Carbon Copy Cloner backup utility hangs and Disk Utility Repair Permissions fails
Hi
Not sure if this belongs in this forum, but I am sure there are people who are pretty frustrated about it. Sorry to blather on, but this cost me a lot of hours, the Apple Knowledge Base were of no help, and it took three calls to Apple Care before I got all the facts.
Today is 20050117 00:30 GMT
Configuration:
- Carbon Copy Cloner 2.3 (v2.3) - "CCC" in this post
- Mac OS X 10.3.9 (7W98) **and prior versions**
(Mac OS X 10.4 and above does not have this problem)
- Happens after the iTunes updaate to 6.0.2 of 1/12/06
- PowerMac G5 2.7MHZ, dual processor
- 250 Gig disk
- Vanilla iTunes install - e.g.; no third-party plug-ins
(iTunes installs with third-party plug-ins are affected as well)
Problem:
While attempting to do a routine CCC backup to an external firewire disk:
Symptom 1:
CCC hangs during the privilege setting on source, first phase of operation. A simple symptom was that the disk was not rattling around like crazy like it usually does when running CCC. After looking at the CCC process in the Activity Monitor and seeing that it seemed to be hung, I did a Force Quit on CCC. What I observed in the Activity Monitor was that there was only normal disk I/O taking place (a spike up from zero every so often which I recognize as normal - maybe cache cleaning?), and the CCC process was getting regular CPU time. Normally when CCC runs, there is a lot of disk acitivty AND when it has begun to actually copy files to the Target, a process named "ditto" shows up and gets a lot of CPU time amid a lot of disk I/O. I assume that this is just CCC running the Unix ditto utility to do the actual copy of files. Bottom line, it appears that CCC was hung.
Symptom 2:
Attempting a Repair Permissions in Apple Disk Utility fails - the error message indicates that the disk utility has lost its connection with the disk management system.
Symptom 3:
Third party utilities such as Tech Tools Pro, Disk Warrior find no problems.
Trouble shooting procedure:
Boot from external disks, try the Disk Utility Repair Permissions again. Same result: Disk Utility fails and CCC hangs.
Simple diagnosis:
Yikes!
(take a deep breath) Diagnosis:
CCC and the Disk Utility Repair Permissions are stumbling on one of more files.
Problem:
The iTunes 6.0.2 update of 1/12/06 screwed up at least two files:
folder: your disk -> Library -> Receipts
files: iTunes.pkg, iTunes4.pkg
Other files from thir-party plug-ins to iTunes may also be a problem.
Neither teir 1 Apple Care support, or the Apple Knowledge base can currently explain exactly what about the files is screwed up, but they are definitely the problem (see notes below.)
Solution:
1) Archive these files so that ** CCC and the Disk Utility can not see them anymore**. My solution was to put them into a StuffIt archive.
2) Delete these files
3) Run Disk Utility, Repair Permissions
4) Run Disk Utility, Repair Permissions again
Now, CCC will run just fine.
Note:
Tier 2 Apple Care support cautions: with these files gone, the next time you run the Apple Software Update, it will tell you need to install iTunes 6.0.2. **do not do this** If you do, the CCC and Disk Utility Repair Permissions problems will return. Simply tell Software Upadte not to update iTunes **until the fix comes out, which will be an update to iTunes 6.0.3**
A few details:
After a few hours of late-night frustration, I decide to call Apple Care before looking on the Apple Knowledge base. The first guy had no time for me, had only part of the solution. Turns out that he was working on rumors that were (are) floating around among tier 1 support engineers. The second person was helpful, patient and explained the problem after I insisted on discussing it untill I understood what ws going on (relearned an Apple Care lesson: be persistent, if one call does not do it, leave the case open and call again.) Still, I had questions. On the third call, the person who answered the phone had absolutely zero clue and would not even look at the previous notes in the case. She eventually transferred me to a teir 2 engineer who had the answers after mumbling something about having to escalate calls on prvious cases. The tier 2 support engineer was the charm. As we all know, these people have it together and have the answers and give great support. The problem is getting to them.
The problem is that the iTunes 6.0.2 update can include files for the new Intel Mac. During updates, .pkg files in your disk -> Library -> Recepits are updated with information on what files are installed, what permissions are supposed to be...
According to the teir 2 engineer, after the iTunes 6.0.2 update for 10.3.9 (NOT 10.4 or later), the affected .pkg files point to iTunes files for the new Intel Mac, which are not actually put on the system since it is not an Intel Mac. The Disk Utility Repair Permissions (and CCC) get hosed when they try to set permissions on files that do not exist - if I have this right.
Apple is working on a Knowledge Base article about this. Meantime, my solution works great and the second teir Apple support enigneer agreed that this is what they are suggesting (e.g.; deleting the files that are a problem - in my case: iTunes.pkg, iTunes4.pkg)
For those with iTunes third-party plug-ins installed, in addition to deleting these two files, the plan would be to find the pkg files for them and to delet them. They will be located in the folder: your disk -> Library -> Receipts, and be named such that you can tell that they are associated with the third party. I sugest that you archive them somewhere that they can't be seen by CCC or the Disk Utility - perhaps a StuffIt archive - before deleting them.
One final note, I did not delete the file:
your disk -> Library -> Receipts iTunesX.pkg
which the iTunes 6.0.2 update put there. This, since deleting the other files did the trick.
To Do list:
- Explore exactly what is in those .pkg files that makes CCC hang and the Disk Utility fail. I think that this is well documented.
- Explore exactly how permsions work. I know that this is well documented
- Explore how CCC works - e.g.; what is it doing in there? I know that this is well documented.
Nite, nite
All recent except Intel Macs Mac OS X (10.3.9) Mac OS X 10.3.9 and previous versions
