Your Mac's Utilities Folder contains a lot of helpful extra tools like the Bootcamp Assistant, Monitor Activity, Disk Utility, Terminal, and a lot more. You can find your way in the Utilities Folder through clicking the Applications. While Disk Utility will allow you to partition, repair, erase, and manage drives that you've attached and mounted on your Mac, it can also show those that are attached but currently not mounted.
Summary :
Are there some disk problems on your Mac? Want to use Disk Utility to fix them but receive an error message 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk'? This post will walk you through how to quick and effectively fix this issue. How to reduce image size on mac.
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Help! Disk Utility Failed to Repair This Disk
'My external drive is a Samsung M2 Portable 3 Media, 500GB. I might have accidentally disconnected the hard drive without ejecting it first. Now when I run disk utility and click Repair Disk it says: '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.' forums.macrumors
Disk Utility, developed by Apple, is a comprehensive system utility for performing disk and disk volume-related tasks on the Mac operating systems. These tasks include formatting, partitioning, erasing, cloning disks, repairing a damaged disk, etc. When certain disk problems happen, to repair this disk using Disk Utility will be a good choice.
However, sometimes you may receive the error message 'Disk Utility stopped repairing 'Macintosh HD'/disk1s2/External HDD, etc. Disk Utility can't repair this disk'.
Usually, this problem may not only happen on Macintosh HD but also on an external hard drive in Mac Mavericks, Yosemite, EI Capitan, or Sierra.
Actually, the above message won't show up in normal circumstances of disk errors. But if the hard drive is beyond the repair scope of Disk Utility, for example, file system gets corrupted, the issue appears.
Well then, what should you do to fix Macintosh HD, external hard drive or another disk that Disk Utility can't repair? Here are some solutions for you.
Fix Disk Utility Can't Repair This Disk
If Disk Utility can't repair external hard drive or Macintosh HD, you should do as the error message shows: back up as many of your files as possible before fixing the issue for data protection.
Back up Important Files with Time Machine on Mac
Before solving the drive that Disk Utility can't repair, the most important thing is to make a backup of the disk data. Usually, the tool called Time Machine will be a good option.
It is the built-in feature of the Mac and can back up your files with ease to an external storage device so as to restore them in the event of unexpected accidents.
Then, here comes the question: how to make a time machine backup from Disk Utility?
Step 1: Connect an external storage drive to your Mac.
Step 2: Then an alert may appear on your Mac asking if you want to configure it as the backup disk with Time Machine. Just click Use as Backup Disk. Besides, it is recommended to check Encrypt Backup Disk.
Step 3: If you don't receive this alert, please go to System Preferences > Time Machine.
Step 4: Click Select Backup Disk to select the storage device which you wish to back up to, and click Use Disk.
Disk storage mac. This post from apple website - How to use Time Machine to back up your Mac shows you more information.
Solution 1: Fix the Hard Drive in Single User Mode
What if Disk Utility stopped repairing Macintosh HD? As is well known, Macintosh HD can be viewed on the Mac desktop and it is similar to the 'My Computer' icon in Windows. Moreover, this drive contains the Mac operating system. To fix the issue, you should use FSCK tool. This is the built-in diagnostic & repair program and it can verify & repair the current startup disk.
Step 1: Restart your Mac, and then press and hold the Command + S keys during the startup to enter Single User Mode which will provide you with a text-mode terminal.
Step 2: Type the command /sbin/fsck -fy.
By default, the target disk in Single User mode is read-only, thus, you need to change that: type /sbin/mount -uw /.
- If everything is fine, the message 'The volume Macintosh HD appears to be OK' will appear.
- If some problems are found, you will see 'File system was modified'. Just run the fsck -fy command again until you see a 'The volume Macintosh HD appears to be OK' message.
Step 4: Type reboot to exit Single User Mode.
Free movie downloads for mac no sign up. If FSCK cannot help you to fix Disk Utility stopped repairing Macintosh HD, another thing you can do is to reinstall the Mac operating system. How to reinstall macOS will be helpful.
Solution 2: Reformat Drive When Disk Utility Can't Repair External Drive
If Disk Utility failed to repair your external hard drive or other data disk, the above solution is not suitable. In this case, you can do nothing but to reformat the disk. How can you format the target hard drive?
Step 1: Go to Applications > Utilities to find and launch Disk Utility and you can find all the hard drives.
Step 2: Select the target disk or drive, click Erase feature in the top menu. Note that this operation will destroy all the data stored on it.
Step 3: Enter a name, choose a file system and a partition map. Finally, click the Erase button.
After completing the formatting, Disk Utility can't repair this disk issue on an external hard drive can be solved. And there is another thing you should do, that is to restore the deleted data from the backups.
Restore Your Backed-up Files
Step 1: Select Enter Time Machine from the menu bar. If you don't see this option, please go to System Preferences > Time Machine to check Show Time Machine in menu bar.
Step 2: In Time Machine, open the folder containing the files you want to restore.
Step 3: Use the timeline on the edge of the screen or onscreen up and down arrows to quickly find needed items.
Step 4: Select the needed items and click the Restore button to finish the recovery.
Disc Utility Program
Recover Data from Formatted Hard Drive on Mac
When Disk Utility failed to repair disk, you may forget to back up the important files and directly format the target disk. As a result, formatting will make you lose all the data. In this case, the key thing is to recover lost files from the formatted hard drive.
Well then, is there any data recovery software that can help you to get files back? Sure! Just keep reading.
As to data recovery for Mac, Stellar Data Recovery, is worthy of being recommended. It is specialized in recovering deleted data like files, photos, videos, audios, emails, and more from your internal hard drive, external hard drive, SD card, USB flash drives, memory sticks and other storage devices on all the Mac devices.
Besides, it can restore data from formatted, damaged, and lost partition, as well as unmounted and encrypted drives. What's more, it supports APFS, HFS+, FAT, and NTFS file systems. And it is compatible with Mac OS X 10.7 and above.
When 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk error' appears if you forget to make a backup of your external hard drive or other data drives and format it, get Stellar Data Recovery Premium Trial on your Mac.
Please don't waste time; just get files off failing hard drive on Mac immediately since they may disappear at any time.
Now, let's see how to use Stellar Data Recovery.
Step 1: After getting this Mac data recovery software, install it on your Mac and then launch it to the main interface where you can decide what to recover. Then, click Next to continue.
Can't Find Disc Drive
Step 2: Select your disk and click Scan to start a scan.
Step 3: Now, this data recovery software starts the scan. Depending on the size and condition of the disk, this may take some time and you should wait patiently.
Step 4: After the scan, the deleted files after fixing 'Disk Utility can't repair disk' error will be found. In the left section, unfold each folder to search for needed files or you can go to Deleted List to look for files.
Step 5: Check the items that need to recover and click Recover. Then, specify a path to save the data.
If you don't activate Stellar Data Recovery Premium, you will get a prompt to ask you to purchase a license key via MiniTool Store after clicking Save. This is since the trial edition can only scan data but not recover it.
Mac Disk Utility Restore
Within simple steps, Stellar Data Recovery for Mac helps you to recover lost files from the formatted drive. If you encounter 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk' error message and format the target drive but forget to back up the crucial files, just get this software to get lost data back.
Bottom Line
Get 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk' error message on Macintosh HD or an external hard drive in Mac Mavericks, Yosemite, EI Capitan, or Sierra?
This post offers you the corresponding solution in two cases - Disk Utility stopped repairing Macintosh HD and Disk Utility can't repair external drive. Just do as the above paragraphs show. Besides, if you lost some important files when fixing the issue, try to recover them with MiniTool Mac Data Recovery.
Should you have any suggestions of Disk Utility failed to repair disk issue or any questions during using our software for Mac hard drive recovery, please don't hesitate to tell us by leaving a comment in the following area or sending an email to [email protected].
Disk Utility Can't Repair This Disk FAQ
Can T Find Disc Utility On Mac
Summary: WD My Passport for Mac is not showing up Mac? Follow the tutorial in this article to fix WD My Passport not working issue and recover data from unrecognized WD My Passport.
Everything has flaws. At times, WD My Passport won't show up when you connect it to your Mac computer, the WD My Passport is greyed out in Disk Utility, or WD hard drive's light is on but not working. Even worse, it may become unreadable on your Mac. In either way, your important data on this drive will become inaccessible.
If the WD My Passport is not showing up on Mac desktop, Finder or Disk Utility after connecting to your Mac, how to find it and make it work? If you can't see files from WD external hard drive on Mac, how to access data? You'll get answers here.
Troubleshoot WD My Passport not showing up on Mac issue
As mentioned above, malfunctioned USB port or Mac computer, the broken USB cable and some hardware problems can also make WD My Passport not showing up. You can do some basic checks to troubleshoot whether this issue is resulted from those factors.
- Safely remove the WD My Passport and reconnect it to the USB port. Try quickly plug and slowly plug, sometimes it just works for no reason
- Check whether the USB cable or USB port is bad by connecting other hard drives to this USB port or cable and see if that makes a difference.
- Reboot your Mac computer to see if your WD My Passport drive is not showing up in Disk Utility/Finder or not.
- Connect the WD My Passport to another Mac computer or Windows PC, which will find out if it is the incompatible file system of the drive that makes this WD My Passport undetectable.
How to fix WD My Passport not showing up on Mac issue?
If the WD My Passport for Mac still does not work or not show up on Mac after the basic checks, go ahead to try out the solutions as below to make it show up on Mac.
Solution 1: Check Finder Preferences
If your WD My Passport is not showing up in Finder and desktop, it's possible that the configuration of the Finder Preferences is stopping your WD My Passport drive showing up. In other words, you didn't allow the connected hard drives showing up in the Finder or on the desktop.
Now, follow the guide below to set Finder Preferences and make the WD My Passport for Mac show up in Finder or on the desktop.
- 1. Go to Finder > Preferences > General tab.
- 2. Tick the 'External disks' option to show the WD My Passport for Mac on the desktop.
- 3. Go to Sidebar tab, tick 'External disks' under 'Devices' to show your WD My Passport for Mac in Finder.
Solution 2: Check My Passport for Mac in Disk Utility
If the WD My Passport for Mac drive is still not showing up in Finder or on the desktop, you can see whether it is showing up in Disk Utility or not.
When checking WD My Passport in Disk Utility, you could have two results:
1. Your WD My Passport drive is detected and showing up in Disk Utility, but it is greyed out or not mounting.
2. Your WD hard drive is not recognized, so it's not showing up in Disk Utility at all.
Here, we'll show you solutions to case 1.
Method 1: Mount WD My Passport for Mac in Disk Utility manually
Sometimes, hard drives cannot be automatically mounted in Disk Utility, even though Mac has detected the hard drive. So it's possible that you'll see the WD My Passport for Mac drive not mounting in Disk Utility. In this situation, you can manually mount the hard drive.
- 1. Go to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.
- 2. Click 'Show All Devices' in View option at the left corner of Disk Utility.
- 3. Select your WD My Passport for Mac drive from the left sidebar and click the Mount button on the top of Disk Utility window.
Instead, you can also click on the mount icon beside the drive to mount it immediately.
Method 2: Repair WD My Passport for Mac drive with First Aid
If you can't mount the WD My Passport for Mac manually, there should be some file system problems in this drive. But don't worry. There is a native repair tool called First Aid in your Mac computer's Disk Utility, which is able to analyze and repair basic hard drive problems especially with file systems and catalogs, extends, volume bit maps. You can follow the instructions to fix this problem.
- 1. Go to Disk Utility.
- 2. Select the WD My Passport for Mac.
- 3. Click First Aid on the top of the Disk Utility window.
- 4. Click Done when the reparation finishes.
Solution 3: Erase/Reformat My Passport for Mac
Let s vegas casino. If First Aid was unable to fix the errors in the WD My Passport, which is quite common, the file system of this drive could be seriously corrupted and you have to fix the WD My Passport for Mac not showing up on Mac problem by reformatting.
The situation is, reformatting will assign a new file system but will erase your data on this drive as well. To avoid the loss of important data, please make sure you have a backup copy of data. Without a backup? It's not necessarily the end of the world. You can at first recover lost data from the WD My Passport for Mac with professional Mac data recovery software, like iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac is free hard drive data recovery software for Mac that is able to recover deleted files on Mac, recover lost data from formatted, inaccessible, corrupted, unmountable, unreadable hard drives, USB flash drives, SD cards, memory cards, etc. It's compatible with macOS Big Sur 11/Catalina 10.15/Mojave 10.14/High Sierra/Sierra 10.12 and Mac OS X 10.11/10.10/10.9/10.8/10.7.
Recover lost data from My Passport for Mac with iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac
- 1. Download and install iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac on Mac.
- 2. Launch iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
- 3. Select My Passport for Mac and click 'Next' button to scan all data on this drive.
- 4. Preview the searching results, choose files you need, and click 'Recover' to get them back.
Free online slot. Reformat My Passport for Mac in Disk Utility https://herevup418.weebly.com/indian-spirit-slot-game.html.
After recovering data from this drive, you can now courageously proceed to erase your WD My Passport for Mac drive with no fuss.
- 1. Go to Disk Utility.
- 2. Select the WD My Passport for Mac drive in the left sidebar.
- 3. Click Erase on the top of the Disk Utility window.
- 4. Complete the information for your drive (such as new format, partition scheme, and so on) and click Erase.
What to do if the WD My Passport drive is not recognized/detected?
If My Passport for Mac hard drive is not showing up in Disk Utility at all, it means the WD hard drive is not recognized. Very probably, your My Passport for Mac may have some hardware problems. It's better to send it to a local reparation center.
Understanding why My Passport drive not showing up on Mac
Sometimes, an external hard drive not showing up on Mac just because the USB cable or the USB port on your Mac is bad. In addition, the following reasons may also lead to WD My Passport for Mac not showing up or not working.
- Recent macOS update issue
- System failure
- Virus infection
- Motherboard issue
- WD My Passport drive damage or corruption
Bonus Maintenance Tips for WD My Passport drives for Mac
Apparently, most hard drive not showing up issues are caused by unsafe ejection and sudden power outrage. In order to maintain your WD My Passport for Mac in good condition, you should pay attention to:
- Make sure that your WD My Passport doesn't become physically damaged.
- Always safely and properly eject the WD My Passport for Mac drive after using it.
- Don't just unplug the USB cable, on the contrary, unmount your drive by right-clicking (control-click) on the icon on the Desktop or in the Finder and choose Eject.
- Properly use WD software like WD Drive Utilities, WD Backup software ( to back up important files to your My Passport drive), and WD Discovery ( to organize and share your files to the My Passport drive to backup your online social life).