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How to delete the APConfig and APSwap partitions on an ex-TC hard drive?

I removed the 3TB hard drive from my TC unit, and placed it in an new USB3.0 HDD Enclosure. With the intent for direct connection to Time Machine on my Mac.

All going fine except for two partitions that keep stuck at the HDD and showing in my Finder. APSwap and APConfig. I like to delete those two partitions as they are related to the HDD being in a TC, and not relevant for the HDD in a external enclosure. Strangely, can't find and solution on the web so far.

I zero-ed erased the Data partition to no avail. Strangely (?) the Data partition shows 3TB capacity while the APSwap is 864M and APConfig 1.07G. The total drive is a 3TB drive....

iMac 21.5", macOS 10.14

Posted on Apr 26, 2019 10:31 PM

Top-ranking reply

LaPastenague

Level 9

67,244 points

Posted on Apr 27, 2019 4:12 AM

You need to repartition the disk not format it.

This changed a bit on the later versions of disk utility.. much to the detriment of usability IMHO.

Plug in your hard disk .. then in disk utility erase it. I have done an old disk for you to see actual example. I erased it in a TC and then plugged it into the computer.. you can see APConfig and APswap.

Select erase

Give the disk a name.. rather than untitled.

It will then delete all the partitions.. and create just one.. named whatever.. I have called it samsung1tb since that is what the drive is.

After a few seconds the drive will remount as a single new partition.

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How to delete the APConfig and APSwap partitions on an ex-TC hard drive?

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