Error -36 "The disk could not be read from or written to.

I am downloading Weeds on iTunes. And right before the season finale starts to download, I run out of disk space. So I erase some of it. I then go back and refresh the download and get this error. I am downloading it straight to the mac, not some external device. I am also downloading episodes of The Office and 30 Rock, and they are downloading as normal. Thanks for your help,

i appreciate everyones help lol..
I have called apple 2000000000000 times... no help.
and i have emailed itunes support, with no response besides the automated "we recieved it" response

Similar Messages

IPod Error Message: "The disk could not be read from or written to."

Hello!
I was syncing my sister's video iPod (30GB) and this error message pops up "Attempting to copy to the disk. "SARAH'S IPO" failed. The disk could not be read from or written to."
I have restored it three times already, but once it starts putting the music and files back onto the iPod it pops up with that error message. I have updated to the latest version of iTunes and iPod software available. My OS is Windows XP.
Is this something serious? Will I be able to fix it myself or will I need to send it in to be fixed by Apple? Will that be expensive? We didn’t get the Apple replacement plan. D=
Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance. ^_^
PowerBook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.3) 15" PowerBook 1.5 GHz PowerPC G4, 1.5GB RAM - Windows XP with iPod 5 Generation

Okay I went thru that entire list and here's what I got...
(1) My OS is XP and is running fine.
(2) I've updated my windows
(3) I don't know of any software that might be interfering.
(4) There are no damaged files.
(5) My Windows hard-drive is not damaged and I've tried restoring my iPod's disk thru iTunes but it still doesn't work.
(6) I don't have an iPod photo and I can't find the folder to delete the cache if if I did.
(7) The USB cord is firmly connected into my USB port and my iPod
(8) My music is on my external hard-drive so I need to keep 3rd-party hardware connected
(9) I will try another USB cord to see if that works.
Is there anything else that I can do? Can Apple fix this?
Please let me know.

"Unknown Error" (-50) The disk could not be read from or written to

My iPod Nano syncs fine, but I have never been able to change a setting without getting the above error dialogs
("Unknown Error (-50)" and "The disk could not be read from or written to")
Does anyone know what's up?

So, it's not so much that you're getting a -50 error. It's that you're having problems with the iPod because it can't be properly restored. Let's get the log from iTunes trying to restore the iPod and send it to those lazy Apple engineers.
To get the iPod restore log:
1. Quit iTunes.
2. Relaunch iTunes.
3. Try the restore. See failure (1418) then grab the newest file in the folder:
C:\Documents and Settings\yourusername\Application Data\Apple Computer\iTunes\iPod Updater Logs
(There's a new one created every time you run iTunes which is why I want you to quit and relaunch iTunes.)
You need to send that file to our buddy Roy. Make sure that you include:
(1) the drwtsn32.log file.
(2) the link to this thread.
(3) a one line description of your problem, i.e. "-1418 error when restoring iPod".
(4) the username that you're using here in the discussion boards.
(5) tell him Toonz sent ya.
Roy is getting a little swamped with messages and needs to make sure he gets all the information. And if he doesn't get that information, the message is just going to get dropped on the floor.

Failing to sync movies: "The disk could not be read from or written to."

Hello,
I had approx 10 movie files on my ipad which synced and played fine for the first month I had my ipad. I recently tried to add 3 more movies all in the exact same format as the previous 10, however now I get a message saying that the file could not be copied as the disk could not be read from or written to. I haven't made any major changes (that I am aware of) that would have triggered this.
I've checked that my ipad and OS software are up to date, and tried restarting both my ipad and my comuter (a Macbook).
I figured maybe I was out of disk space, and the capacity bar in itunes was wrong, so I removed 3 of the movies and tried to add one of the new ones - same error. I then put one of the old movies back on, and it worked fine.
So, thinking maybe the problem could be solved by restoring my ipad, I created a backup and performed a restore. My apps and photos are safely back on the ipad - but now none of the movies will sync, all of them giving me the same error saying the disk could not be read from or written to.
Has anybody got any idea what's going on? It's extremely frustrating as the ipad is such a good tool for watching movies on the go.
Thanks,
Sam

I have run into the same problems on my iPod Classic. It seems the last couple of movies I have purchased from iTunes are the source of the problem. An interesting thing I have found is that, when purchased, the files causing the issues have saved to my internal HD, instead of the external drive that I have set as my library location.
Another interesting thing is that this is isolated to the last 2 movies I have purchased and 1 of the last 2 rentals. Not with any music I have purchased or the other rental. So there is no consistency in it being only newest files. The only consistency is that it is movies that oddly store in the wrong location.
I have done everything from trying to move my iTunes library location, resetting the ipod, software is up to date in everything (iPod, iTunes, Mac). I have tried disconnecting the external drive, and manually managing music and videos for the iPod sync. Everything will sync with the exception of the recent movies stored in the wrong location. Also, when trying to move the files from my internal hard drive to my external where the rest of my library lives, I get the same "...read or written to" error as I get when trying to sync to my iPod. No other files seem to be having any trouble moving around from internal to external to ipod.
Sorry I don't have a solution yet. Hopefully this helps narrow down the problem, and save some troubleshooting time.

Moving library to external hard drive and get the error "Copying files failed. The disk could not be read from or written to"

Hello,
I'm moving my library to an external hard drive.
I've made sure to use the 'Keep iTunes Media Folder Organized' option when pointing to the new library location.
I select 'File'->'Library'->'Organize Library', I select to 'Consolidate Files', click 'OK' and get ther error message "Copying files failed. The disk could not be read from or written to".
I've read elsewhere that there may be a corrupted file that I need to sequester somehow and perhaps add it back however I'm not certain how I can locate that file because the status window doesn't indicate which file it's attempting to transfer when the error appears.
Any tips?
Thank you,
Greg H
iTunes 10.6.3

OK I figured it out!
It was a dodgy file....I sorted the file folders by date, and as it turned out within the "compilations" folder there was a CD where only about half the tracks seemed to have been copied over. Could not have identified this simply from the time indicated on the finder folder sort, because there were several CDs copied over in the that same minute.
I went back to the original itunes folder, deleted all the files from that CD in itunes, then also deleted all those files from the original disk and the target disk.
Tried the "consolidate library" again, and it completed nicely. 200megs of music and videos.
Very happy to solve this problem after 3 weeks.

Error "COPYING MUSIC FAILED. The disk could not be read from or written to"

After following the procedurest to move the iTunes music, the computer started whirring away, happily copying and consolidating all the song files to the new target folder.
After copying 68gigs of 130gigs perfectly, it stopped dead and the following iTunes error message appeared:
"COPYING MUSIC FAILED. THE DISK COULD NOT BE READ FROM OR WRITTEN TO"
I am copying to an external LaCie 500g hard disk, and the current music file is split between folders on the laptop and folders and a 2nd external LaCie Hard disk. It did not appear to have any problems copying and consolidating files from both locations, until the error message showed up.
How can I solve this?
I really need to consolidate this music file.
macbook pro Mac OS X (10.4.6)

OK I figured it out!
It was a dodgy file....I sorted the file folders by date, and as it turned out within the "compilations" folder there was a CD where only about half the tracks seemed to have been copied over. Could not have identified this simply from the time indicated on the finder folder sort, because there were several CDs copied over in the that same minute.
I went back to the original itunes folder, deleted all the files from that CD in itunes, then also deleted all those files from the original disk and the target disk.
Tried the "consolidate library" again, and it completed nicely. 200megs of music and videos.
Very happy to solve this problem after 3 weeks.

Error msg when syncing ipad "The disk could not be read from or written to" when loading photos. Does anyone have any idea how to fix?

? I get an Error msg when syncing ipad "The disk could not be read from or written to" when loading photos. Does anyone have any idea how to fix?

You have posted in the Mac forum for problems & questions usting the iTunes store. You will probably find more help in the following forum.
http://discussions.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=800

Error when syncing iPod: The disk could not be read from or written to!!

I have an iPod mini which worked fine on my Windows XP.
Recently got Windows Vista and I downloaded iTunes and my put my music in the library.
When I plugged my iPod into the Vista, it said it was syncing all the songs to my iPod.
After about 3 hours, whilst syncing the last song a notice came up saying, 'Attempting to copy to the disk failed. The disk could not be read from or written to.'
I restored my iPod and reinstalled iTunes but the same thing happend.
I decided to plug my iPod back into the Windows XP, where I've had no problems. When I did this and started snycing all the songs, I got the notice come up again.
'Attempting to copy to the disk failed. The disk could not be read from or written to.'
I haven't been able to use my iPod now for about 5 weeks because I cannot solve the problem so any help will be much appreciated!
Thanks

You have posted in the Mac forum for problems & questions usting the iTunes store. You will probably find more help in the following forum.
http://discussions.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=800

"The disk could not be read from or written to"??

When I try to sync my ipod it gives me following error message "Attempting to copy to the disk 'My Ipod' failed. The disk could not be read from or written to."
Have not reset or restored it yet, wondering if there is anything I can do that doesn't involve me deleting all the songs on my ipod.
5th Gen 80g Ipod, G5 Imac Mac OS X (10.4.9)

See if this troubleshooting article helps.
Disk cannot be read from or written to error syncing iPod in iTunes.

9.1.1 sync problems: "The disk could not be read from or written to."

Using OSX 10.6.3 and upgraded to iTunes 9.1.1. Once I did, I keep getting the following error message: "Attempting to copy to the disk [my ipod] failed. The disk could not be read from or written to." This is followed by another error message: "iTunes could not copy {name of file} to the iPod {iPod name} because the file could not be read or written."
I tried deleting the files mentioned in the error message, but then the message returns with the name of a different file. At this rate, I'll be deleting all my files!
I tried checking everything on the Knowledge Base article: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1207
I tried restoring my iPod (twice), but it didn't help.
All my software is up to date. I haven't added any new software since I upgraded iTunes.
NOW...when I try to sync my iPhone, I get the same error message.
What's going on, and can anyone help?
This is very annoying since I can't sync my iPhone which I need or my iPod which I would like.

ArizonaDAK wrote:
"iTunes could not copy {name of file} to the iPod {iPod name} because the file could not be read or written."
check if you have read & write permissions for your iTunes music folder. in finder, right-click on it and +get info+. unlock the little padlock (you may have to enter your admin password) and change the permission settings. next, click on the little gear-shaped icon and +apply to enclosed items+ like so
you may also give everyone read & write access. if this doesn't help, try the same on your iTunes folder (not just the iTunes music folder).
if that make no difference, try reinstalling iTunes. click here and follow the instructions. next, download a fresh copy from here: http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/.
you might also try to _*remove and reinstall the Apple Mobile Device Service*_
JGG
edited by the Jolly Green Giant (where Green stands for environmentally friendly)

"The disk could not be read from or written to." Any Ideas?

"Attempting to copy to the disk "Anita's Ipo" failed. The disk could not be read from or written to."
This is the error I get. It connects and starts to sync, after a few seconds that error pops up. Sync stops at about 316 of 1254. This is on a brand new 80 gig classic, purchased on Sunday the 13th.
I have no problems with my 30 gig or the 30 gig that this one is replacing.
Updated Itunes etc also.
Help please.

So, a followup to this:
I ran Tech Tools on it (as I didn't have DiskWarrior handy) and it came up with 10 bad clusters on the surface scan.
I then did a full reformat, zeroing out the disk, using DiskUtility.
Reran the iPod Updater and then started loading the contents of iTunes back on it. It made it to about 1700 out of 2400 items, then got very slow, and finally stopped ("can't read or write... etc.") at about 1800 items.
So, I took it in the Apple Store, demoed it to the Genius on-duty, and they gave me a new iPod (since it was in warranty).
New iPod working 110%.

"The disk could not be read from or written to"? Help!

I was recently trying to update my ipod (5th gen. video) and sync it with my new music I downloaded, however the new songs would not sync and this error message came up:
Attempting to compy to the disk "ipod" failed. The disk could not be read from or written to.
There is still plently of availible space on my ipod, so what is the problem?
Thanks!

Hi Hatassi,
Have you checked out the suggestions from this article? See if it helps with your issue:
"Disk cannot be read from or written to" when syncing iPod
-Kylene

The ipod cannot be synched. the disk could not be read from or written to?

So I've done everything possible to try to get my touch to sync all my songs from my itunes library at once and nothing is working. So sadly i spent the entire day plugging and unpluggin the usb cord because at most i could put 30 songs on my touch before it came up with the error "the ipod cannot be synched. The disk could not be read from or written to." this is very frustrating as i have many videos i purchased on itunes with anticipation of putting them on my touch but if i try to do so at most it downloads half then it pops up with the same error. If anyone of y'all can help, that would be greatly appreciated i'm slowly but surely giving up on the touch all together even though i love it this error to it is very time consuming and annoying.

Same problem. With an iPod Touch.
This began after I accidently pulled out the USB before it was fully ejected. (I hit eject, and the icon vanished from iTunes, so I THOUGHT I was okay...) But I got the error. And since then, I've got the error you speak of. Mine may be a tad off.
When I drag a song from iTunes or the Finder into the iPod it copies fine but then the error pops up.
But now it's fixed, and I'm not sure why. And I'm hoping it doesn't come back.
I remember I went into the iPod Touch itself. Went to...
Settings > General > Reset > Reset All Settings
After that, I got back to the window from iTunes asking if I want to manually manage songs. I unchecked the box next to the choice of letting iTunes do it automatically.
But Even after that, I had the synching problem.
So I went into the main iPod Touch tab in iTunes. Under options the "Manually manage music and videos" box WAS CHECKED. I decided to uncheck it. Maybe the iPod was observing 'Opposite Day'. I know my cellphone does. On my cellphone, when I choose to play videos without sound, it plays WITH sound. So, I dunno...
Anyway, after I UNCHECKED "Manually manage music and videos" I ejected the iPod and reconnected it. And I plugged the USB into another port. Guess what? It didn't automatically synch. And when I added music on my own from either iTunes or the Finder, it worked well too. The weirdest thing... when I went to have a look at the box next to "Manually manage music and videos" - it had been checked again, without my doing.
UPDATE: And as I began typing that last sentence - THE ERROR CAME BACK. So.. NEVERMIND! I'm still stuck and angry!
*UPDATE II:* The error happened again after a song I was listing to in iTunes from the Touch ended. Once it ended, the error popped up and music stopped playing. I tried dragging a new song from iTunes into the Touch and it wouldn't let me. I unplugged and then plugged the iPod back in, and dragged songs again. So far it works... SO FAR. So far no errors. I tried deleting a song from the Touch and also no problem.
*UPDATE III:* I did a test. I added album artwork to songs that had none, already inside my Touch. It took a bit longer than it would have on my computer, but all tracks on the album got the art work, and the error message has yet to display since I did so.
*UPDATE IV* I've only been adding up to 10 songs at a time, worried that it would freeze. This time I added 31 songs, and they all imported - no error messages. Currently I'm worried that if I play a song from my Touch through iTunes the message will return. I'm too afraid to do it deliberately. I know I was able to do so with no problem with my 2nd Gen 10GB iPod I've had for years. That was working with my computer as of 3 days ago!
Message was edited by: Daniel Brown

The IPhone cannot be synced. The disk could not be read from or written to. THis appears after everything has synced but Photos. If you delete all the photos, the IPhone syncs fine.

So heres my problem... If I try to sync my iPhone or IPad to our computer I get an error that reads "The IPhone cannot be synced. The disk could not be read from or written to." The error comes at the start of syncing the photos. I have removed the photos from my iPhone it syncs fine, so the problem has to be with the photo library, RIGHT? The problem is iI have never had this issue before. I have my iTunes and iPhoto on a external hard drive and this has been fine in the past, but now i can not even view my photos on my iTV... ANY HELP???

Since you noticed this problem, have you shut down (powered off) and restarted your iMac?
iPhoto does the syncing for photos. Are you able to run iPhoto manually (start it up from the Dock) and access your photo library?

Can't Sync New Nano: "The disk could not be read from or written to."

I just got a new nano for Christmas, but can't seem to sync it with iTunes. I updated all the software, reset, restarted, restored, and all the rest, but it still gives me the same error whenever I try to sync it:
"Attempting to copy to the disk "{Ipod's Name}" failed. The disk could not be read from or written to."
If I change the settings so it's not downloading anything it doesn't complain, but as soon as I select any artist or album to actually sync, it gives that error.
There's also one specific file that gives a different error message (in addition to this one)--it tells me that the file wasn't copied because the iPod can't play it. I tried looking for someone with the same problem, but all the ones that I found were talking about this happening to videos, and this is just a straight audio mp3.

Just doublechecking. In the course of your troubleshooting to date, have you worked through the following document?
["Disk cannot be read from or written to" when syncing iPod or "Firmware update failure" error when updating or restoring iPod|http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1207]

Error -36 "The disk could not be read from or written to.

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