Macos Can%27t Repair The Disk My Passport

Important - Please Read Description First!!!Fix The Disk You Inserted Was Not Readable MacOS High Sierra - Hackintosh Computer.Note: This is bug software pr. Here is how to run First Aid on your Mac to repair the unreadable WD My Passport: Step 1: Open Disk Utility from your /Applications/Utilities folder. Step 2: Select the unreadable WD My Passport in the left side bar. Step 3: Select the 'First Aid' tab. If Disk Utility tells you the disk is about to fail, back up your data and replace the disk.

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• Macos Can 27t Repair The Disk My Passport File
• Macos Can%27t Repair The Disk My Passport Photo
• Macos Can 27t Repair The Disk My Passport Used

Flash, or thumb, drives are a great way to transfer data between multiple computers. And every once in a while, this transfer method fails because flash drives are physical devices. They can be damaged or have data corrupted.

However, more often than not, the problem is not with the device itself, but how we use them. If the USB flash drive appears to be corrupted, e.g., when Mac cannot detect it or refuses to mount the drive, make sure that it was properly prepared.

macOS has a built-in tool that can help fix an unreadable USB flash drive on Mac: Disk Utility. After selecting the drive in the Disk Utility, click on the First Aid button to verify the device. However, before fixing the problem, check if the drive was correctlyformatted.

How To Fix Unreadable USB Flash Drive On Mac

Verify the USB drive was formatted for compatibility with macOS

There are two special cases when a USB drive may not be accessible, but not because it was corrupted. It is possible that the drive was not formatted in a disk format compatible with macOS. The two cases are:

• A new drive
• The drive that has been used in Windows or another operating system

Formatting the new drive

Most flash drives that you can purchase are preformatted in the Windows format (because there are more PC users than Mac users). In some cases, the drives were not formatted at all.

If the USB drive was not formatted, then the first time you plug it into the Mac, you will see the error message “The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer” with the options to Initialize, Ignore and Reject.

If the drive was never used before (and does not contain any valuable data), then click on the Initialize button. This will open the Disk Utility app.

Another way to open the app is to use the Spotlight Search: press simultaneously Command and Space bar keys and type “Disk Utility” in the search bar. Hit Enter.

On the left side of the app, locate the flash drive. Since this is a brand new drive, it won’t have partitions like this:

Click on the Partition button in the top toolbar of the app.

You need to provide three pieces of information: Name, Format, and Size. Ignore the size and use the default.

Type a meaningful description in the Name field (I usually avoid using special symbols, underscores, and spaces).

When it comes to the format, there are many choices, and the choice depends on how the flash drive is going to be used.

If you are absolutely sure that the flash drive will only be used with Mac computers, and there will never be a need to copy something to and from PC, then the best format is Mac OS Extended Journaled.

If you need encryption, then use the encrypted version of the format. However, do not use case-sensitive variants: I don’t know a single case when it could be useful.

In case there is a possibility, even a remote one, that the flash drive will be used with Windows computers, then pick ExFAT.

Here is a file format compatibility table from my previous post:

Formatting a drive used with PC

As you can see from the table above, Macs support most PC formats, while PC only supports its own ones. macOS fully supports FAT32 (appears as MS-DOS in the Disk Utility) and ExFAT.

The problem with MS-DOS format is that it was intended to store files less than 4GB. In other words, if the file is formatted as MS-DOS device, you will not be able to copy files larger than 4 GB on it.

Macs can also read from drives formatted as NTFS, but only in read-only mode. Macs cannot delete or modify the file contents on NTFS drives.

Unfortunately, if the drive was already formatted with NFTS, the only way to reformat for read/write Mac compatibility is first to save the contents of the drive on another computer or disk, reformat to ExFAT, and then copy the files back to drive.

Verify the USB drive was mounted in Mac

One issue that beginner users often face is when the USB drive won’t mount on Mac.

To find out if the drive was mounted, again, use the Disk Utility. Sometimes, the drive will appear in the list of volumes (or disks) on the left side of the app but does not appear in the Finder.

In this case, select the drive and then click on the Mount button in the toolbar.

If the drive was mounted, but you can’t see it on the Desktop, then try another trick. Right-click on the drive in the Disk Utility and choose the “Open in Finder” option from the drop-down menu.

Run First Aid from Disk Utility app

As mentioned above, macOS has a built-in tool to check and repair failed devices. In the Disk Utility app, select the problem drive and then click on the First Aid button.

The tool will pop up a message box.

Click on the Run button. First, the First Aid module will check if the device has any problems. If any errors found, it will ask for permission to fix the errors.

Reset PRAM on Mac

There is a universal solution for the most problems with any Mac. It’s called resetting PRAM (Parameter RAM).

The PRAM contains some initialization parameters related to hardware cached in the special memory. Sometimes, this memory gets corrupted and may cause all kinds of problems with sound, video, and USB devices.

All you need is to shut down Mac first. Then turn it on and immediately hold four keys on the keyboard: Command, Option, P, and R. Release the keys once the Apple logo appears on the screen.

Here are the detailed instructions from Apple.

Try 3rd party drive recovery apps

If nothing from above helped with the issue, one way to try to solve the problem is to use 3rd party apps.

I cannot recommend any apps, but if you decide to go with this route, I have some suggestions on how to make sure that the app is safe.

I always suggest using apps downloaded from the Mac App Store.

However, the problem is that the apps from the App Store usually have restrictions when it comes to direct access to the hardware (kind of thing you need when the device is failing).

So, it is most likely that the apps that can recover USB drives have to be downloaded directly from the developer site, which is not safe.

To make sure that the app does not contain any malware or adware, upload the file to Virus Total web site. This site will run multiple antivirus scanners, and if it does not find anything, then the downloaded software is most likely clean.

Send the drive to Mac repair shop

It happens very rarely so that the USB flash drive is actually having problems, e.g., bad sectors. The issue was prevalent with older mechanical devices that had moving parts, and they used to get worn out. Nowadays, it most likely that the connector could break or deform.

I have a 10-year old thumb drive, which is hard to unplug. When I try to pull it out from the USB port, I often pull the outer case, but the connector stays inside the port.

But, if you exhausted all DIY methods, it is probably a time to ask help from a specialist. I know a number of Mac repair shops that specialize in data recovery. They have a number of expensive tools they can run and diagnose the disk problems.

In conclusion, I wanted to note that quality matters when purchasing USB flash drives.

Macos Can't Repair The Disk My Passport For Mac

Anyone who thinks they found a good deal on Amazon – a thumb drive with a lot of space under $10-$20 with thousands of five-star reviews, but the company name is unknown or hard to pronounce, is risking to lose their data one day.

The quality devices may cost a little extra, but they have two distinct advantages:

1. They are less likely to fail
2. They are 3-4 times faster than no-name brands

If you are looking for suggestions, check my page with the best USB flash drives (type A and C):

Photo credit: ©canva.com/Svetlana Lukienko

The Disk Utility on Mac is a very useful system tool for fixing specific disk problems. For example, you can run a disk check when your apps quit simultaneously, an external drive is not working properly, or your Mac won’t startup. Disk Utility will check the health of your hard drive and repair any disk errors if possible.

Disk Utility usually works smoothly, but there are times when frustrating errors occur and prevent the process from being completed. One of the common errors encountered when using Disk Utility is the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error. When this error pops up, any attempted task gets stopped right in its tracks.

What is the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” Error on Mac?

The “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error can happen during formatting, partitioning, disk verification and repair, or any task that the Disk Utility undertakes. What makes this error frustrating is that there is usually very little to no additional information provided by the error message, making it more challenging to resolve the problem, And based on the error message, it is even harder to determine what the problem is all about.

Here are some variations of the error message that Mac users encounter, depending on the process being executed when the error happened:

Pro Tip: Scan your Mac for performance issues, junk files, harmful apps, and security threats
that can cause system issues or slow performance.

Macos Can 27t Repair The Disk My Passport File

Special offer. About Outbyte, uninstall instructions, EULA, Privacy Policy.

• Disk Erase failed.
  Disk Erase failed with the error:
  Couldn’t Unmount Disk.
• Partition failed
  Partition failed with the error:
  Couldn’t Unmount Disk.
• Disk Utility stopped verifying (letter of the hard disk)
  Couldn’t Unmount Disk.
• Volume Erase failed
  Volume Erase failed with the error:
  “Couldn’t Unmount Disk”.

Macos Can%27t Repair The Disk My Passport Photo

Once this pops up, the current process gets halted and could no longer proceed, affecting any troubleshooting process or disk repair you might be doing.

What Causes the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” Error in Disk Utility for Mac?

When your Mac is getting the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error when using the Disk Utility, it is possible that the boot drive cannot be modified because it is being used by some process or an application. For example, a file from the disk you are trying to erase could be open, which means that you can’t proceed with the erasing unless all the files are closed.

Another possible reason is the presence of malware. When a malicious software is running in the background and wreaking havoc on your Mac, you might get the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error when you try to do something with your hard drive. This is because the malware might be making changes to your hard drive without you knowing it.

Other factors you should look into include corrupted system files, bad hard drive sectors, or insufficient permissions. Whatever the reason is, resolving this “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error should be your priority because it might lead to further disk damage or other hard drive issues.

How to Fix the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” Error on Mac

If your Mac is getting the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error, don’t worry because there are several ways to handle this problem. But before you do so, here are some of the basic troubleshooting you should take care of first:

• Close all applications and files before attempting the repair.
• Make sure you have enough permissions to read and write to the drive you want to modify.
• Run a scan to check for the presence of malware. Delete any malicious software detected using your antivirus and delete all related files.
• Disable your security software after running the scan because it might prevent the processes from pushing through.
• Declutter your system by cleaning up your computer with a Mac cleaning tool. This should fix any errors related to corrupted junk files or cached data on your Mac.
• Restart your computer.

Macos Can 27t Repair The Disk My Passport Used

Once you’ve completed the steps above, you can now proceed with the main solutions:

Solution #1: Use a USB Boot Drive to Repair the Hard Drive.

If “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error occurs when you are trying to modify the boot drive, the easiest solution is to boot your Mac using another drive, and then run Disk Utility from that disk. You can use an installation drive or a recovery drive, as long as it is bootable and it is separate from the primary boot disk where your macOS is installed.

Here are the steps you need to follow to resolve this error using a USB boot drive:

1. Connect the USB boot drive to your Mac, then reboot.
2. While restarting, hold down the Option key button and choose the attached boot drive.
3. In the boot menu, choose Disk Utility.
4. Click First Aid at the top menu to verify the disk.
5. Once your disk has been verified, you can then proceed with the task you were trying to perform when the error occurred.

Solution #2: Use the Recovery Partition.

If the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error message appears when doing First Aid on your disk or formatting a non-boot disk, the first solution will not work. If this is the case, you can try resolving the error using Recovery Partition.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Reboot your Mac.
2. While booting up, hold down the Option key to boot using the Recovery Partition.
3. Next, click on Disk Utility from the boot menu.
4. Click First Aid to verify the disk or select Erase to format the disk if needed.

Keep in mind that this method will only work if the disk that is throwing the error is not the same as the primary boot partition where the Recovery Partition is saved.

Solution #3: Use Command Prompt to Force Unmount the Disk.

If the above methods don’t work and your disk is pretty stubborn, you can attempt to fix this error by forcing to unmount the disk using commands.

To do this, follow the steps below:

1. Launch Terminal by navigating to Finder > Go > Applications > Utilities.
2. In the Terminal window, type in the following command: diskutil list
3. This will list down all the available disks on your Mac.
4. Look for the disk that you want to force unmount and take note of the number of the drive.
5. Type in this command next: sudo diskutil unmountDisk force /dev/diskx
6. Replace /dev/diskx with the disk number of the drive you want to unmount (for example, dev/disk1).
7. Wait for the process to be completed.

Solution #4: Use a Third-Party App.

If you don’t want to go through the trouble of booting using the USB boot drive or typing in commands in the Terminal, you can use a third-party tool instead. There are a lot of repair utilities to help you deal with this “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error. These utilities can also be used to format, partition, erase, or modify your disk. Just make sure to choose a reliable app that can help you perform these tasks without any error.

Summary

The Disk Utility on macOS is a useful tool for fixing any disk-related issues or performing tasks that involve the hard drive. But this tool is not impregnable. Flaws, such as the “Couldn’t Unmount Disk” error, can happen from time to time. When this happens, simply follow the solutions listed above and you’ll be good to go.