I have a G-Tech Armor external drive that will not mount. When I attempt to mount the drive I get an error "The disk "Photos Backup" can't be unlocked. A problem was detected with the disk that prevents it from being unlocked." (No password dialog ever appears)
So far I have tried to mount the disk in Disk Utility. I ran First Aid. Reset NVRAM and restarted the machine. Swapped drive cables and adapter.
Thanks in advance!
iPhone 13 Pro Max, iOS 17
Is this a Time Machine backup drive?
If not, do you use any special software to transfer the files to the "PHOTOS BACKUP" volume?
Try manually unlocking the APFS volume by using the command line within the Terminal app. You need the Device identifier for the encrypted volume. At the time of your post, the encrypted volume had a Device identifier of "disk8s1". The device identifiers may change every time you reconnect the drive or reboot the system so make sure to check the information immediately before using any commands in the Terminal app.
Here is the command to manually unlock the encrypted volume without automatically mounting the volume:
diskutil ap unlockVolume disk8s1 -nomount
If there are no errors, then try using Disk Utility First Aid on the now unlocked PHOTOS BACKUP volume to see if it can be repaired.
If you can unlock the volume with this method, then try running First Aid on the hidden Container as well (shown as Container disk8 in your screenshot).
These manual instructions are for a non-Time Machine backup drive. I know TM backup drives behave a bit differently and should only be accessed through the Finder using the Time Machine button. I don't know if it is safe to run First Aid on a TM backup.
If the PHOTOS BACKUP volume is just a regular data drive holding a second copy of your files, then you may need to erase the drive & restore its contents from a backup....or start the backup procedure over if this was a second copy of your data.
Is this a Time Machine backup drive?
If not, do you use any special software to transfer the files to the "PHOTOS BACKUP" volume?
Try manually unlocking the APFS volume by using the command line within the Terminal app. You need the Device identifier for the encrypted volume. At the time of your post, the encrypted volume had a Device identifier of "disk8s1". The device identifiers may change every time you reconnect the drive or reboot the system so make sure to check the information immediately before using any commands in the Terminal app.
Here is the command to manually unlock the encrypted volume without automatically mounting the volume:
diskutil ap unlockVolume disk8s1 -nomount
If there are no errors, then try using Disk Utility First Aid on the now unlocked PHOTOS BACKUP volume to see if it can be repaired.
If you can unlock the volume with this method, then try running First Aid on the hidden Container as well (shown as Container disk8 in your screenshot).
These manual instructions are for a non-Time Machine backup drive. I know TM backup drives behave a bit differently and should only be accessed through the Finder using the Time Machine button. I don't know if it is safe to run First Aid on a TM backup.
If the PHOTOS BACKUP volume is just a regular data drive holding a second copy of your files, then you may need to erase the drive & restore its contents from a backup....or start the backup procedure over if this was a second copy of your data.
G-Tech Armor External Drive Will Not Mount