WD My Passport HDD with APFS partition failing

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elendiI Author

Level 1

4 points

WD My Passport HDD with APFS partition failing

Hi all,

I own a 2019 16-inch MacBook Pro with macOS Monterey version 12.6.

I also own a 4TB Western Digital WD My Passport HDD with USB-C port.

When I acquired the HDD, I made a partition to enable TimeMachine backups: 1TB for backups and 3TB left for other use.

Recently, the HDD was mostly likely unplugged during one of the backups operated by TimeMachine.

Since then, the 1TB Backup disk does not mount (except when my Mac turns off because it's out of battery and I restart it later with the HDD already plugged into it) and I cannot see the files in my 3TB disk (no matter what).

Neither changing ports, nor changing cable, nor switching computers (even Windows PC) makes anything work.

For the 3TB My Passport, the data seems to be there, running First Aid fails and unmounting the disk also fails.

For the 1TB Backup, I expect the data should still be there as well, but again, First Aid fails and mounting the disk also fails (the opposite of the 3TB one for mounting/unmounting).

When using the WD app, only the 3TB My Passport disk is recognized by it.

When I run WD Utilities' "Diagnose", all tests succeed except for a "SMART status failed." error.

When using Terminal, the few commands I am using give the following:

~ %ls /Volumes/My\ Passport/whatever/ 
ls: fts_read: Input/output error

~ %diskutil list

[output shortened]

/dev/disk2 (external, physical):
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *4.0 TB     disk2
   1:                  Apple_HFS ⁨My Passport⁩             3.0 TB     disk2s1
   2:                 Apple_APFS ⁨Container disk3⁩         1.0 TB     disk2s2

/dev/disk3 (synthesized):
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:      APFS Container Scheme -                      +ERROR      disk3
                                 Physical Store disk2s2
   1:                APFS Volume ⁨Backup⁩                  ERROR      disk3s2

~ %diskutil apfs list
APFS Containers (2 found)
|
[output shortened]
|
+-- Container disk3 30526F51-86CD-4F98-BE59-59FE296EC0DC
    ====================================================
    APFS Container Reference:     disk3
    Size (Capacity Ceiling):      ERROR -69620
    Capacity In Use By Volumes:   ERROR -69620
    Capacity Not Allocated:       ERROR -69620
    |
    +-< Physical Store disk2s2 XXXXXYXX-XXYY-XYXX-YYXX-XXYYXXXYYXYY
    |   -----------------------------------------------------------
    |   APFS Physical Store Disk:   disk2s2
    |   Size:                       1004615880704 B (1.0 TB)
    |
    +-> Volume disk3s2 XYXYYYXX-YYYY-XYXY-YYXX-YXYYYXXXYYXY
        ---------------------------------------------------
        APFS Volume Disk (Role):   disk3s2 (Backup)
        Name:                      Backup (Case-sensitive)
        Mount Point:               Not Mounted
        Capacity Consumed:         ERROR -69620
        Capacity Reserve:          ERROR -69620
        Capacity Quota:            ERROR -69620
        Sealed:                    No
        FileVault:                 No

~ %diskutil verifyVolume disk3s2
Started file system verification on disk3s2 (Backup)
Verifying file system
Volume is already unmounted
Performing fsck_apfs -n -x /dev/rdisk3s2
error: failed to read container superblock
File system check exit code is 8
Restoring the original state found as unmounted
Error: -69845: File system verify or repair failed
Underlying error: 8

~ %diskutil repairVolume disk3s2
Started file system repair on disk3s2 (Backup)
Checking file system and repairing if necessary and if possible
Volume is already unmounted
Performing fsck_apfs -y -x /dev/rdisk3s2
error: failed to read container superblock
File system check exit code is 8
Restoring the original state found as unmounted
Error: -69845: File system verify or repair failed
Underlying error: 8

~ %diskutil verifyDisk disk3    
Unable to verify this whole disk: A GUID Partition Table (GPT) partitioning scheme is required (-69773)

~ %diskutil repairDisk disk3
Unable to repair this whole disk: A GUID Partition Table (GPT) partitioning scheme is required (-69773)

~ %diskutil verifyDisk disk2
Started partition map verification on disk2
Checking prerequisites
Problems were found with the partition map which might prevent booting
Error: -69808: Some information was unavailable during an internal lookup

I do not want to go further trying out commands without understanding the risks of data loss, etc...

I would just like to retrieve the data from the 3TB My Passport disk.

I do not so much care about the 1TB Backup.

Does anyone know what is happening and how to fix it without sending the drive to an expensive data recovery service company?

Would erasing or deleting the 1TB volume, container, disk be sufficient to fix the whole HDD? If so, I would like to make sure this does not affect the 3TB part of it, and that it would allow me to access it again.

MacBook Pro

Posted on Oct 2, 2022 4:10 AM

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Answer 1

Oct 2, 2022 8:53 AM in response to elendiI

elendiI wrote:

Hi all,

I own a 2019 16-inch MacBook Pro with macOS Monterey version 12.6.

I also own a 4TB Western Digital WD My Passport HDD with USB-C port.

When I acquired the HDD, I made a partition to enable TimeMachine backups: 1TB for backups and 3TB left for other use.

...

Would erasing or deleting the 1TB volume, container, disk be sufficient to fix the whole HDD? If so, I would like to make sure this does not affect the 3TB part of it, and that it would allow me to access it again.

TM likes to have its own dedicated drive.

reformat and try again

Erase and reformat a storage device in Disk Utility on Mac

Erase and reformat a storage device in Disk Utility on Mac - Apple Support \


<fts_read: Input/output error>

if the drive is operating in a state of failure—replace it. Drives can fail at anytime.

If you value your user data

3-2-1 Backup Strategy: three copies of your data, two different methods, and one offsite.

More than one device, more than one backup methodology.

Reply

Answer 2

Tesserax

Level 10

155,414 points

Oct 2, 2022 7:00 PM in response to elendiI

Again, thanks for taking the time to provide the screenshots, and the latest Disk Utility First Aid results. As you already know, and the screenshots verify it, is this drive was initially configured with two HFS+ (aka, Mac OS Extended) partitions, each containing a single volume.

At some point the second partition was reconfigured as an APFS container, with a single volume, named Backup, in support of TM running on a Mac that has is source drive formatted in APFS.

Subsequently, for some reason or another, the overall partition map (which maintains track of the drive's overall configuration) got corrupted ... and why you are finding it difficult to access anything on the drive with the Finder app ... or the Time Machine interface for that matter.

At this point, you basically have two options, depending on the criticality of the data on the My Passport partition:

Attempt to recover that data yourself, using (again) something like: Disk Drill ... but please, shop around for other apps that perform data recovery to see which may work best for you.
If the data is super critical, you may want to elicit the assistance with an outfit that specializes in data recovery services. Be warned though that not only can they not guarantee full recovery, but also this service can be very costly. Buyer beware here.

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Answer 3

Tesserax

Level 10

155,414 points

Oct 2, 2022 9:54 AM in response to elendiI

One thing I noticed from the diskutil list results is that this drive, as you mentioned is "partitioned." However, one is formatted in HFS+, and the other as APFS.

APFS introduced a few changes, in that what was called partitions are now called containers. Although I totally agree with leroydouglas on not using multiple partitions/containers on a drive to support both TM & file storage, folks still do.

When doing so, with APFS, the drive should have been configured with two separate APFS containers. TM will automatically configure the chosen container with a volume solely for its use by designating it as "Backup" as you can see in the listing you provided. The other container would then initially contain a single APFS volume for, in this case, file storage.

I'm assuming when you initially partitioned this drive, you formatted it in HFS+ for both partitions. In turn, TM reformatted its partition for APFS to support TM from a Monterey's AFPS source drive.

Regardless, according to the diskutil results, it appears that the TM "partition" (disk2s2) is corrupted. ... and, unfortunately, the HFS+ partition (disk2s1) has been rendered unreadable from macOS ... at least, not without using third-party recovery tools, like DiskDrill.

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Answer 4

elendiI Author

Level 1

4 points

Oct 2, 2022 10:08 AM in response to Tesserax

Hi @Tesserax and @leroydouglas,

Thank you for both of your answers.

Is it correct to understand that having one APFS container getting corrupted makes it impossible to do anything with the uncorrupted HFS+ partition? Would it have changed anything if both were APFS-formatted?

Also, thank you for clarifying that Time Machine wants APFS and that it would be better to have it everywhere. I am not sure why the other part of the disk is HFS+-formatted... and it might be it was all HFS+ and the new container was formatted as APFS for Time Machine as you said, @Tesserax.

One question remains, how can I retrieve and, most of all, access the data on the 3TB partition? There is no possible direct fix? such as removing the APFS container that got corrupted (using for example diskutil eraseDisk or just diskutil eraseVolume) (I don't want to cause more problems with the disk). If there is no possible direct fix, am I expected to buy a new 4TB drive and use disk drill to salvage the data, transferring it from the defecting one to the newly bought one? In such a case, will this transfer also transfer the data corruption?? or will everything be fine in the new disk?

Thank you in advance for your further help.

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Answer 5

Tesserax

Level 10

155,414 points

Oct 2, 2022 10:52 AM in response to elendiI

elendiI wrote:

Is it correct to understand that having one APFS container getting corrupted makes it impossible to do anything with the uncorrupted HFS+ partition?

Not in my experience, but to be honest, I've yet to come across this particular situation before. Would you mind providing a screenshot of the Disk Utility app in "Show Devices" view with this drive attached? Just want to look at it from a different perspective.

Also, thank you for clarifying that Time Machine wants APFS and that it would be better to have it everywhere.

APFS added a bit more "drama" for Time Machine, as far as, how it backs up. The following article, hopefully, can shed some light on this topic: Time Machine to APFS: Understanding backups - The Eclectic Light Company

TL/DR: With APFS, when the source is APFS, you will want the destination to be APFS, to be the most efficient, regardless if it is for TM or not.

One question remains, how can I retrieve and, most of all, access the data on the 3TB partition? There is no possible direct fix? such as removing the APFS container that got corrupted (using for example diskutil eraseDisk or just diskutil eraseVolume) (I don't want to cause more problems with the disk).

The answer is: I don't know for sure. The APFS TM container appears as another volume within an HFS+ partition ... which is somewhat confusing me at this point. That's why I don't know if this caused macOS to not be able to properly access the HFS+ one (disk2s1). Just deleting disk2s2 may not help. I agree that not experimenting would be beneficial for trying to preserve the data on disk2s1 so that it potentially can be retrieved via an app, like Disk Drill.

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Answer 6

Tesserax

Level 10

155,414 points

Oct 2, 2022 12:54 PM in response to elendiI

Yes, thank you. It does confirm how the My Password is currently configured. If I can trouble you for having you select each "partition" on the My Passport (both My Passport & Container disk3) to see the resultant details and providing screenshots of each, I would be very grateful.

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Answer 7

elendiI Author

Level 1

4 points

Oct 3, 2022 6:54 AM in response to Tesserax

Thank you again for your help, Tesserax.

Do you have experience with DiskDrill? Will it just copy the data on the whole disk without reproducing the same partition and in turn the erroneous partition map? How does DiskDrill really operate?

Apart from that, I really wonder where one could find the people who would know whether suppressing the failing APFS container would fix the issue.

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Answer 8

Tesserax

Level 10

155,414 points

Oct 3, 2022 8:53 AM in response to elendiI

I only have limited experience as I only had to use it a few times. However, it is pretty straight-forward.

During the simple installation process, you will be asked to include Disk Drill in your Security & Privacy settings so that it can have full access to your drives. This will be required if you want this app to perform its tasks. However, if you feel this is intrusive, you can elect to try another similar product ... although, I'm guessing that all of them will need this type of access.

Once installed, you launch it and it asks you to identify the drive that needs attention. Select it, and I suggest that you use the default "All recovery methods" to allow the app to run though a set of methods to attempt to identify recoverable data. After it completes its scan it will show you want it found and places them in categories, like Pictures, Audio, Documents, etc. Please note that these scans can take some time so be patient. Along the way, it may offer what it has found, so far, so you can review them.

You then have the opportunity to save any/all of the recoverable files to another storage media. Disk Drill will not attempt to repair either the drive itself or any "broken" files. Its main goal is to recover files that can be recovered. Unfortunately, with APFS, most consumer-grade drive "repair" tools currently do not work. At least in my experience.

As far as people to contact, I would first start with Apple Support. You can easily access them by clicking on the "Get Support" link in the upper right-hand side of this forum's web page. In addition, you can do a local search for data recovery services in your area.

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Answer 9

elendiI Author

Level 1

4 points

Oct 7, 2022 12:08 PM in response to Tesserax

I ran a >80-hour long Disk Drill Scan on the 3TB My Passport part of the drive just to see "Nothing found".

Yet, I can see half of the 3TB is occupied by something, in Disk Drill too. I just don't get why nothing allows me to access my data. It's sad to have to pay so much in data recovery services just to get a solution for such silly drives (which I have not done yet).