Upgrading to Monterey broke my Fusion Drive, any way to fix it and get data back?

Needed to upgrade from Sierra when Adobe apps would no longer update. Software update only provided an update to Monterey. When updating, the iMac rebooted to a disk icon and no bootable OS was found. When booting in recovery mode, Disk Utility shows the rotation and SSD drives separated and no longer fused.


I used R-Studio to recover data, though it was able to relink the two drives, it failed to recombine them and could not recover the partition, only a spread of files with serialized numbers for names was recovered.


I see a lot of reports of issues with Fusion Drives and Big Sur/Monterey. Any of this been fixed yet? Any trick to fixing mine? Anything else to be worried about with Monterey?

Posted on May 7, 2022 7:51 AM

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May 7, 2022 8:01 AM in response to Ryan Burkholder

Not sure this will work on Monterey but nothing ventured nothing gained.


How to fix a split Fusion Drive


After the fact & only for informational purposes


The Age of this computer will Govern what newer version of macOS it will Qualify to install. Use About this Mac from the Apple Icon on Desktop - the required Information will be there.


With the above information in-hand - follow this How to get old versions of macOS and verify what version this computer Qualifies to install.  For Best results use Safari to commence the download as Others may not work.


Safari will open a redirect and open the Apple Store where the download can commence.


Computer Qualify for the Monterey upgrade


macOS Big Sur 11 hardware requirements


macOS Catalina 10.15 hardware requirements


macOS Mojave 10.14 hardware requirements


macOS High Sierra 10.13 hardware requirements


Caution - jumping over all the newer versions and directly to Big Sur  / Monterey on Qualifying computers is Technically possible - there are those who have attempted and were successful.


Then there are those who attempted and had less than good results, which appears to be the case for this computer


If this is a Production or Mission Critical Set-up - a more prudent and measure approach is suggested


The above is from observations on the Apple Support Community Forums and IMHO


Tips Big Sir Upgrade Released Nov 2020


Tips Monterey Upgrade  Released Oct 25, 2021


Make Time Machine Backup  is very useful and can be used to Revert to Previous Working macOS


Notation - Mojave is the Last version to support 32 bit applications / extensions and Drivers. Catalina, Big Sur & Monterey supports only 64 bit and there is no workaround.


Suggest using Go64 to find 32 bit application before attempting the upGrade. Some or many of the Application already installed may required update or upGrades to 64 Bit Versions.


May 7, 2022 8:27 AM in response to Owl-53

Thanks! That's a lot of great info, too bad Apple doesn't provide ANY of that when upgrading. Not even a waring about losing 32 bit apps. Something I'd expect from a hobby club, not a multi-billion dollar company.


Recombining the Fusion drive will erase the data but will restore the Fusion drive. I'm going to get that claptrap of an invention called a Fusion Drive out of the iMac and install an SSD. It's because of issues like this with Big Sur and Monterey that I've had everyone at the company banned from buying non-Intel Macs until I see a reason to trust the current offerings. As we are not supporting the new architecture, our customers are staying with the Intel platform as well. Hopefully macOS becomes viable for a professional environment soon.

May 7, 2022 12:22 PM in response to Ryan Burkholder

Apple warns Mac users that 32-bit app support is ending


Apple to Phase Out 32-Bit Mac Apps Starting in January 2018


https://techcrunch.com/2018/04/11/apple-starting-to-alert-users-that-it-will-end-32-bit-app-support/


Heads up regarding replacing the Internal Drive.


There appears, at the moment, there is no workaround.


Point # 1 - Does the >>  Computer Qualify for the Monterey upgrade 


There are reports appearing on the ASC Forums regarding failed installation of Monterey on older Qualifying Apple Computers. 


In most cases this is related to having a NON Apple Original Internal Drive ?  


The EFI Boot ROM included in Monterey is verifying for Original Apple Drive and if not found , may Balk or fail to upgrade to Monterey. 


Reports indicate the EFI BOOT ROM is Required to Flash the Computer and is a  requirement for a Successful Monterey Installation.




May 7, 2022 12:38 PM in response to Owl-53

Thanks, this is a 2017 5k iMac. Big Sur and Monterey aren't allowed in the company, far too many issues. This home machine was an unfortunate experiment in pretending to be a typical end user. Hey, Adobe says I need an update, hey there's an update in System preferences and it doesn't warn be about anything so I'll just run it.


So know I know Monterey isn't ready for business use. DropBox, just, became compatible with Big Sur a couple months ago. Had a lot of people accidentally upgrading to Big Sur and messing up the corporate DropBox account. Guess we'll stay away from the new operating systems and Apple chipsets until they focus on something other than pinball machines that make phone calls. 🤷‍♂️ A professional version of macOS would be nice.

May 7, 2022 12:59 PM in response to Ryan Burkholder

You are welcome.


Do come back to the Apple Support Communities ( ASC )  in the future, if / or when additional Technical questions may arise


There has been enough advise / suggestions offered for the User to make an informed and educated choice what the next course of action is required.


The suggestions have been put forth on a volunteer basis, in good faith and in the best interests of the computer.


Anything more regarding " Professional Version would be nice ".


To be effective and constructive, it should be directed to Apple Feedback

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Upgrading to Monterey broke my Fusion Drive, any way to fix it and get data back?

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