External OWC Thunderbay drives won't mount on MacBook Pro M1 Max 16"

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Level 1

8 points

External OWC Thunderbay drives won't mount on MacBook Pro M1 Max 16"

• I've had an external OWC Thunderbay 4-bay system for years. Works great on all of my Intel Macs.

• New MacBook Pro M1 Max 16" with Apple Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter + Thunderbolt 2 cable. SoftRaid sees the drive, but will not mount it.

• New OWC Thunderbay 8-bay. Moved those drives to it, connected to Max 16", via OWC Thunderbolt 3 cable. Same result: SoftRaid sees the drive, but will not mount it. Thunderbay 8-bay works fine connected via Thunderbolt 2 cable to Intel Mac.

• Added 2 new unformatted drives to the Thunderbay 8-bay, for future Raid setup. SoftRaid does not see either of them.

• Been talking with OWC. Did what they asked:

•• Allow third party driver to load

•• Allow OWC as an identified developer

•• Give Full Disk access to SoftRaid

I discovered they have a Known Issues page and the issue is there:

https://www.softraid.com/support/known-issues/#mac

• Swapped out the OWC cable for an Apple cable. Made no difference.

• Checked the web, found many other similar complaints. Some suggest it's a bug in macOS Monterey

Ideas?

MacBook Pro (2020 and later)

Posted on Mar 13, 2022 7:41 AM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

QGessner

Level 1

4 points

May 25, 2022 8:48 AM in response to Bob Allen

Wow, if you have to go back and reinstall you OS just to get the OWC drives to come-up, perhaps it time I stop using their NAS and software....

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Answer 2

Bob Allen Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 15, 2022 6:24 AM in response to usahockey20

Yes, I finally resolved it. Forgot to update the status on this forum.

When I wiped the drive the first time (mentioned above), I reinstalled macOS (over 4 hours with my home wifi) and all my other software. Followed OWC's steps to install their drivers, but thing were always flaky - the results didn't always match what they said they should be.

Still couldn't mount the drive.

Took it to Apple, they wiped the drive and reinstalled macOS. Their internet is much faster than mine.

Took it home, *again* followed OWC's steps to install their drivers, this time the results exactly matched what they said should be. The drive came right up. I added my other extensions one by one (Intego suite, 1Password, Wacom tablet), the drive still came up. I still don't know exactly what the culprit was, but this worked for me.

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Answer 3

Mar 13, 2022 8:55 AM in response to Bob Allen

If that drive is detected by OWC's Soft Raid software but does not mount it, that sounds to me like more work for OWC to resolve with their products, and not a Monterey issue. Does OWC offer firmware updates for that array and if so, are you behind? Do they recommend this array and soft raid solution for Monterey usage?

Keep pressing OWC for a solution to this, and/or wait for the forthcoming macOS Monterey 12.3 update and try again connecting the raid array.

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Answer 4

Bob Allen Author

Level 1

8 points

Mar 13, 2022 9:21 AM in response to VikingOSX

I am completely up to date on OWC software & drivers & macOS. Even wiped the new Mac, reinstalled, started over. Same result.

Been dealing with OWC since day 1. They make one suggestion, I try it, they send another, etc.

I’ve now tried everything they suggested.

They didn’t suggest an Apple problem, other forums do.

Yes, I’ve been after OWC, will ask case to be elevated.

So frustrating

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Answer 5

Apr 14, 2022 6:41 PM in response to Bob Allen

Did you have any luck here? I've been on the phone with OWC for 3 hours, typing in terminal commands, and having no luck mounting this $2,000 drive. They say it's an apple problem, apple says its OWC. The fingerpointing goes on.

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Answer 6

steve626

Level 6

11,603 points

May 25, 2022 10:10 AM in response to Bob Allen

Bob Allen wrote:

I added my other extensions one by one (Intego suite, 1Password, Wacom tablet), the drive still came up. I still don't know exactly what the culprit was, but this worked for me.

You would probably be better off without the Intego suite. There is no reason to install that when you are using Monterey on a sealed system volume.

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External OWC Thunderbay drives won't mount on MacBook Pro M1 Max 16"

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