MacOS sees CFExpress card as external disk, not memory card

I'm having this issue too.

Not sure why running First Aid on a hard drive would have anything to do with whether Image Capture can see my CFExpress card. And re-installing macOS seems to be serious overkill.

I have a Sony CFExpress card I use with my Nikon Z7. I have plugged in a Sony MRW-G1 card reader into both a USB port and a Type C port. When I do this, the following happens:

1. My CFExpress card shows up as a hard drive. (This is normal)
2. My CFExpress card does NOT show up as a device in Image Capture. (wrong)
3. My CFExpress card does NOT show up in the Capture One software or Photos to import images. (wrong)

My guess is, for some reason, MacOSX does not recognize the CFExpress card as a photo memory card. Instead it just thinks it's another disk drive.

How can I convince MacOSX that this is, in fact, a memory card from a camera and not just a hard drive?

By the way, one more experiment:

1. I removed the CFExpress card.
2. Into the same Sony MRW-G1 reader, I inserted a standard XQD card.

This time, MacOSX mounted it as a disk, AND Image Capture recognized the card.

So, the issue seems not to be with the reader but with MacOSX unable to properly handle CFExpress cards. Any word on when this might happen or if there is something I could do now?

I'm using version 10.15.7 of Catalina.

Hello esot3ric,

Thanks for that info and for choosing the Apple Support Communities. If we understand correctly, you are unable to get your CFExpress card to be read by your Mac as a memory card as expected. You can figure out if unexpected behavior is related to a user file or setting by trying to reproduce the issue from another user account. This process includes creating a new user account, logging in to it, and testing for the issue.

Set up users, guests, and groups on Mac

Next, use safe mode to start up your Mac as it does the following things:

• Verifies your startup disk and attempts to repair directory issues, if needed
• Loads only required kernel extensions
• Prevents Startup Items and Login Items from opening automatically
• Disables user-installed fonts
• Deletes font caches, kernel cache, and other system cache files

Log in to your user account and test the issue while in safe mode and then restart normally and test the issue again.

How to use safe mode on your Mac

Graphics performance limited in macOS Recovery, safe mode, or Guest User mode

Cheers!

Thanks for replying, esot3ric, and that additional info, it really helps! Next, try running First Aid on your hard drive with the built in Disk Utility tool, as this can correct issues like you're experiencing.

Disk Utility for Mac: Repair a disk using Disk Utility

If you're still having this issue, you can make a backup of your personal data and put a fresh copy of macOS on your Mac using macOS Recovery mode, as that will overwrite these system files causing the issue.

Back up your files with Time Machine

How to back up your Mac - Official Apple Support

How to reinstall macOS

Have a great day and thanks for using the Apple Support Communities!