think.different

Q: 512 SSD only showing 256?

I have a 2012 2.3 i7 Mini which has an SSD (for OS + apps) and a HHD (for data). I purchased it last year and have only just really noticed that the SSD is showing as being 256GB in size.

 

In Disk utility is shows that the drive is 512 and the single partition is 256 which takes up the whole drive.

 

by default 2016-09-27 at 19.10.16.png

by default 2016-09-27 at 19.10.20.png

 

When I go into system report, it then shows that the Recovery partition is in fact 256 also:

by default 2016-09-27 at 19.10.25.png

I didn't set up the drives myself, but does anyone know why this happens or how would happen?

Mac mini, OS X El Capitan (10.11.6), 2.3 i7 Quad, 16GB, 512 SSD + 500GB

Posted on Sep 27, 2016 11:14 AM

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Q: 512 SSD only showing 256?

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  • by Allan Eckert,

    Allan Eckert Allan Eckert Sep 27, 2016 11:18 AM in response to think.different
    Level 9 (53,825 points)
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    Sep 27, 2016 11:18 AM in response to think.different

    It appears that it was formatted with a partition that is only half the size of the SSD. I suggest you reformat it as a single partition.

     

    Of course that will wipe out anything on the SSD so backup everything first.

  • by think.different,

    think.different think.different Sep 27, 2016 11:32 AM in response to Allan Eckert
    Level 3 (775 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 27, 2016 11:32 AM in response to Allan Eckert

    So if you create a partition that only takes up partial available space then the recovery partition is shown to take up the rest of the space?

     

    What if I add a second partition at is also 256 or a little smaller to be on the safe side, shouldn't it just add the second partition on the fly, without the need to reformat?

  • by lllaass,

    lllaass lllaass Sep 27, 2016 12:33 PM in response to think.different
    Level 10 (189,599 points)
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    Sep 27, 2016 12:33 PM in response to think.different

    Just what did yo do?

    System Information should report somethng like this:

    OWC Mercury Electra 6G SSD:

     

      Capacity: 240.06 GB (240,057,409,536 bytes)

      Model: OWC Mercury Electra 6G SSD             

      Revision: 522ABBF0

      Serial Number: xxxxxxxxxxx 

      Native Command Queuing: Yes

      Queue Depth: 32

      Removable Media: No

      Detachable Drive: No

      BSD Name: disk0

      Medium Type: Solid State

      TRIM Support: No

      Bay Name: Lower

      Partition Map Type: GPT (GUID Partition Table)

      S.M.A.R.T. status: Verified

      Volumes:

    EFI:

      Capacity: 209.7 MB (209,715,200 bytes)

      BSD Name: disk0s1

      Content: EFI

      Volume UUID: 0E239BC6-F960-3107-89CF-1C97F78BB46B

    mur:

      Capacity: 239.2 GB (239,197,650,944 bytes)

      Available: 98.91 GB (98,910,142,464 bytes)

      Writable: Yes

      File System: Journaled HFS+

      BSD Name: disk0s2

      Mount Point: /

      Content: Apple_HFS

      Volume UUID: 3456FBDE-C8FE-3AE2-BD73-FDE085FAAEC0

    Recovery HD:

      Capacity: 650 MB (650,002,432 bytes)

      BSD Name: disk0s3

      Content: Apple_Boot

      Volume UUID: DD1080D1-DBF8-3970-96B3-7C5F2ADE923A

     

    You are also missing the EFi partition.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EFI_system_partition

     

    I would backup and format/erase the entire disk. Partition into two parts. Do a fresh install of OSX and then restore to the new OSX partition

  • by think.different,

    think.different think.different Sep 27, 2016 1:20 PM in response to lllaass
    Level 3 (775 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 27, 2016 1:20 PM in response to lllaass

    That's how the machine came into my hands.

     

    The EFI is there, it's taking up 210mb. My report is identical to your example, except for capacities.

  • by K Shaffer,

    K Shaffer K Shaffer Sep 27, 2016 3:21 PM in response to think.different
    Level 6 (14,441 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 27, 2016 3:21 PM in response to think.different

    Perhaps a previous owner may have installed Windows via BootCamp

    on a partition in the SSD; created by BootCamp the partition content

    would be invisible yet occupy space. I was given a Early MacBook1.1

    model where 'only half' hard drive capacity was visible. Until reformat.

     

    So to erase everything and reformat is advised. You may be able to start

    from the internet recovery; read OS X Recovery to see how that may work.

    • About OS X Recovery - Apple Support

     

    Good luck in this matter!

  • by think.different,

    think.different think.different Sep 28, 2016 1:29 PM in response to think.different
    Level 3 (775 points)
    Desktops
    Sep 28, 2016 1:29 PM in response to think.different

    Currently just cloning the drive over to a new partition on the HHD. Once that is complete I will see if I can add a new 256 partition to the SSD and then delete it to see if it can recover the space correctly. If not I'll just do a reformat and see if that works.

  • by BDAqua,

    BDAqua BDAqua Sep 28, 2016 10:00 PM in response to think.different
    Level 10 (123,765 points)
    Sep 28, 2016 10:00 PM in response to think.different

    Who ever set it up made huge Recovery Partition manually it appears, I think you;ll need the Installer on a USB stick or other drive to completely erase the SSD & let the Installer make the Recovery Partition.

  • by think.different,

    think.different think.different Oct 1, 2016 10:44 AM in response to think.different
    Level 3 (775 points)
    Desktops
    Oct 1, 2016 10:44 AM in response to think.different

    I tried to add a extra partition to what is already there, just to see what it would do.

     

    If I add a second partition of 256 or bigger I get this error:

    The requested size change for the target disk or a related disk is too small. Please try a different disk or partition, or make a larger change. Operation failed…

    if the second partition is smaller than 256 I just get:

    An internal error has occurred. Operation failed…

    Odd. No idea how it was originally set up?

     

    I have the drive cloned so it's no biggie to wipe and start a fresh.