10.6.8 randomly drops file shared volumes?

Just wondering if anyone else has run across this. Since updating to 10.6.8 (using the combo updater, of course), my Mac that acts as my "server" is randomly dropping the connection between its shared volumes (using normal AFP File Sharing) and other Macs connecting to it. They are all wired together using gigabit ethernet and a gigabit switch. Been working just fine for months. But this problem seemed to arise soon after I installed the 10.6.8 update this weekend.
Without a Time Machine backup of my System folder, what's the best procedure to reinstall 10.6.7?

I forgot to add that I don't want the DB files anyway, so my workaround was to not care that cp command wouldn't copy them (although it's very odd that osx could tell me that a file, which has the name 'whatever', does not exist).
After the copy was finished I had a problem with a filename that had copied incorrectly (like, volume 33 - 4.png had become VOL43~(&.png, or something like that). The data was fine. When I tried to rename it back to the proper name, OS X told me that a file with that name already existed.
I opened the questionable png in Preview, which then displayed the proper filename in the titlebar. I re-saved it under the proper name (had to type it in) and it worked. However, now a different file name had been corrupted in that directory. whatdaF?
I opened Disk Utility and did a Repair Disk on the MyBook. It didn't seem to show any errors, but afterwards the problem filename was fixed and everything seemed fine. I don't know what was going on there....
I'm fiddling with the diff --recursive command to try to find differences in the content of the files, but not much of linux user....

Similar Messages

Mac OS 9 AFP file sharing volume not visible under Mac OS 10.5

An old blue-white PowerMac G3 running Mac OS 9.2.2 with file sharing on is not visible on the network for a MacBook Pro running Mac OS X 10.5.5. – However, a PowerBook G4 with Mac OS X 10.4.11 perfectly shows the G3.
Connecting to the G3 works on the new MacBook Pro with OS X 10.5 if I use the server's IP-address (afp://xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx) but does not work if I use the server's name (afp://<servername>).
All other shares on the network are visible for both the MacBook Pro running OS X 10.5 and the PowerBook G4 running OS X 10.4.
Why does the MacBook Pro with Mac OS X 10.5.5 not show the G3?
Why can't I connect to the G3 using its AFP name?

I think this is because there is no AppleTalk on Leopard.
Ah, I stand corrected........
Go to SystemPreferences > Network
Select your connection in the left column. Advanced > AppleTalk
Enable AppleTalk for your connection.
sp
Message was edited by: brainslice

ATV3 Home Sharing Randomly Dropping

I've had an Apple TV 3 for about a week now. I really like it but...two days ago, it began randomly dropping home sharing with my MacBook Pro at random times. I've been on calls with phone support twice to correct the problem (with two different solutions). And then this morning, it decided, while I was watching something, that I didn't have Home Sharing on.
I really don't understand what is going on. I'm almost religious about keeping my software up to date, so I'm running the most recent versions of iTunes, OSX Lion, and the Apple TV software.
Any suggestions for a lasting fix? Because I really don't have the time or patience to keep running around resting the router, MacBook, and the ATV (Including reinputting all of passwords for the wifi network, iTunes, etc.)
(Oh, and as I was typing this, it randomly dropped while I was watching something I had running on the ATV coming from my iPhone 4)

Well add me to the list of frustrated ATV3 owners. I have 10 ATV3s on a large local network all hard wired and connects to server to share Movies and Music. The ATV will lose connection with server often and iTunes reset will fix it most of the time, but have a couple ATVS that just can't connect to server. Internet access works perfect on all units it's the Home Sharing that fails. Completely unreliable. Called Apple support and they said that they are aware of the problem and are not sure why it started having troubles. Older iTunes worked fine until a recent update. The Apple name is getting a bad rap now, and as an AV installer, I can't recommend products that fail to work. Pretty simple, Apple needs to step up and spend the cash on fixing this problem. Not sure why we all have to resort to a discussion forum.

Sharing Problems---dropping files in "drop box" renders them locked

Hi,
I have a few macs on my home network and often share files between them. I sometimes use my iPod but since it's getting full, I also just connect to the other machines (file sharing is on) and drop it in the public>drop box folder.
I hadn't done this in a while, but I've definitely noticed this after the 10.4.4 update (can't say one way or another of 10.4.3 gave me troubles or not), certain folders that I drop into another machine's drop box say that I do not have the correct permissions to open them. Sometimes they have the "no read/no write" folder icon on them, othertimes they have a "blue arrow" write only icon on them...on the file's native machine, they have all permissions allowed. I noticed that if i get info on such a folder to view permissions, it says the owner is "nobody" and that it is locked-- I can unlock them using my admin password, which is fine because then i can use the files... but I'd rather not have to go through every single shared folder and unlock them individually just to open a few files.

Apple doesn’t routinely monitor the discussions. These are mostly user to user discussions.
Send Apple feedback. They won't answer, but at least will know there is a problem. If enough people send feedback, it may get the problem solved sooner.
Feedback

How to recover deleted files from a shared volume?

Setup - Mac Mini Server (OSX 10.8.4, Server 2.2.1(169)), 256GB Flash drive, System data only. External 8TB G-Raid holds all business data, backed up to a LaCie 6TB Quadra using Intego Backup Manager Pro 1.0.9. The G-Raid has two folders 0_Clients and DATA which are shared through OS X Server.
Situation, told customer backup drive (LaCie) was almost full mid April, purge data. They didn't and backups stopped running at end of April. Yesterday, they accidentally deleted a folder / with files. User was on an iMac, connected to the share DATA when deleted. Called in a panic of course. New folder and files were created after the last back was executed.
Question - Folder and files were deleted but Trash was not "emptied". Researching, I learned about hidden trash folders. So, I was hopeful I'd find the info in the hidden /.Trashes folder on the shared Volume G-Raid. My understanding is that that's where it would go, until an "empty trash" is executed. I've shown all hidden files / folders via "defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE". Navigated to the volume G-Raid/.Trashes and the folder/ files are not there. Is there another location where they may possibly be??? Or, are they hosed and it's really gone "Deleted"???
Thx

With a locally connected volume e.g. a hard disk or USB flash drive, when you delete a file it does get moved to the 'Trash' folder and until the Trash is emptied can still be retrieved. However with a network volume if a logged in user deletes a file or folder it normally gets deleted immediately. (The user would get a message saying "This item will be deleted immediately. You can’t undo this action.")
So the likelihood is that the items are not in any trash folder even if you found and looked in them.
It used to be the case that even when using a network file server you still had the benefit of files first going to the trash folder but Apple stopped doing this a long time ago. The network trash folder would be at the top level of the network share. (If it exists and works.) Some NAS devices might still support it but as I mentioned I don't believe Apple themselves do.
So you could try using Terminal.app to look for an invisible folder at the top-level folder of the network share, if the network share is a folder called 'Fred' then this invisible folder would be in 'Fred' and would be called "Network Trash Folder". You can try looking for this either on the server or from a logged in client.
Do ls -la in Terminal.app the 'a' flag means show all including invisible files.
As you have probably guessed by now it is almost certainly the case these files are lost and cannot be retrieved. The users unfortunately are guilty of multiple mistakes.
They ignored your warning about the backup drive
They deleted something they should not have
They ignored the warning the Mac would have shown about "This item will be deleted immediately. You can’t undo this action."
I would add an additional error that they and perhaps you as their advisor are guilty of. Never rely on a single level of backup, ideally you should have a rotating set of backups i.e. one for each day - Monday, Tuesday, etc. and even more importantly should store these off-site unless being used so that in the even of a fire, flood or other disaster you still have intact backups.
In theory ACL permissions can be set to allow reading, allow writing but disallow deleting. Unfortunately in the real world trying to use the disallow deleting option is a waste of time. This is because many programs 'save' changes by saving a new temporary file, deleting the original file, and renaming the temporary file to the original name. This will not work if you block deleting.

Snow Leopard Finder's Get Info fails to show Owner and Group for some files or folders which reside on a Shared Volume, hosted by G5 Server w/ OS 10.4 - why?

Frustrations with file permissions abound, as certain co workers are unable to manually determine their level of permission or who to ask to make changes to files and folders belonging to others. Users of Snow Leopard desktop OS get unhelpful feedback via Finder's Get Info, seeing only the permissions listed for "Everyone" and a statement that "You have custom access". The custom message exists, presumably, because ACL's are employed on the shared volume in an attempt to give managerial control over these volumes to specific users, even if all users can create files and folders on those volumes.
Shared volumes are partitions of an external RAID which are set up as sharepoints on a G5 tower running Server 10.4. Other persons in the office, using machines that are running desktop OS 10.5, can correctly see the assigned Owner and Group permissions (although the "custom access" still shows). This at least lets the 10.5 user know who created a given file or folder, so that they can resolve permissions-restricted issues if they come up (i.e. User A wants to delete file X, but as it was created by User B, A must contact B and have them delete it. In 10.6 it appears that A cannot determine who B is).
I know that ACL's are functioning (enabled on the drive) since we have been making use of ACL-granted write privileges for quite a while (and the custom access seems to be evidence too).
An error I encountered, pertaining to this, is that I used a 10.6 machine to create a working folder, then generated and saved several files in this location. Expected permissions thus would be Owner = me (i.e. the user I was logged in as), R/W, Group = staff, R only, Everyone = R only. However, immediately the permissions shown in Finder / Get Info consisted only of Everyone = R only, with no entry for Owner or Group. Moreover, clicking + to add either an Owner or a Group resulted in error message that I had entered an invalid user or group, even though I typed in correct info (such as trying to add "staff" as a group).

Frustrations with file permissions abound, as certain co workers are unable to manually determine their level of permission or who to ask to make changes to files and folders belonging to others. Users of Snow Leopard desktop OS get unhelpful feedback via Finder's Get Info, seeing only the permissions listed for "Everyone" and a statement that "You have custom access". The custom message exists, presumably, because ACL's are employed on the shared volume in an attempt to give managerial control over these volumes to specific users, even if all users can create files and folders on those volumes.
Shared volumes are partitions of an external RAID which are set up as sharepoints on a G5 tower running Server 10.4. Other persons in the office, using machines that are running desktop OS 10.5, can correctly see the assigned Owner and Group permissions (although the "custom access" still shows). This at least lets the 10.5 user know who created a given file or folder, so that they can resolve permissions-restricted issues if they come up (i.e. User A wants to delete file X, but as it was created by User B, A must contact B and have them delete it. In 10.6 it appears that A cannot determine who B is).
I know that ACL's are functioning (enabled on the drive) since we have been making use of ACL-granted write privileges for quite a while (and the custom access seems to be evidence too).
An error I encountered, pertaining to this, is that I used a 10.6 machine to create a working folder, then generated and saved several files in this location. Expected permissions thus would be Owner = me (i.e. the user I was logged in as), R/W, Group = staff, R only, Everyone = R only. However, immediately the permissions shown in Finder / Get Info consisted only of Everyone = R only, with no entry for Owner or Group. Moreover, clicking + to add either an Owner or a Group resulted in error message that I had entered an invalid user or group, even though I typed in correct info (such as trying to add "staff" as a group).

File sharing wont mount all volumes

Hello,
I've been going crazy trying to figure this one out. I'm trying to share my Mac Pro files and have enabled file sharing from the networking system preferences, up until a month ago this was working fine. Now whenever I connect to my Mac pro as admin from my Macbook pro I only get my home folder and public folder to mount, the volumes on my mac pro wont show up on any computer I connect with. It was working fine for years and then one day just stopped. As a test, I just tried connecting to my Macbook pro from my Mac Pro and it lists all the volumes on my computer, So I don't think its my router or anything, but nothing has changed anyway. Any help would be great, thanks!
Message was edited by: teeck2000

I'm having the same problem. I tried your suggestion and it worked on one of my two external usb drives but I'm still having problems on my other external.
It shows up on the shared list but when I click on it I get the message: The operation cannot be completed because the original item for "NamedDisk" cannot be found.
I've tried deleting all my network preferences, plist files etc. and running disk warrior on the nameddisk to no avail.
This problem just started a few days ago. Not sure what could have changed. I've had 10.5.7 running on this computer for a few weeks. I get the same error from any computer on my network trying to access this disk.

Why is my iMac dropping off as shared volume- Back-to-My-Mac

I have a 21.5" iMac 2.5GHz mid 2011, 12GB ram running Lion 10.7.4.
It is connected via ethernet to a gen 5 Airport Extreme, so Airport on the iMac is off. I am also running a MBP .
Both are on iCloud Back-to-My-Mac. When the iMac is awake, it shows up on the MBP as a shared volume. After it goes to sleep, it disappears as a shared volume. Wake for network activity is checked on the iMac. Sometimes it takes a little bit of time, but it always drops off after it goes to sleep.
I don't remember having this problem before. The only thing I have changed is that I had been using a 1st gen Airport Extreme and upgraded to this 5th gen.
I've checked everything I can think of but the problem persists.
Anyone have any thoughts as to why the iMac keeps disappearing?

I have a 21.5" iMac 2.5GHz mid 2011, 12GB ram running Lion 10.7.4.
It is connected via ethernet to a gen 5 Airport Extreme, so Airport on the iMac is off. I am also running a MBP .
Both are on iCloud Back-to-My-Mac. When the iMac is awake, it shows up on the MBP as a shared volume. After it goes to sleep, it disappears as a shared volume. Wake for network activity is checked on the iMac. Sometimes it takes a little bit of time, but it always drops off after it goes to sleep.
I don't remember having this problem before. The only thing I have changed is that I had been using a 1st gen Airport Extreme and upgraded to this 5th gen.
I've checked everything I can think of but the problem persists.
Anyone have any thoughts as to why the iMac keeps disappearing?

File sharing randomly stops working

Hi guys,
For some reason every once in a while the file sharing on my iMac stops working and to get it working again I need to untick and then re-tick "File Sharing" in the "Sharing" pane in Preferences.
Any ideas?
Thanks,
Tom

Please take each of the following steps until the problem is resolved. Back up all data before making any changes.
Step 1
Delete all sharepoints in the File Sharing tab of the Sharing preference pane. Recreate them one at a time and test each one.
Step 2
Boot into Recovery mode, launch Disk Utility, select the startup volume, and run Repair Disk (not Repair Permissions.) If any problems are found, repeat. Then reboot as usual.
If any sharepoints are on a different volume, repair it too.
Step 3
Boot the server in safe mode and test. Note: If FileVault is enabled on some models, or if a firmware password is set, or if the boot volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. After testing, reboot as usual and verify that you still have the problem.
Step 4
Triple-click anywhere in the line below on this page to select it:
/Library/Preferences/com.apple.ByteRangeLocking.plist
Right-click or control-click the line and select
Services ▹ Reveal
from the contextual menu.* A folder should open with an item selected. Move the selected item to the Trash. Repeat with this line:
/var/db/BRLM.db
*If you don't see the contextual menu item, copy the selected text to the Clipboard (command-C). In the Finder, select
Go ▹ Go to Folder...
from the menu bar, paste into the box that opens (command-V). You won't see what you pasted because a line break is included. Press return.
Step 5
Reinstall the OS. You don't need to erase the startup volume, and you won't need your backup unless something goes wrong. If your Mac was upgraded from an older version of OS X, you’ll need the Apple ID and password you used to upgrade.
If you installed the Java runtime distributed by Apple and still need it, you'll have to reinstall it.

Air Drop and File Sharing Between Macs Please HELP

I have a 2011 Mac Book Pro running Mavericks and a 2010 Mac Pro running mountain lion and I am having trouble air Dropping and file sharing between them.
My MBP works fine. It can see other macs and share with them on my home network. My MP on the other hand cant see any other computers under the shared devices location in my finder. I have turned on file sharing for my MP as well as screen sharing. Neither works. My Mp used to be able to Air Drop and File share.
When I try to Air Drop to my MP it wont receive the item.
Has someone been through this before and know how to fix the issue? Ive been trying to research this for a while and haven't been able to find a solution.
Any help would be great!
Thanks

Are you using a frieWall on individual Macs?
If you are using a Router you control, individual computer FireWalls are not needed.

Having trouble dragging/dropping files from my MacAir to a shared drive window, when I try to drag/drop gets bounced out. Can anyone help with advice on how to drag/drop or otherwise copy files to a shared drive? thanks in advance

I am having trouble dragging/dropping or otherwise copying files from my MacAir to a window for a shared drive.
When I try to drag/drop, files get bounced out.
Anyone know how to drag/drop in such a case, or otherwise copy files from MacAir to a shared drive (which I do not believe is on a Mac, not sure if that matters).
Any help much appreciated, thanks in advance
J.

I am having trouble dragging/dropping or otherwise copying files from my MacAir to a window for a shared drive.
When I try to drag/drop, files get bounced out.
Anyone know how to drag/drop in such a case, or otherwise copy files from MacAir to a shared drive (which I do not believe is on a Mac, not sure if that matters).
Any help much appreciated, thanks in advance
J.

File Sharing drops regularly, Time Machine Backups are delayed on OSX 10.7.3. Solution?

Hi there folks,
I'm having an issue with the new 10.7 server. We're running 10.7.3 Server on an Late 2006 XServe with 10GB RAM , connected to a Drobo Pro for Time Machine Backups of our 50+ users via our internal network.
Recently, Time Machine backups have been getting delayed, stating that they can't connect up to the backup drive (which is out Drobo Pro handling 16TB of space). The Drobo Pro hass not unmounted, and all the IP Addresses coming from and going to the Server handling the backups will still ping.
We've also be having trouble with Server resident drives and shared folders that people can mount using the ⌘+K shortcut or "Connect to Server" option in finder. People will choose the IP address, and finder will think for a few minutes then give an error stating that it cannot connect the the specified IP. The only way I can reestablish connection to the file sharing through a remote computer is to remote or physically login to the server, then go into System Preferences and turn "File Sharing" off, then on again. After that, the ⌘+K on a remote machine can find the drives again.
It's driving me crazy why this is ocurring. I don't know why, and people in the office are beginning to complain that they can't access certain files on the servers or are worried because their backups are not completeing.
It should also be known that a majority of the machines we have in the ofice are still running 10.6.8, with only a handful on 10.7, as we haven't had the time to make the major switchover yet.
I'm not the best when it comes to server software or Unix CLI managment (the office outsourced our Network Admin to the east coast), so I'm a bit stumped.
Does anyone have any suggestions to try? Is there a link between the number of Time Machine Users and the connection failures? Should I just tel the NetAdmin to create a script that will restart the File Sharing protocol on the server every couple of hours?
Hopefully someone will be able to help.
Thanks,
JYHASH

I started having connectivity issues to my 10.6.8 server from my 10.7 client immediately after updating the client to 10.7.3. FWIW. Takes forever to connect, when it does. After just milliconds before.

Why is iMac being dropped as a shared volume?

I have a 21.5" iMac 2.5GHz mid 2011, 12GB ram running Lion 10.7.4.
It is connected via ethernet to a gen 5 Airport Extreme, so Airport on the iMac is off. I am also running a MBP .
Both are on iCloud Back-to-My-Mac. When the iMac is awake, it shows up on the MBP as a shared volume. After it goes to sleep, it disappears as a shared volume. Wake for network activity is checked on the iMac.
I don't remember having this problem before. The only thing I have changed is that I had been using a 1st gen Airport Extreme and upgraded to this 5th gen.
I've checked everything I can think of but the problem persists.
Anyone have any thoughts as to why the iMac keeps disappearing?

I figured it out- it must be the printer.
OK, here's another question. Ever since I installed Lion, Flash Player doesn't work at all. I've reinstalled it, de-installed it, changed settings, reinstalled again, numerous times. Nothing works. What am I doing wrong?

In Yosemite, dropping files in and out of folders on my desktop causes a freeze. Must relaunch the finder window.

After the first few days of operating my new computer, Yosemite began to develop strange glitches. I tried to drag a folder from a Finder window. It zoomed upward on Desktop and stayed where it stopped—and nothing worked. Everything froze. The cursor left a jittery trail of ghost images within a Finder window. We had to relaunch Finder. This became a pattern: no dragging-dropping to move files. Only within a Finder window was it possible.
A day or two later, I began to notice—with increasing seriousness and frequency—open windows stuttering when I tried to move them around the desktop. They moved, but with halts and stutters.
When we opened Activity Monitor and saw 6 BG of 8BG memory used, we figured this is serious. After an EtreCheck we noticed we had to update a version of FlashPlayer, which we did. But our problem is still here. Help!
One probably rare item used with this computer is a Maltron Keyboard. This keyboard is made to be used with Macs and I found no issues relating to Yosemite on their website, but just thought I'd mention it.
EtreCheck version: 2.1.5 (108)
Report generated December 20, 2014 at 10:40:00 AM CST
Click the [Support] links for help with non-Apple products.
Click the [Details] links for more information about that line.
Click the [Adware] links for help removing adware.
Hardware Information: ℹ️
iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014) (Verified)
iMac - model: iMac15,1
1 3.5 GHz Intel Core i5 CPU: 4-core
8 GB RAM Upgradeable
BANK 0/DIMM0
4 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok
BANK 1/DIMM0
4 GB DDR3 1600 MHz ok
BANK 0/DIMM1
empty empty empty empty
BANK 1/DIMM1
empty empty empty empty
Bluetooth: Good - Handoff/Airdrop2 supported
Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac
Video Information: ℹ️
AMD Radeon R9 M290X - VRAM: 2048 MB
iMac spdisplays_5120x2880Retina
System Software: ℹ️
OS X 10.10 (14A389) - Uptime: 2:25:40
Disk Information: ℹ️
APPLE SSD SM0512F disk0 : (500.28 GB)
EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB
Macintosh HD (disk1) / : 499.10 GB (310.00 GB free)
Core Storage: disk0s2 499.42 GB Online
USB Information: ℹ️
PNY Technologies USB 3.0 FD 62.06 GB
USB30FD (disk2s1) /Volumes/USB30FD : 62.06 GB (61.85 GB free)
Apple Inc. BRCM20702 Hub
Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Built-in)
MALTRON USB Keyboard
Thunderbolt Information: ℹ️
Apple Inc. thunderbolt_bus
Gatekeeper: ℹ️
Anywhere
Launch Daemons: ℹ️
[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist [Support]
User Launch Agents: ℹ️
[loaded] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist [Support]
[invalid?] com.adobe.ARM.[...].plist [Support]
[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist [Support]
User Login Items: ℹ️
AirPort Base Station Agent Application (/System/Library/CoreServices/AirPort Base Station Agent.app)
Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
Flip4Mac WMV Plugin: Version: 2.2.2.3 [Support]
FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 16.0.0.235 - SDK 10.6 [Support]
QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3
Flash Player: Version: 16.0.0.235 - SDK 10.6 [Support]
JavaAppletPlugin: Version: 15.0.0 - SDK 10.10 Check version
Default Browser: Version: 600 - SDK 10.10
RealPlayer Plugin: Version: Unknown [Support]
Silverlight: Version: 4.1.10329.0 [Support]
iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0
Safari Extensions: ℹ️
AdBlock [Installed]
3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️
APC PowerChute Personal Edition [Support]
Flash Player [Support]
Flip4Mac WMV [Support]
Perian [Support]
Time Machine: ℹ️
Skip System Files: NO
Auto backup: YES
Volumes being backed up:
Macintosh HD: Disk size: 499.10 GB Disk used: 189.10 GB
Destinations:
LaCie [Local]
Total size: 0 B
Total number of backups: 0
Oldest backup: -
Last backup: -
Size of backup disk:
Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️
7% mds
2% WindowServer
1% fontd
0% taskgated
0% Finder
Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️
472 MB firefox
249 MB WindowServer
223 MB soffice
146 MB Finder
146 MB Activity Monitor
Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️
3.78 GB Free RAM
2.55 GB Active RAM
1.34 GB Inactive RAM
923 MB Wired RAM
1.94 GB Page-ins
0 B Page-outs
Diagnostics Information: ℹ️
Dec 20, 2014, 10:35:50 AM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Install Adobe Flash Player_2014-12-20-103550_[redacted].crash
Dec 20, 2014, 10:28:33 AM /Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/Install Adobe Flash Player_2014-12-20-102833_[redacted].crash
Dec 20, 2014, 08:14:56 AM Self test - passed

Mac users often ask whether they should install "anti-virus" software. The answer usually given on ASC is "no." The answer is right, but it may give the wrong impression that there is no threat from what are loosely called "viruses." There is a threat, and you need to educate yourself about it.
1. This is a comment on what you should—and should not—do to protect yourself from malicious software ("malware") that circulates on the Internet and gets onto a computer as an unintended consequence of the user's actions. It does not apply to software, such as keystroke loggers, that may be installed deliberately by an intruder who has hands-on access to the computer, or who has been able to take control of it remotely. That threat is in a different category, and there's no easy way to defend against it.
The comment is long because the issue is complex. The key points are in sections 5, 6, and 10.
OS X now implements three layers of built-in protection specifically against malware, not counting runtime protections such as execute disable, sandboxing, system library randomization, and address space layout randomization that may also guard against other kinds of exploits.
2. All versions of OS X since 10.6.7 have been able to detect known Mac malware in downloaded files, and to block insecure web plugins. This feature is transparent to the user. Internally Apple calls it "XProtect."
The malware recognition database used by XProtect is automatically updated; however, you shouldn't rely on it, because the attackers are always at least a day ahead of the defenders.
The following caveats apply to XProtect:
☞ It can be bypassed by some third-party networking software, such as BitTorrent clients and Java applets.
☞ It only applies to software downloaded from the network. Software installed from a CD or other media is not checked.
As new versions of OS X are released, it's not clear whether Apple will indefinitely continue to maintain the XProtect database of older versions such as 10.6. The security of obsolete system versions may eventually be degraded. Security updates to the code of obsolete systems will stop being released at some point, and that may leave them open to other kinds of attack besides malware.
3. Starting with OS X 10.7.5, there has been a second layer of built-in malware protection, designated "Gatekeeper" by Apple. By default, applications and Installer packages downloaded from the network will only run if they're digitally signed by a developer with a certificate issued by Apple. Software certified in this way hasn't necessarily been tested by Apple, but you can be reasonably sure that it hasn't been modified by anyone other than the developer. His identity is known to Apple, so he could be held legally responsible if he distributed malware. That may not mean much if the developer lives in a country with a weak legal system (see below.)
Gatekeeper doesn't depend on a database of known malware. It has, however, the same limitations as XProtect, and in addition the following:
☞ It can easily be disabled or overridden by the user.
☞ A malware attacker could get control of a code-signing certificate under false pretenses, or could simply ignore the consequences of distributing codesigned malware.
☞ An App Store developer could find a way to bypass Apple's oversight, or the oversight could fail due to human error.
Apple has taken far too long to revoke the codesigning certificates of some known abusers, thereby diluting the value of Gatekeeper and the Developer ID program. Those lapses don't involve App Store products, however.
For the reasons given, App Store products, and—to a lesser extent—other applications recognized by Gatekeeper as signed, are safer than others, but they can't be considered absolutely safe. "Sandboxed" applications may prompt for access to private data, such as your contacts, or for access to the network. Think before granting that access. Sandbox security is based on user input. Never click through any request for authorization without thinking.
4. Starting with OS X 10.8.3, a third layer of protection has been added: a "Malware Removal Tool" (MRT). MRT runs automatically in the background when you update the OS. It checks for, and removes, malware that may have evaded the other protections via a Java exploit (see below.) MRT also runs when you install or update the Apple-supplied Java runtime (but not the Oracle runtime.) Like XProtect, MRT is effective against known threats, but not against unknown ones. It notifies you if it finds malware, but otherwise there's no user interface to MRT.
5. The built-in security features of OS X reduce the risk of malware attack, but they are not, and never will be, complete protection. Malware is a problem of human behavior, not machine behavior, and no technological fix alone is going to solve it. Trusting software to protect you will only make you more vulnerable.
The best defense is always going to be your own intelligence. With the possible exception of Java exploits, all known malware circulating on the Internet that affects a fully-updated installation of OS X 10.6 or later takes the form of so-called "Trojan horses," which can only have an effect if the victim is duped into running them. The threat therefore amounts to a battle of wits between you and Internet criminals. If you're better informed than they think you are, you'll win. That means, in practice, that you always stay within a safe harbor of computing practices. How do you know when you're leaving the safe harbor? Below are some warning signs of danger.
Software from an untrustworthy source
☞ Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, doesn't come directly from the developer’s website. Do not trust an alert from any website to update Flash, or your browser, or any other software. A genuine alert that Flash is outdated and blocked is shown on this support page. Follow the instructions on the support page in that case. Otherwise, assume that the alert is fake and someone is trying to scam you into installing malware. If you see such alerts on more than one website, ask for instructions.
☞ Software of any kind is distributed via BitTorrent, or Usenet, or on a website that also distributes pirated music or movies.
☞ Rogue websites such as Softonic, Soft32, and CNET Download distribute free applications that have been packaged in a superfluous "installer."
☞ The software is advertised by means of spam or intrusive web ads. Any ad, on any site, that includes a direct link to a download should be ignored.
Software that is plainly illegal or does something illegal
☞ High-priced commercial software such as Photoshop is "cracked" or "free."
☞ An application helps you to infringe copyright, for instance by circumventing the copy protection on commercial software, or saving streamed media for reuse without permission. All "YouTube downloaders" are in this category, though not all are necessarily malicious.
Conditional or unsolicited offers from strangers
☞ A telephone caller or a web page tells you that you have a “virus” and offers to help you remove it. (Some reputable websites did legitimately warn visitors who were infected with the "DNSChanger" malware. That exception to this rule no longer applies.)
☞ A web site offers free content such as video or music, but to use it you must install a “codec,” “plug-in,” "player," "downloader," "extractor," or “certificate” that comes from that same site, or an unknown one.
☞ You win a prize in a contest you never entered.
☞ Someone on a message board such as this one is eager to help you, but only if you download an application of his choosing.
☞ A "FREE WI-FI !!!" network advertises itself in a public place such as an airport, but is not provided by the management.
☞ Anything online that you would expect to pay for is "free."
Unexpected events
☞ A file is downloaded automatically when you visit a web page, with no other action on your part. Delete any such file without opening it.
☞ You open what you think is a document and get an alert that it's "an application downloaded from the Internet." Click Cancel and delete the file. Even if you don't get the alert, you should still delete any file that isn't what you expected it to be.
☞ An application does something you don't expect, such as asking for permission to access your contacts, your location, or the Internet for no obvious reason.
☞ Software is attached to email that you didn't request, even if it comes (or seems to come) from someone you trust.
I don't say that leaving the safe harbor just once will necessarily result in disaster, but making a habit of it will weaken your defenses against malware attack. Any of the above scenarios should, at the very least, make you uncomfortable.
6. Java on the Web (not to be confused with JavaScript, to which it's not related, despite the similarity of the names) is a weak point in the security of any system. Java is, among other things, a platform for running complex applications in a web page, on the client. That was always a bad idea, and Java's developers have proven themselves incapable of implementing it without also creating a portal for malware to enter. Past Java exploits are the closest thing there has ever been to a Windows-style virus affecting OS X. Merely loading a page with malicious Java content could be harmful.
Fortunately, client-side Java on the Web is obsolete and mostly extinct. Only a few outmoded sites still use it. Try to hasten the process of extinction by avoiding those sites, if you have a choice. Forget about playing games or other non-essential uses of Java.
Java is not included in OS X 10.7 and later. Discrete Java installers are distributed by Apple and by Oracle (the developer of Java.) Don't use either one unless you need it. Most people don't. If Java is installed, disable it—not JavaScript—in your browsers.
Regardless of version, experience has shown that Java on the Web can't be trusted. If you must use a Java applet for a task on a specific site, enable Java only for that site in Safari. Never enable Java for a public website that carries third-party advertising. Use it only on well-known, login-protected, secure websites without ads. In Safari 6 or later, you'll see a padlock icon in the address bar when visiting a secure site.
Stay within the safe harbor, and you’ll be as safe from malware as you can practically be. The rest of this comment concerns what you should not do to protect yourself.
7. Never install any commercial "anti-virus" (AV) or "Internet security" products for the Mac, as they are all worse than useless. If you need to be able to detect Windows malware in your files, use one of the free security apps in the Mac App Store—nothing else.
Why shouldn't you use commercial AV products?
☞ To recognize malware, the software depends on a database of known threats, which is always at least a day out of date. This technique is a proven failure, as a major AV software vendor has admitted. Most attacks are "zero-day"—that is, previously unknown. Recognition-based AV does not defend against such attacks, and the enterprise IT industry is coming to the realization that traditional AV software is worthless.
☞ Its design is predicated on the nonexistent threat that malware may be injected at any time, anywhere in the file system. Malware is downloaded from the network; it doesn't materialize from nowhere. In order to meet that nonexistent threat, commercial AV software modifies or duplicates low-level functions of the operating system, which is a waste of resources and a common cause of instability, bugs, and poor performance.
☞ By modifying the operating system, the software may also create weaknesses that could be exploited by malware attackers.
☞ Most importantly, a false sense of security is dangerous.
8. An AV product from the App Store, such as "ClamXav," has the same drawback as the commercial suites of being always out of date, but it does not inject low-level code into the operating system. That doesn't mean it's entirely harmless. It may report email messages that have "phishing" links in the body, or Windows malware in attachments, as infected files, and offer to delete or move them. Doing so will corrupt the Mail database. The messages should be deleted from within the Mail application.
An AV app is not needed, and cannot be relied upon, for protection against OS X malware. It's useful, if at all, only for detecting Windows malware, and even for that use it's not really effective, because new Windows malware is emerging much faster than OS X malware.
Windows malware can't harm you directly (unless, of course, you use Windows.) Just don't pass it on to anyone else. A malicious attachment in email is usually easy to recognize by the name alone. An actual example:
London Terror Moovie.avi [124 spaces] Checked By Norton Antivirus.exe
You don't need software to tell you that's a Windows trojan. Software may be able to tell you which trojan it is, but who cares? In practice, there's no reason to use recognition software unless an organizational policy requires it. Windows malware is so widespread that you should assume it's in every email attachment until proven otherwise. Nevertheless, ClamXav or a similar product from the App Store may serve a purpose if it satisfies an ill-informed network administrator who says you must run some kind of AV application. It's free and it won't handicap the system.
The ClamXav developer won't try to "upsell" you to a paid version of the product. Other developers may do that. Don't be upsold. For one thing, you should not pay to protect Windows users from the consequences of their choice of computing platform. For another, a paid upgrade from a free app will probably have all the disadvantages mentioned in section 7.
9. It seems to be a common belief that the built-in Application Firewall acts as a barrier to infection, or prevents malware from functioning. It does neither. It blocks inbound connections to certain network services you're running, such as file sharing. It's disabled by default and you should leave it that way if you're behind a router on a private home or office network. Activate it only when you're on an untrusted network, for instance a public Wi-Fi hotspot, where you don't want to provide services. Disable any services you don't use in the Sharing preference pane. All are disabled by default.
10. As a Mac user, you don't have to live in fear that your computer may be infected every time you install software, read email, or visit a web page. But neither can you assume that you will always be safe from exploitation, no matter what you do. Navigating the Internet is like walking the streets of a big city. It can be as safe or as dangerous as you choose to make it. The greatest harm done by security software is precisely its selling point: it makes people feel safe. They may then feel safe enough to take risks from which the software doesn't protect them. Nothing can lessen the need for safe computing practices.

Not just another file sharing thread......

Running a forum search gives me a plethora of file sharing threads. Most of these threads are a one answer type of question or a simple "Preferences>Sharing>File Sharing type of answer. I am no expert here, I learn something every time I visit, but I know the basics of file sharing after nearly 20 years of using macs. I have a network set up at my business and home that the computers share and am perfectly comfortable with the basics. I would really like a discussion about more creative options available to expand what I am currently using.
We have four macbook pros here. Two are personal only and the other two are business/personal. The two business MBP's are the ones we use the most, they are the primary machines which go from work to home. Right now they share files but up until now have really been set up for their own workstations for 2 different jobs. Now, we are starting to blend a little bit more of our work and we have had the need to share more files with the 2 computers. It's gotten to a point where basic file sharing isn't enough. The problem I am having is that both computers aren't always within airport range of each other, and both computers aren't always on or awake. So, it's become annoying to have to make sure the machine with the files I need is awake and nearby. So, we have recently started using dropbox to share files that way. The only issue with that is that many of our files are sensitive in nature and security is a bit of a risk. So, I am encrypting volumes with PGP and sharing the encrypted volumes via dropbox. So far it's not been an issue with having the same files open at the same time on both computers to avoid conflicts, I think we'll be ok for awhile. But as this data collection grows, I think it will become impractical. The thing I really like about using dropbox is that both computers don't need to be running at the same time since the files are stored locally and the changes are synced online. Even if I am traveling with one computer, I will usually have an internet connection so the files will update on my partner's computer when I make changes. This is the ultimate in portability and syncing. But like I said, it may become impractical when we put 30-40 Gigs of data up and we can't so easily keep track of what's open on which computer.
So, I would like to know what others do at work or home to share necessary files between multiple computers, other than typical OS X file sharing techniques. I know some applications have a checkout type of feature which might help for certain types of files, but I really want a simple universal setup that my partners and employees can learn without having to think about what type of file they are working with. I have quite a bit of server space I can use for storage of files online if it would help, but syncing would be an issue.
Dropbox may just be the best option for me to share and sync from multiple locations. It makes sense! I just hope some users here have some other recommendations that might work!

Allan Eckert wrote:
As to the PGP questions, as long as you have a file from the DropBox attached and are doing updates they are being sent to the copy on the DropBox. The updates are not all held until you unmount it.
Actually, I'm seeing otherwise. I just ran a test to be sure. I held a pgp disk open for about 5 minutes while copying files to and removing from it. I watched the dropbox folder and the upload activity the whole time and saw no activity or change. The moment I ejected the volume, network activity jumped up and the folder icon in my dropbox turned from synced to syncing in progress. It actually seems to work quite well. The problem I have with it is that if I need to use large files, it will take a long time to upload, because doesn't the whole encrypted volume need to be uploaded again for any minor changes? I haven't tested anything larger than about 20MB, so it's hard to tell.
The drop copy application might actually be quite useful if I were running a file server. I would certainly need an easy to use interface for the actual sharing of the files. If I do go that route, I would prefer for the ability to be able to lock files. As Allan said, drop copy doesn't have that feature, unfortunately.
So, there really isn't a well known solution for this type of application, huh? I may just have to reorganize my plan and stick to removable media for the shared data. If there is only one copy, it can't get mixed up. The only issue I have is when I'm not on premises, how do I share the data with the office? I suppose I will just have to have a better handle on what I need and make sure to have it with me and use dropbox or ftp to upload the files back and forth from office to user.
I just did a test with a decent size PGP virtual disk (125MB) I added one small 3MB jpg file to it and it did an incremental update to sync the file very quickly. I don't know how it's able to do it, but it's doing it. I would have thought it would have to update the whole disk every time, but I guess not. Maybe PGP and dropbox is a better solution that I ever imagined it to be.
Message was edited by: sterlingfive
Message was edited by: sterlingfive

10.6.8 randomly drops file shared volumes?

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