Encountering difficulties while attempting to move or transfer files from your Mac to an external hard drive is a frustrating issue that many users face. Rest assured, you are not alone. In this comprehensive guide, we will explore the potential causes behind this problem and provide you with step-by-step solutions to help you overcome it.
- Possible Reasons for Inability to Copy Files from Mac to External Hard Drive
Various factors can contribute to the inability to copy files from your Mac to an external hard drive. These may include:
- Loose or damaged cable: The connection between your Mac and the external hard drive may be compromised, hindering proper communication.
- Read-only settings: The external hard drive might be set to read-only mode, preventing the addition of new files.
- Issues with drag-and-drop or copy-and-paste: The Mac's drag-and-drop or copy-and-paste functionality may be experiencing problems.
- Insufficient storage space: The external hard drive could be full, lacking the necessary storage capacity for new files.
- Incompatible file format: The external hard drive may adopt a file format incompatible with your Mac.
- Corruption or damage: The external hard drive might be corrupted or damaged, impeding file transfer.
- Operating system bugs: Bugs within the Mac's operating system could disrupt seamless communication with the external hard drive.
To effectively resolve the problem, it is vital to identify the underlying cause. Once determined, you can proceed with the appropriate steps to rectify the issue, allowing for successful file copying from your Mac to the external hard drive.
- Troubleshooting Methods for Inability to Copy from Mac to External Hard Drive
If you find yourself unable to copy files from your Mac to an external hard drive, follow these methods to troubleshoot and resolve the issue. Ensure a proper connection and then try the following steps to enable file copying, moving, or transferring between your Mac and external hard drives, including WD, Seagate, or other brands.
First, ensure proper connection by checking the port on your Mac and the USB cable of the external hard drive. If that's not the issue, you can try the following methods to make sure you could copy, move, or transfer files from Mac to WD, Seagate, or other external hard drives.
Method 1: Check the File Format of the External Hard Drive
Your external hard drive may be formatted with NTFS, a file system commonly used in Windows. However, macOS can only read NTFS drives by default, preventing file transfers from your Mac to the NTFS-formatted external drive.
To determine the file system of your external hard drive, utilize the Disk Utility tool. Access it by navigating to Finder > Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility. Once opened, select the drive from the left sidebar to view its format on the right pane.
If the external hard drive is indeed formatted with NTFS, there are several methods to make it readable and writable on your Mac. One option is to utilize NTFS for Mac software like iBoysoft NTFS for Mac.
This software, approved by Apple, automatically enables read-write access to NTFS drives when connected to a Mac. It also facilitates seamless file operations between your Mac and the NTFS drive, similar to working with a native HFS+ or APFS drive. Another option is to reformat the NTFS drive to FAT32 or exFAT or utilize Terminal commands on your Mac.
Method 2: Method 2: Check the Permission Settings of the External Hard Drive
If the formatting of the external hard drive is compatible with macOS, yet you still cannot add folders to the drive, it could be due to permission settings. The drive's permissions may be set to read-only for the currently logged-in account. Follow these steps to check the permission settings:
Step 1. Right-click on the external hard drive and select "Get Info" from the menu.
Step 2. In the "Sharing & Permissions" section at the bottom of the info window, you will see the privileges assigned to each user for the drive.
If you lack read-write privileges for the external hard drive, you can modify the permissions:
- Click the padlock icon at the bottom and enter your admin password to unlock it.
- Under the "Sharing & Permissions" section, select your user account name on your Mac.
- Expand your user privileges and change them to "Read & Write" (refer to the image below).
By resetting the permissions of the external hard drive, you should be able to store new files on it without restrictions.
Method 3: Ensure Sufficient Available Space on the External Hard Drive
One potential reason for the inability to copy files from your Mac to an external hard drive is insufficient storage space. To determine the storage usage of your external hard drive, follow these steps:
- Open the Apple menu and select "About This Mac".
- Navigate to the "Storage" tab to obtain an overview of the external drive's total capacity and the amount of space currently in use.
If the external drive is full and lacks free space, it will not be able to accommodate additional files. In such cases, you can free up space on the external drive by deleting unnecessary or redundant files. Once you have created some free space on the drive, you should be able to copy new files without encountering any issues.
Method 4: Explore Alternative File Transfer Methods for the External Drive
If you are encountering difficulties when attempting to copy files to an external hard drive, it is worth considering alternative file transfer methods. For instance, if the copy-and-paste method is currently ineffective, you can try utilizing the drag-and-drop method instead.
To check if the copy-and-paste function is functioning correctly on your Mac, attempt to copy and paste a file from one location on your Mac to another. If this method fails, you can attempt to drag and drop the files from your Mac to the external hard drive instead.
In the event that the drag-and-drop method also proves ineffective on your Mac, you can utilize keyboard shortcuts such as "Ctrl + C" to copy the files and "Ctrl + V" to paste them onto your external drive.
It is possible that certain files or folders are not permitted to be copied using the default Mac functionality. In such cases, you may still be able to copy files by employing different methods or utilizing alternative software, as opposed to relying solely on copying and pasting or dragging and dropping.
Method 5: Utilize First Aid to Verify and Repair Drive Errors
If you encounter difficulties adding folders to an external hard drive on your Mac, it is possible that the drive contains errors. In such cases, you can employ the First Aid feature in Disk Utility to inspect and resolve any errors on the drive. Follow these steps to run First Aid on the external hard drive:
- Open Launchpad from the dock and navigate to Other > Disk Utility.
- Select the external hard drive from the left sidebar within the Disk Utility window.
- Click the First Aid button located in the top toolbar and confirm the action by selecting "Run". Wait for the process to complete (you could refer to the image below).
Running First Aid will scan and repair any errors present on the external hard drive, enabling you to add folders to the drive on your Mac.
If you have attempted the aforementioned methods without success, there are a few additional steps you can take. Firstly, try restarting your Mac, as this may resolve temporary bugs that could be causing the issue. Additionally, consider updating your Mac to the latest operating system version, as updates often include bug fixes and performance enhancements. As a last resort, you can attempt connecting a different external hard drive, formatted with HFS+, FAT32, or APFS, to your Mac to determine if you can successfully copy files to it.
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