Unable to write to SC Card after high Sierra

Question

Level 1

11 points

Unable to write to SC Card after high Sierra

Hi,

I'm running a 2015 MacBook Pro with Sierra. I've also got a 256GB SD card sitting permanently in a Nifty drive in the SD card slot. The SD card is formatted to Mac OS Extended (Journaled).

I recently upgraded to High Sierra & the internal SSD was auto converted to APFS no issues.

Problem is, the SD card is now unstable. more often than not I can read but not write to it. Tried formatting it to APFS but keeps getting the famous "The operation couldn't be completed. (com.apple.StorageKit error 118) Operation failed..." error.

Anyone got any suggestions on how to fix this? SD card is a must as I've already run out of space on the internal SSD due to VMs.

MacBook Pro with Retina display, macOS High Sierra (10.13)

Posted on Oct 3, 2017 8:13 PM

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Answer 1

John Galt

Level 10

155,816 points

Oct 3, 2017 8:30 PM in response to Pot80es

Copy its contents to another device right away. At present APFS should be limited to flash storage startup devices only.

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Answer 2

John Galt

Level 10

155,816 points

Oct 3, 2017 8:49 PM in response to Pot80es

...why is High Sierra affecting existing MAC OS Extended devices?

To my knowledge, it isn't. It can't, not if Apple expects HS to work for anyone. I'd look at the possibility that SD card simply isn't working properly.

I should add I don't know what a "Nifty drive" is either. Is it something that requires driver software?

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Answer 3

John Galt

Level 10

155,816 points

Oct 12, 2017 8:31 PM in response to Pot80es

Thanks for the explanation. If I understand you correctly, it's just an SD card like any other, one that requires no additional software to use.

I don't have any explanation for the intermittent and spontaneous disappearance of the card's contents. Perhaps Disk Utility's First Aid could help diagnose or fix what's wrong: Using Disk Utility to verify or repair disks - Apple Support.

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Answer 4

Dec 26, 2017 7:33 PM in response to Pot80es

I don't think so.

Cause, I tested two SD card adapter for microSD.

First, I used Nifty drive. It's not write any file and not create new folder.

Second, I used SAMSUNG SD adapter for microSD. It's possible write any file and create new folder.

Of curse, I used same microSD card.

I think that has some problem between Nifty drive and High Sierra OS.

Cause, I used it before without any problems.

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Answer 5

tbirdvet

Level 6

17,108 points

Dec 10, 2017 4:17 PM in response to lockandload

If the SD cannot be formatted on any device then the card is bad.

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Answer 6

Pot80es Author

Level 1

11 points

Oct 10, 2017 7:15 PM in response to John Galt

Hi John,

1. Nifty drive (https://www.bynifty.com/) is really just a micro SD card holder that sits flush in the SD card slot of the MacBook Pro. So effectively the Nifty drive doesn't do anything. The micro SD card is a 256GB SanDisk & has been working beautifully from day 1.

I think I worded the question incorrectly. After more testing, I think the issue has more to do with the High Sierra & the SD card rather than the format. Let me explain...

In Sierra, no issues with the SD card no matter what I do (ie. close the lid/sleep, complete shut down, or restart).

In High Sierra, intermittently something goes wrong with the Mac's ability to read the SD card. The card is always visible by the Disk Utility & Finder & shows the correct capacity & remaining storage space BUT (in Finder) none of the folders show. The only thing that's fixes the issue is a reboot (or 2). Does that make sense?

My initial thoughts were that it was because of the HFS vs APFS but I think that's no longer the case...

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Answer 7

Dec 10, 2017 4:13 PM in response to Pot80es

I have the exact same problem here. Tried to reformat the card on multiple devices (Windows, android phone, even Nintendo Switch and a camera) and it just keeps saying that it was not able to format...Disk utility didn't help on mac, neither on windows.

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Answer 8

Pot80es Author

Level 1

11 points

Oct 3, 2017 8:34 PM in response to John Galt

Ignoring the whole APFS format, why is High Sierra affecting existing MAC OS Extended devices? I'm happy to keep the SD card on it's current format, as long as it works.

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Answer 9

rpg2288

Level 1

4 points

Nov 14, 2017 2:59 PM in response to Pot80es

Thanks for this information! I just purchased a Nifty Drive & a Sandisk 400GB microSDXC card. I will not upgrade to macOS HS yet, and I may even consider canceling the orders.

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