Time Machine Woes

Marc

Marc

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Keep getting a message that my MBP won't back up to Time Machine. I can access the drive but just not add anything to it. I've tried unplugging it and plugging it back in as well as rebooting the MacBook.

I get a message that the disk can't be repaired and I should back it up a format it but I then get:

Screenshot 2023-05-01 at 09.30.15.png

I have it set to back up manually so I don't know what process 559 is. Anyone any ideas or is the external hard drive FUBAR?
 
Have you tried it when in Recovery Mode? That would get rid of any impact your system is having.
 
Marc said:
How do you put it in recovery mode?
Click to expand...
It depends on what tyoe of processor you have,

this should help. I:m pretty sure when you access Disk Utility in Recovery mode you can repair external disks too.

Intro to macOS Recovery

Learn how to use macOS Recovery.
support.apple.com
 
Marc said:
I now can't access apps vial spotlight so can't open Terminal or Disk Utility
Click to expand...
This is why I disable Spotlight on every Mac I use!

You can start any app or utility from the desktop menu by pulling down the "Go" menu and selecting "Applications" or "Utilities", which will take you directly to the appropriate directory.

(If you are in an app, so you can't see the desktop menu, just click anywhere not covered by the app window, which will switch you to "desktop mode").
 
Rebilding the Spotlight index can solve spotlight problems.

WRT to Recovery mode,
While you are in it, do a disk first aid on your internal disk.
 
AndrewFlannigan said:
This is why I disable Spotlight on every Mac I use!

You can start any app or utility from the desktop menu by pulling down the "Go" menu and selecting "Applications" or "Utilities", which will take you directly to the appropriate directory.

(If you are in an app, so you can't see the desktop menu, just click anywhere not covered by the app window, which will switch you to "desktop mode").
Click to expand...
Yes, have found Disk Utility and Terminal via Launchpad so no problem there but either way, I'm unable to erase the disk.

I just looked at Time Machine in Settings and clicked the red circle with the "i" and got the following

Screenshot 2023-05-01 at 10.31.54.png

Could that be the issue? Not sure how that came to be but can't find anywhere to change it to read/write
 
Try right click and Get Info on the external disk. Down the bottom of the window that opens is the permissions, you’ll need to click the little padlock to change it.
 
Also tried Restore and First Aid. Both failed. :(
 
Pound Coin said:
Try right click and Get Info on the external disk. Down the bottom of the window that opens is the permissions, you’ll need to click the little padlock to change it.
Click to expand...
This is after unlocking

Screenshot 2023-05-01 at 10.42.40.png
 
When I made a big mistake on my mac, this lot were of great help. Just a thought.

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Pound Coin said:
Try right click and Get Info on the external disk. Down the bottom of the window that opens is the permissions, you’ll need to click the little padlock to change it.
Click to expand...
Out of curiosity, I just looked at my other external drive and that also shows Read Only in get info but I'm able to copy files to it so I'm truly baffled!
 
Marc said:
Ok, so have enabled root but how do I 'use the Unix command chmod"?
Click to expand...
Instructions here:

www.howtogeek.com

How to Set File Permissions on Mac

It's possible to restrict access to your files on your Mac by setting file permissions using the Finder app or by using the terminal. Here's how.
www.howtogeek.com www.howtogeek.com
 
Marc said:
Thanks but the '+' icon is greyed out for that disk despite being unlocked.
Click to expand...
That's why you need to do this from terminal. If you set the disks's permissions to "777" you'll be free to erase it. You should then go to the "Disk Utility" app via the "Go | Utilities" menu and format the disk, accepting the offer to use the reformated disk for Time Machine (if that's what you want to do).
 
Marc said:
Also, following instructions for Terminal, what do I replace file.txt with? I tried toshiba ext but it wouldn't accept it
Click to expand...
In the terminal (remembering that you must press the "return" key after each command)....
  1. type "su root" then enter the root password when prompted.
  2. You should now see a prompt something like "sh-3.2#"
  3. type "cd /"
  4. type "ls -a" to see all the files in the root directory
  5. check that "Volumes" is shown before the next step
  6. type "cd Volumes" to put you in the correct directory
  7. type "ls -l" to see all the attached disks
  8. You should now see the time machine volume with something like "drwx------" at the beginning of the line
  9. Now type "chmod 777 Time\ Machine" (or whatever the Time Machine volume is called) to change the permissions
  10. type "ls -l" again and check that the time machine volume line starts with "drwxrwxrwx"
  11. type "exit" to drop out of root mode
  12. Try the reformat
 
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I had to edit the above several times but I think I've killed all the typos, please try again - sorry :coat:
 
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Marc said:
Which bit am I using from

View attachment 388067
Click to expand...
The command will be "chmod 777 TOSHIBA\ EXT"

Don't type the inverted commas but do type the backslash and the space between TOSHIBA and EXT

(in Unix, every character and space is important and everything is case sensitive)
 
This is the gift that keeps on giving lol

chmod: Unable to change file mode on TOSHIBA EXT: Operation not permitted
Click to expand...
 
Hmm. Weird.

Is the Time Machine stuff expendable? If yes, can you try erasing the disk on a different machine, like a PC
 
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Marc said:
This is the gift that keeps on giving lol
Click to expand...
Type "whoami" at the command prompt and see if it replies "root"
 
Did you get in Recovery Mode and try First Aid on the internal disk(s)?
 
Pound Coin said:
Did you get in Recovery Mode and try First Aid on the internal disk(s)?
Click to expand...
Oh FFS, I completely forgot to try it! :ROFLMAO:

Just did it and it allowed me to erase the disk. Set it up as Time Machine and it's currently doing a back up. Will find out in about an hour whether it's successful or not but curious as to what happened to cause the issue. It's been happily working for the last 3 years!
 
OK, that's good!

When it is all over and you have a new TM backup, try going into Recovery Mode again and doing Disk Utility stuff on the internal disk volume(s) there might be two, depending on what version of MacOS you have.

It could be worth starting up in Safe Mode

Start up your Mac in safe mode

Starting up your Mac in safe mode may help you diagnose problems with your Mac.
support.apple.com

This can fix some things, and does some cache clearing, etc. Lots of things are excluded, including all third party extensions. Can be a useful troubleshooting step.

TBH I'd use Recovery Mode, Safe Mode (and occasionally, if I have access to another machine and appropriate cables) Target Disk Mode, if available.

I'd rarely delve in Terminal, mistakes can be made...
 
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All good now. Thanks both for all your help

Pound Coin said:
When it is all over and you have a new TM backup, try going into Recovery Mode again and doing Disk Utility stuff on the internal disk volume(s) there might be two, depending on what version of MacOS you have.
Click to expand...
What sort of Disk Utility stuff? I'm running Ventura on an M2 MBP.
 
Start in Recovery Mode, and then you should be able to access Disk Utility, and in it, see the internal disks, on which you can do First Aid

Use macOS Recovery on a Mac with Apple silicon

Learn how to use macOS Recovery on a Mac with Apple silicon.
support.apple.com
 
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