Photos library on external drive cant import "there is an error attempting to free up disk space..." (APFS,sufficient storage)

Hi guys,

I have copied my original library(with photos) on the mac to an external ssd formated to APFS. I could import photos to the new library on the external drive shortly after I moved it but when I tried it today I could not.

Nothing happens if I do import all new photos in the photos app and if I drag the photos from finder it shows me this error

"there is an error attempting to free up disk space..."

I still have 1.9tb of free space, the drive was formated to APFS, Photos Version 9.0 (608.2.113) and macOS 14.0

Does anyone know how to solve this?

Posted on Oct 18, 2023 9:52 AM

Top-ranking reply

Soosie_J215

Community Specialist

Posted on Oct 19, 2023 9:12 AM

Hello vito108,

It sounds like you need specific help with your external drive not allowing you to save files to it, even with available storage space. The first few steps to start with relating to this issue are in this article: If your Mac can't save files to an external drive

You might have already looked through that. The next thing to do is to run a check then possible repair on that drive with Disk Utility. Use the steps here: How to repair a Mac disk with Disk Utility

You could also isolate the issue if it's just when you try to move new photo files or any files. That will narrow down if the issue is specific to what you are saving (importing) or the drive overall. Reply back with how it goes.

Best regards.

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Photos library on external drive cant import "there is an error attempting to free up disk space..." (APFS,sufficient storage)

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