How can I unlock an external hard drive on Mac?

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How can I unlock an external hard drive on Mac?

Years agp I purchased an Iomega external hard drive. It was formatted to be compatible with both OS and PC software. I used it to back up my daily photo shoots. At the end of each day, I would download my camera to a Toshiba Notebook, then back the photos up on the external drive. Until very recently I have no issues. About a month ago I attempted to download some photos on my Mac and it would not let me. This past week I purchased a new (M4) iMac. When I connect this drive to the new Mac, I can view all of the pictures, and each picture States it "Locked."

I have a couple of questions: 1). If I copy the photos to my new computer, will they still be locked? 2). How do I unlock this device as I never locked it in the first place. 3). Will I need to perform the unlocking action on the notebook or can it be done on my Mac. So far, iMac disk utility has not helped

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iMac 24″

Posted on Feb 18, 2025 1:27 PM

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Answer 1

Tesserax

Level 10

158,706 points

Feb 18, 2025 1:45 PM in response to Charles Niemi

Wow! Talk about memory lane ... Zip drives?

Chances are pretty good, your new M4 Mac's version of macOS will be the issue trying to access this drive.

That's because Iomega's production of external drives concluded around 2013, prior to the release of macOS 10.9 Mavericks. Consequently, their most recent drives were officially compatible with macOS versions up to 10.8 Mountain Lion (12 versions prior to today's Sequoia.) While some users have reported success connecting Iomega drives to later macOS versions, such as 10.12 Sierra, these instances are anecdotal and may require specific drivers or workarounds. Where to find such drivers will be an epic task, if even possible.

FWIW, I did use these drives with PCs years ago. If memory serves me, Iomega had associated software to configure these drives, such as locking them.

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Answer 2

Feb 18, 2025 7:38 PM in response to Tesserax

Thanks. All is not lost. I can read it and if I copy the photos to the computer, then they become unlocked. I was hoping to use the hard drive for something else. Interestingly, my 1 year old LaCie 2T rugged hard drive won't mount on the new Mac. It worked for one session that allowed me to download the files of my old Mac. Then I installed the latest upgrade (15.3.1) after that drive won't mount any longer. In fact my new Mac doesn't even recognize it. Since that occurrence, my old Mac won't let me mount it either, although I can find it with disk utility. I will try to get a meeting at the Apple Store.

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How can I unlock an external hard drive on Mac?

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