A.R.T. (also known as Self-Monitoring, Analysis and Reporting Technology) status monitor. If a SMART check reports errors, then it could mean the hard drive is at risk of failing completely. Within Disk Utility and Disk Drill, there are several solutions for this: Repair Disk Permissions and Repair Disk. If neither work, it’s recommended that you backup all of the data from the disk, erase, then run a SMART check again. The external hard drive should show up as Verified.
Partitions can get lost within hard drives, temporarily hiding all of the information contained within. Disk Drill can help to identify and restore this information.
Within Disk Drill, you can restore data when a hard drive is damaged or add formatting, which is also something Disk Utility can help with.
CleanMyMac, another useful app available from Setapp, can help you identify external hard drive errors and repair them. It is an essential tool worth trying when you’re having external hard drive difficulties.
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Alternative ways to recover data from an external hard drive
Reset the System Management Controller (SMC) if your Mac shuts down when you plug in an external hard drive. Then use a different port to connect the external hard drive. If you’ve got a battery that you can’t remove:
Shut down and unplug the power adapter
Press Shift-Control-Option and the power button at the same time. Do this for 10 seconds
Release all keys
Plug the power adapter back in and switch your Mac back on
For Macs with removable batteries, you need to switch them off, remove the battery, then press and hold the power button for 5 seconds. After that, put the battery back in, plug in the power adapter and switch the power on again.
What’s your file format? One reason your Mac isn’t recognizing the hard drive is the file format. Windows uses NTFS file formats, while Macs, up until the introduction of Sierra, have used HFS+. Now, Apple has introduced the Apple File System (APFS) for newer operating systems. It is possible to format a hard drive so it can be read on Mac and Windows computers, providing you format using exFAT. However, if you’re having problems accessing the files and the issue is due to formatting, you will need to connect it to a device it can be read on, and then format the files correctly for the computer you are going to use it on next.
How to make Ext2/Ext3 drives readable on Mac
The common issue is Ext2- and Ext3-formatted drives are not readable on macOS. There are two ways to access such external drives on your Mac – via Linux OS or FUSE system. The easiest would be installing Linux to a secondary drive or virtual machine.
If you go with Linux installation, dual boot your Mac with Linux on another drive and use FAT32 as a transfer intermediary. If you don’t have a drive to install Linux to, use virtual machine as an interface for it. Transferring can be done the same way – with FAT32, or via network.
Another option for reading Ext2/Ext3 disks is mounting disk with Filesystem in Userspace (FUSE). Basically, it works as an extra interface enabling file system access via specially installed modules. Here’s how to mount drives with FUSE:
Install FUSE for macOS or MacFUSE as well as fuse-ext2 module.
Use the following Terminal command to enable Disk Utility’s debug menu and see all partitions: defaults write com.apple.DiskUtility DUDebugMenuEnabled 1
Attach your Ext2/Ext3 drive and locate the device name via Disk Utility.
In your user account, create a folder to be used as a mount point.
Use the following Terminal command to mount the drive as read-only: fuse-ext2 /dev/disk2s2 /Volumes/mountpoint
For write support, use the command: fuse-ext2 -o force /dev/disk2s2 /Volumes/mountpoint
Reformat External Disk Mac
And that’s not the only case where Terminal helps you access external drive.
Employ the handy all-powerful Terminal, which always comes forward with solutions for difficult problems. Especially if System Information does recognize the USB or hard drive, but continues to hide it from you, disconnect the drive and try to find it using the Terminal, which you can find in Applications > Utilities.
Once in the Terminal, type in the command diskutil list
A list with information about volumes and drives should appear
Look for a section labelled /dev/disk_ (external, physical)
Make a note of the whole line after the word disk
Now put the following command into the Terminal diskutil info disk followed by the number or digits assigned to that disk
Now you should see detailed information about the drive, therefore confirming that your Mac can and does recognize it
Eject using the Terminal by entering the command diskutil eject disk followed by the number or digits assigned to that disk
Physically remove the disk from you Mac
Plug it back in and your Mac should recognize it
Console is also reliable when it comes to solving tricky problems, although it isn’t always that easy to use. You can find Console under Applications > Utilities > Console. Console shows if an external drive or any error is detected under the Errors and Faults tab. If no errors show up, then the problem is not caused by the device.
To sum up, there are lots of potential solutions for a Mac not reading an external hard drive. If we were to pick one, Disk Drill seems to be the most well-rounded, offering plenty of customizations and power in an easy-to-use interface. Disk Drill Pro recovery app is available via Setapp, along with 150+ Mac apps that strive to make your life much much easier. At the very least, you’ll never have to worry about a crashed or corrupted external drive ever again.
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Summary: What to do when Disk Utility or macOS can't repair this disk? You can check out the solutions in this post, or you can easily recover lost data from this corrupted drive with iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
When a disk is not working properly on a Mac, most users would go to Disk Utility and run First Aid to repair this disk. However, the error message 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk' error usually appears when First Aid fails to repair this disk. Though frustrating, but it doesn't mean you will necessarily lose all files. In this article, we will give you effective solutions to fix 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk' issue, especially when you are facing the issue that Disk Utility can't repair external hard drive, or when Disk Utility can't repair Macintosh HD on Mac.
Help! Disk Utility can't repair this disk
You might be experiencing the same or similar situation as the user below.
I am in the midst of trouble where Disk Utility is failing to repair the drive. It gives me message 'Error: Disk Utility can't repair this disk. Back up as many of your files as possible, reformat the disk, and restore your backed-up files'. Now, what should I do to fix this error without losing data on my drive?
'Disk Utility can't repair this disk' is one of the messages you will receive when First Aid failed. Sometimes, it would be followed up with these error messages:
First Aid process has failed. If possible back up data on this volume. Click done to continue.
macOS can't repair this disk. You can open or copy files on this disk, but you can't save changes to files on this disk. Back up the disk and reformat it as soon as you can.
Disk Utility stopped repairing your disk. Disk Utility can't repair this disk. Back up as many of your files as possible, reformat the disk, and restore your back-up files.
What can you do in these situations to fix this issue without data loss? Keep reading.
Run First Aid to repair this disk again
One of the most tried and tested solution is to repair this disk one more time. To do First Aid again, follow these steps.
1. Go to Launchpad, find Other, and then launch Disk Utility.
2. Choose View and choose Show All Devices at the upper left of this app.
3. Select the disk or volume you want to repair in the left sidebar, and then click First Aid at the top.
4. Click Run to check and repair for disk errors.
If Disk Utility can't repair your disk still, or you receive a report that the First Aid process has stopped or failed, and it's asking for backing up and reformatting, you'd better firstly follow its suggestion to back up files on that disk to avoid further data loss. Adobe acrobat 11 free download.
How to back up or recover lost data when Disk can't repair this disk?
Method 1: Back up with Time Machine
There is a built-in tool on your Mac called Time Machine which can help you back up your files efficiently in this case. Here is how:
1. Connect an external storage device with enough free space to your Mac.
2. A notification will pop up and ask if you want to use this device to back up with Time Machine. Click on Use as Backup Disk and follow its on-screen instructions. Go to learn more about backing up your Mac with Time Machine.
Method 2: Recover lost data from the disk that Disk Utility can't repair
Mac Disk Repair
If you don't have an extra external drive in hand or you can't back up files from that disk with Time Machine for some reasons, alternatively, you can recover files with reliable data recovery software, like iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac is professional data recovery software for Mac, which can recover lost data from internal hard drives, Macintosh HD, external hard drives, SD cards, USB flash drives, memory cards, memory sticks, etc. Also, when disk is formatted, unreadable, unmountable, unreadable, or unrecognizable, it can easily recover the lost files in these cases. What's more, this program can recover lost data from recover lost data from unmountable macOS partitions, encrypted APFS boot volume, etc.
Through only 4 steps, you can recover lost data from the disk that Disk Utility can't repair.
1. Download and install iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
2. Launch iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
3. Select the disk and click Next button to scan all lost data.
4. Preview the searching results, choose files you need, and click Recover to get them back.
How to fix 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk' issue on Mac?
Method 1: Fix Disk Utility can't repair this disk error in Single User Mode.
If Disk Utility can't repair this disk, you can try to repair it by running FSCK command on Mac. FSCK is a powerful command line to verify and repair external hard drive in Terminal.
1. Restart your Mac and, before the Apple logo appears, hold down Command + S keys. This will boot your Mac into Single User Mode.
2. Type in:
3. If you see 'File system was modified', then re-type in the command above again until you see 'The volume _ appears to be OK'.
4. To restart your Mac, type in:
Method 2: Fix Disk Utility can't repair this disk error by reformatting.
If you failed to fix the disk using Single User Mode, then, you have to reformat the disk in Disk Utility as suggested. Scansnap software download s1300.
Warning: Reformatting will wipe all your files off this disk, so please make sure you have backed up your files with an external drive or have retrieved your files from this corrupted drive with iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
1. Go to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.
2. Select the external hard drive and click Erase on the top.
After reformatting this disk, you can restore your backed-up or recovered files to the disk again. IfDisk Utility First Aid still failed on external hard drives, and you receive the information like 'This drive has a hardware problem that cannot be repaired' on your iMac, MacBook Pro, or MacBook Air, you may need to send it to a local repair center or simply replace it with a new disk drive.
Bonus tip: You may not need to repair the disk in Disk Utility
In some cases, if an external drive is shared between a Mac and a Windows PC, you could receive the error message 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk' as well. It's because when a USB drive is disconnected by yank out of the USB port, the disk may be busy in getting data settled down. As a result, the disk won't readable by Mac.
For instance, you have a disk that is formatted with FAT32, and you didn't unmount your disk properly when you remove it from your Windows PC. Then the whole volume will be marked as 'busy' and you'll be prompted to repair the volume if you look at it in Mac's Disk Utility. However Disk Utility will fail to repair the volume, and report:
An easy workaround to this 'Disk Utility can't repair the disk' issue in this situation is to simply plug this disk drive back into a Windows PC, and unmount it properly before plugging it into your Mac.
Mac Disk Repair App
Note: If you are trying to repair your startup disk or startup volume with Disk Utility, you need to restart your computer and hold Command + R to boot into macOS Recovery mode. Then select Disk Utility in the macOS Utilities window and click Continue. If you want to check the Macintosh HD volume in macOS Catalina, please make sure you also check the Macintosh HD - Data volume.