"Invalid volume free block count"

In order to repair your hard drive, you need to boot from another source, then you can repair the hard drive. Typically, you would boot using either the original OS X disk that came with your system or a retail OS X disk or, if you have a bootable backup on an external hard drive, you can boot from that too. WIth the OS X disk, you insert the disk, then reboot holding the C key down, which causes it to boot to the OS X disk. Then click utilities, bring up Disk Utility, and do a repair disk.

Your Snow Leopard disk is the black-faced retail version? If so, you should be able to boot to it. Did you hold the C key down when you tried before?

Put your install DVD into the optical drive and reboot. As soon as you hear the boot chime, hold down the "c"key on your keyboard (or the Option key until the Install Disk shows up). That will force your MacBook to boot from the install DVD in the optical drive.When it does start up, you'll see a panel asking you to choose your language. Choose your language and press the Return key on your keyboard once. It will then present you with an Installation window. Completely ignore this window and click on Utilities in the top menu and scroll down to Disk Utility and click it.When it comes up is your Hard Drive in the list on the left?
If it is then click on the Mac OS partition of your hard drive in the left hand list. Then select the First Aid Tab and run Repair Disk. The Repair Disk button won't be available until you've clicked on the Mac OS partition on your hard drive. If that repairs any problems run it again until the green OK appears and then run Repair Permissions.

You can just go to Utilities again and select Startup Disk and choose your hard drive and restart. Using the original install disk for repairs won't change anything on your OS.

According to the following article, it seems that the "invalid volume free block count" is not an error that actually impacts the system in any way, and so would not need to be repaired.

http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2028

Thank you so much for posting that KBase article, saved me a lot of unnecessary headaches! Couldn't find any info on the "invalid volume free block count" error, my PowerBook was running slow - just like the original post in fact so I ran disk utility, and it's been mystifying me ever since. Just wanted to thank you.

I wonder if the http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2028 article is still relevant (although I hope it is) as it's been archived and only references systems up to 10.5? I'm running 10.8.3

Drive Genius 3 on my Macbook Pro 2.8 Ghz Intel core 2 Duo is reporting "critical errors":

Incorrect block count for file Collection HD 1.8.ipa

(It should be 5120 instead of 102520)

Invalid volume free block count

(It should be 58821982 instead of 58724582)

The volume Brain HD was found corrupt and needs to be repaired.

After booting from system clone on an external hard drive Drive Genius is unable to repair the macbook hard drive.

After reading this thread I'm now booting back into the cloned copy and will try Disk Utility...

I know this thread is pretty dead but in case this might help someone...

I booted from a cloned copy (using Carbon Copy Cloner) on my external hard drive and Disk Utility was also unable to fix the "incorrect block count" issues.

I then erased the internal hard drive using Disk Utility and retored it using the clone (again via Carbon Copy Cloner). It all took forever (4+ hours but I am on an older macbook pro using USB and the whole enchilada was 250GB).

After restarting with the "new" system on the internal hard drive I did a verify via Disk Utility and Drive Genius 3 and no problems reported! I wasn't experienceing any "real" issues (at least that I noticed) but now I feel psychologically;-) happier with Drive Genius 3 no longer reporting "critical issues" with the hard drive.

I beg to differ. I had this error and once I used my install disk to repair my volume, the result was immediate. The speed of my applications and internet/browsers increased very noticeably. So, this is not an error you can or should live with.

hi, do you know, if use my install disk to repair my volume, if it will erase/harm photoshop that is currently installed? i do not have discs for that anymore;(

Typically repairing your disk using disk utility will not damage your files or programs in any way, with the caveat that if there is something seriously wrong with your hard drive, any reading or writing (which disk utility does when it repairs your drive) could cause things to get worse.

Thank you frederic 1943! This was the most comprehensive explanation I found. My first attempt was with incomplete instructions and thats when my error showed up, but I was SOOO HAPPY to get the green ok with your version 😀

When I try to repair as per instructions re: disk utility from recovery HD I get a message that there's nothing wrong. I reboot run disk util and get the same message

Volume bitmap needs minor repair for orphaned blocks

Checking volume information.

Invalid volume free block count

(It should be 2760878 instead of 2731802)

The volume Macintosh HD was found corrupt and needs to be repaired.

Error: This disk needs to be repaired using the Recovery HD. Restart your computer, holding down the Command key and the R key until you see the Apple logo. When the OS X Utilities window appears, choose Disk Utility.

Go back to recovery HD same thing all over again. Disk Util says something is wrong and Recovery HD says nothing is wrong.