ashleysk

Q: error code 36

I'm trying to copy a photos library from one hard drive to another, but upon dragging and dropping, an error code 36 pops up (see attached photo). The hard drives are intact because I tried doing this with two different ones that are both new. Any ideas? Thank you!Screen Shot 2016-08-30 at 9.23.22 PM.png

MacBook Air, OS X El Capitan (10.11.4)

Posted on Aug 30, 2016 9:30 PM

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Q: error code 36

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  • by LarryHN,

    LarryHN LarryHN Aug 30, 2016 9:56 PM in response to ashleysk
    Level 10 (84,217 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Aug 30, 2016 9:56 PM in response to ashleysk

    what is the format of each drive? To hold the Photos library a drive must be formatted Mac OS extended (journaed)

     

    LN

  • by ashleysk,

    ashleysk ashleysk Aug 30, 2016 10:12 PM in response to LarryHN
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Aug 30, 2016 10:12 PM in response to LarryHN

    both drives are in the mac os extended (journaled), as you said is necessary. i was able to successfully copy one of 2 photos libraries from one hard drive to the other, but when i tried the other photos library i got an error 36

  • by léonie,

    léonie léonie Aug 30, 2016 10:35 PM in response to ashleysk
    Level 10 (105,791 points)
    iCloud
    Aug 30, 2016 10:35 PM in response to ashleysk
    both drives are in the mac os extended (journaled),

    Is one of the drives formatted case-sensitive and the other not? That can cause conflicts with the path names.

     

    The error -36 is an I/O error, meaning that some file cannot be read or written.  If the file system is not the issue, It usually is an indication of a hardware problem with the drive.

    So the first priority should be to back up all data from the problematic drive, just in case, there is a hardware problem and then to run a hardware check on the drive with disk utility.

    A brute force approach to copy all data to a different drive in spite of error -36 would be to use cloning software - Super Duper or Carbon Copy Cloner.

     

    The hard drives are intact because I tried doing this with two different ones that are both new.

    But is the source drive new, you are trying to copy from? The problem might be reading the files, not writing them.

     

    Have you opened the library that cannot be copied from a different user account? Then it might be a problem of file ownership and enabling the "Ignore ownership on this volume" flag might help.

  • by ashleysk,

    ashleysk ashleysk Aug 30, 2016 10:52 PM in response to léonie
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Photos for Mac
    Aug 30, 2016 10:52 PM in response to léonie

    im guessing the problem is the source drive then, its who knows how old haha. im currently using lyve to back up the data on the source drive, but if that doesnt work, ill give carbon copy cloner a try.

     

    i havent opened that library from a different user. where do i enable the ignore ownership flag? will it just pop up once i try to access it from a different user? thanks for all your help.

  • by léonie,Apple recommended

    léonie léonie Aug 30, 2016 11:13 PM in response to ashleysk
    Level 10 (105,791 points)
    iCloud
    Aug 30, 2016 11:13 PM in response to ashleysk

    Then it may suffice to repair the permissions on the problematic library:   Repair your library - Photos Help

     

    where do i enable the ignore ownership flag?

    See:  https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201517

    1. Select this drive in the Finder.
    2. Choose File > Get Info.
    3. In the Info window, find the Sharing & Permissions section. You may need to click the disclosure triangle to see the details for this section.
    4. Click the lock in the lower-right corner of the Info window. Enter an administrator name and password when prompted.
    5. Select the option to Ignore Permissions on this volume (usually selected by default).
    6. Copy your  library to this drive.

    portable drive