I went to back up my Mac on the same Seagate Free Agent I've been using for a year, but I got a message "the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer." I'm still using Snow Leopard like I've always been. What is going on, and how do I fix it?

I went to back up on the Seagate Free Agent I've been using for almost a year. I got the message, "the disk you inserted is not readable by this computer." What do I do now? How can I fix it?

10.7.4 is not Snow Leopard. 10.7.4 is Lion.
Also, is the drive connected via USB or Firewire?
If USB are there other devices on the USB bus?
Are you using Time Machine, Superduper, Carbon Copy Cloner, or another software?.

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Keep getting a "the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" when I insert my printer cord into either USB port. Recently installed a portable hard drive for back up purposes. Related?

Keep getting a "the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" when I insert my printer cord into either USB port. Recently installed a portable hard drive for back up purposes. Related?

Does your printer have a slot for an SD card? Is there are card in the slot? If so, the computer is trying to mount that card as an external device. It might be corrupted so that it can't be read.

The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer - MAC

I just purchased a Droid Incredible and would like to transfer photos. After reading other Droid forums, I simply plugged my device into my MacBook Pro (OSX) and got this message: "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer." Any suggestions on what now???

No problem
One other thing to keep in mind. When you are done using the DINC on your Mac, make sure you eject BOTH mounted disks (doesn't matter which one first), then what I do is pull down the alert screen on my phone, change the setting to "Charge Only", let the phone "prepare phone storage" and "prepare sd storage", AND THEN unplug.
Maybe a bunch of hassle for nothing, but I figure, why take a chance on corrupting data.

The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer. (when putting ipod into mac) help,. now have no music on my ipod

the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer. (when putting ipod into mac) help,. now have no music on my ipod. how do i sort this out?

- Verify the file and disk formats on your camcorder and on your friend computer whether they support what you want to do. Also, if you are using a specific application to do the task, you may need to verify an application whether it supports the file format (e.g. MPEG4, Apple Intermediate Codec).
- Verify the device cable type whether Mac OS X 10.4.x supports.
- Verify the device compatibility with Mac OS X 10.4.x.
- Check an available firmware or driver for the camcorder that has developed after Mac OS X 10.4.4.
- Try diagnosing and repairing local hard disk and camcorder's drive directory.
- Verify disks permissions issue.
- Verify whether the disk is TOO warm or cold to read.
- If every troubleshooting does not solve the issue, consider to reformat the camcorder drive.
You may try suggestions by Dale Weisshaar: http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=1206250

External HDD: "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer"

Hi,
I have an external drive with important data on it (there is a backup, but there is also some non-backuped data as well...). I cannot access the external drive because I receive a "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" message connecting it. I was wondering, if you have some advice on how to get my data back?
I have a WD Elements 2 TB (about 2 months old), I am using is with an iMac, latest Snow Leopard. The drive used to work all fine. Now, I receive a "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" every time I connect it. Same thing happens if connected to my MacBook Pro.
What happened?: I was copying files to the external drive. I the middle of it, I received a message complaining I that assumedly ejected the drive by pulling the USB cable out instead of properly ejecting it software-side (I did not do this). The drive symbol was gone. Now, I plug the drive out an reconnected it. The drive symbol showed up again. I continued copying files on the drive, but after some 30 seconds, I received the same error message again. One more time, I disconnected and reconnected the drive - this time to another USB port. The drive showed up, but I was not able to copy files on it (I am using muCommander, it just kept showing 0kb progress). I restarted the Mac. Since then I am getting the "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer." The drive symbol does not show up anymore.
I was googling the problem: in one forum there was a suggestion to click "initialize drive" and than to "repair" in DiscUtility. I clicked initialize drive and the drive is shown in DiscUtility, but "repair" and "verify" are greyed out. I read more posts on it, one posts suggested NOT to click initialize because that means format in Mac OS language (btw: ***, why is it not called format).
That is the situation at the moment. What is the best - if there is - way to get my data back? DiscWarrior?
I very much appreciate your advice!
Daniel

"Initializing" a drive has been normal computer terminology for decades. "Formatting" generally referred to the high-level preparation also called "erasing." None of this is "Mac OS language."
Disk Warrior will not likely fix the problem you have. DW can repair a damaged directory, but your error suggests an even worse problem of directory corruption. I suggest you try using DW if you have it. Visit the Alsoft site to determine the limitations and usage of the version you have. It may not be able to boot your computer depending upon what version of DW you have and how new your computer is.
If you have no success with DW then see the following:
Basics of File Recovery
Files in Trash
If you simply put files in the Trash you can restore them by opening the Trash (left-click on the Trash icon) and drag the files from the Trash to your Desktop or other desired location. OS X also provides a short-cut to undo the last item moved to the Trash -press COMMAND-Z.
If you empty the Trash the files are gone. If a program does an immediate delete rather than moving files to the Trash, then the files are gone. Recovery is possible but you must not allow any additional writes to the hard drive - shut it down. When files are deleted only the directory entries, not the files themselves, is modified. The space occupied by the files has been returned to the system as available for storage, but the files are still on the drive. Writing to the drive will then eventually overwrite the space once occupied by the deleted files in which case the files are lost permanently. Also if you save a file over an existing file of the same name, then the old file is overwritten and cannot be recovered.
General File Recovery
If you stop using the drive it's possible to recover deleted files that have not been overwritten by using recovery software such as Data Rescue II, File Salvage or TechTool Pro. Each of the preceding come on bootable CDs to enable usage without risk of writing more data to the hard drive. Two free alternatives are Disk Drill and TestDisk. Look for them and demos at MacUpdate or CNET Downloads.
The longer the hard drive remains in use and data are written to it, the greater the risk your deleted files will be overwritten.
Also visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQ on Data Recovery.

"The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" on NTFS ext HDD

I have spent hours trying to find a solution to this problem, but alas - nothing really useful came up. Therefore I now turn to you, Discussions - you're my only hope!
And to the case:
I just got a brand new shiny and aluminiy MacBook Pro a couple of weeks back, and since my last laptop was a PC, I have been very content ever since switching.
However, this week I bought a new Lacie 2TB external HDD (also shiny) and backed up a lot of stuff from my Windows days.
I partitioned it in Windows and made two NTFS partitions (approx. 1.8TB + 200GB). It was not an option for me to partition it to HFS, as I need it to exchange files between my Mac (using ntfs-3g) and my (and other) Windows computers (and a lot of files exceed the FAT32 file size limit).
Unfortunately when I connect to my MacBook Pro (and my old 2005 PowerMac G5) it gives me the "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer", and I am not able to verify nor repair it in Disk Utility. It doesn't even show the partitions correctly, it only weirdly enough shows a 3 megabyte partition and 329.70 megabytes of free space.
It still, however, works fine on my Windows computers. I also have the 1TB version of the same Lacie HDD also with two NTFS formatted partitions, and that drive shows up nicely on my MBP.
Does anyone know how/have an idea on how/have a magic potion to fix this?
- I have run chkdisk on it on my Windows comp and it showed no errors.
- I have also tried booting Snow Leopard in 32bit kernel mode (as someone presumably had that help earlier) but with no luck.
- I've connected it both via USB and FW. Same problem.
- I've installed and later uninstalled NTFS-3g and MacFuse - no change.
- And as mentioned I've connected it to my PowerMac G5 (w. Leopard), that also couldn't read it properly.
It is not an option for me to reformat it right now, as I have nowhere to back up that drive (and buying another new external drive is out of the question, as I semi-accidentally spent all my money on the new MBP ).
Anyone helping me solve this issue will receive 10 units of my deepest gratitudes (and maybe a couple of muffins, should the person drop by some time).
Thanks in advance.

Well it seems to work somewhat now, after some playing around.
And here's what I did:
- I downloaded the bootable System Rescue CD
- I booted it up from my PC. And entered the TestDisk utility, where I resaved the partition table (even though it already showed up fine). (If you don't have an extra PC to boot from, the TestDisk utility can also be installed on Mac OS, I just don't have the skills to do that).
- Tadaa! Now I was able to read the disk and its two partitions (one NTFS and one exFAT) on my MacBook! But... When I plugged the external drive into my PC again it didn't show up anything, and in the disk manager, it detected the drive structure as being all unallocated space.
Upon plugging it into my Mac again, it once again showed my old fiend, the "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" error. Sigh.
- So once again I booted up the System Rescue CD and TestDisk, and rewrote the partition structure. One weird thing was, that TestDisk this time detected the disk as being mac formatted, so I had to manually select the "Intel/PC" structure option. After rewriting the structure the disk once again it showed up nicely on my Windows PC.
- Before plugging it back into my Mac, I decided to try and install MacFuse and NTFS-3g.
- Since MacFuse doesn't apparently support the 64-bit kernel mode, I booted up my MBP in forced 32-bit kernel mode and voila - I could now read (and write) to my NTFS disk and connect it to my PC and back, without it messing up again.
I won't mark this issue as solved just yet, as I will need to see if it lasts. Also it's not really a lasting solution to be forced to boot into 32-bit mode, so I'll have to see if there's another way at some point.
Message was edited by: Nilfisken

The disk you inserted was not readable By this computer (Error)

Hi
everytime in the last couple of days im inserting a bank Cd to my cd/dvd drive (MATSHITADVD-R UJ-85J) im getting the same error
"the disk you inserted was not readable By this computer"
it only happen when the disk is blank. all other disks work ok.
haven't install any new software or hardware, but had some HDD problems.
any suggestion what should i do?
my system profile is:
version 10.5.7
Hardware Overview:
Model Name: iMac
Model Identifier: iMac7,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 2 GB
Bus Speed: 800 MHz
Boot ROM Version: IM71.007A.B03
SMC Version (system): 1.20f4
Serial Number (system): W873226** <Edited by Host>

first time posting so not sure this ended up in correct area...
I had same issue except only repairing the permissions didn't solve anything for me. *_If you recently upgraded your iTunes to 8.2_* check your permissions for errors, fix the errors, then restart computer and if that doesn't fix it, then try one of the 3 solutions below as there is a *known burn issue with the recent 8.2 update!*
My permission errors - permissions differ on ./Applications/iTunes.app/contents... etc, should be -rw-rw-r--, they are -rwxrwxr-x
I called Apple Care and we figured out 3 work arounds til a fix is released.
Solutions 1,2 are recommended by Apple Care. I used solutions 1 (easy) and then 3 (complicated).
Option 3 is a pain and takes A LOT of time and HD space or external HD if you have tons of music, podcasts, audiobooks, etc, loaded into your iTunes.
_*3 possible solutions:*_
1. Use the Finder window already built in the mac (to burn onto blank cds) -
Open Finder Window, go to File in the Menu Bar at top of computer, create a new Burn Folder, drag items to the folder and click on the burn icon inside the folder, insert blank disk when asked, add name, select burn speed, burn the cd.
2. Use the app Burn 2.3U -
Found at Apple.com in download section works like a Finder Window and converts audo files to MP3 automatically. (You can set up iTunes to do this as well)
3. Install an older version of iTunes 8.0.2 (couldn't find 8.1 thru 8.1.051) -
I found 8.0.2 at Apple.com, this process is complicated and you will need lots of HD space or external HD to do this because you'll want to back up your music library and you will need to delete version 8.2 BEFORE trying to install an older version. Otherwise stick with option 1 or 2 til a fix is released by Apple.
I ruined 8 blank cd's that actually burned but then I got the error message "the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer (Error)" at end of burn cycle and sometimes early disk ejections. _*I had no problems before the iTunes update in the past 5 days.*_ Still can't read/play the 8 disks but the problem went away!
I had burned 20 cds no problem last week with same media disks that were producing errors after doing the iTunes update, now after chosing to downgrade my iTunes I'm back to burning with no issues!
8.2 has 2 versions 32bit or 64bit, one of them may be PC/Windows version only but not sure which one I upgraded to or if that's even a factor with the permission errors I had.
Best wishes

WD external Hard Drive comes up with "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer."

So here lies the problem, when connecting my WD external HD to my MBP, I get the message The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer. and a further three options of initialize, ignore and eject. I have always hit ignore.
When checking my files, the HD is not available in my finder window.
I've gone into Disk Utilities. It is there to be highlighted. And I go to repair the disk, but each time the Repair button is greyed out.
I've tried to use my data recovery software (rescue pro deluxe) but because the drive isn't showing up in that program, it isn't working.
Are there any other options out there to get the files from that HD (I've just gotten back from 2 months of travel with a bunch of photos on that HD - so would like to get them back). Even if that means putting them onto a spare external HD.

Thanks for your quick response. I had a look at your discussion... I tried it on a Windows machine and I thought that was compatible with ExFAT?
Therefore I need to attempt to use my external hard drive with a machine that boasts OS X 10.6.5 or above and then it should work?
Thanks

The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer - Finalized video DVD

Suddenly I have not been able to watch video DVD’s on my MacPro OS x 10.5.8 that I have recorded with my Panasonic DVR. I am also not able to read some data DVDs. I am able to read other data DVD’s and all the data CD’s I’ve tried. My PowerBook G4 is able read and play all these disks including the video DVD’s recorded on my DVR.
I use my DVR to record TV programs off the air and to transfer home movies from my camcorder to DVD. I finalize the disk and then watch it later on my MacPro. I also use the DVD as a way to get home movies into iMovie for editing.
I’ve had no problems in the 3 years I’ve been doing this. Now when I insert a video DVD recorded with my DVR I get the following message:
“The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer”
Before this happened I watched a commercially produced DVD movie on my MacPro for the first time. I suspect this DVD changed something in my MacPro’s DVD player.
Is there a way to get my MacPro back to the state where it will read a DVD video I have recorded on my DVR? Is there a way to use Time Machine to revert back in time before the problem started? I am using an external drive with Time Machine for backup.
Thanks. Bob

I have a panasonic dvr pretty similar to yours, I hope (DMR EH55) and to transfer stuff to dvd, you have to change the drive over to dvd, put in the blank dvd, format it, then tick off the stuff you want copied, then choose high speed copy, then you have to wait, until the stuff gets copied, and the whole process finishes- dvd in the drive says formalized, this thing is necessary so that this dvd will play in dvd players, then you have to wait until it says it's done. if the dvd is not formalized, just copied and removed , then it will probably not play in dvd players. I've done what was mentioned before, and no problems, also check the brand of media you are using, and use a brush type dvd drive cleaner on your MacPro's DVD drive
hopefully that helps

Audio CDs get "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer"

Hi All,
This a near-duplicate of a message originally posted to the Snow Leopard forums.
A couple months ago I upgraded to 10.6.4 from Leopard and configured a Boot Camp partition running Windows 7. Yesterday I discovered that whenever I put any audio CD, retail or burned, into the Macbook's drive I now get this message - "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" - with the options to ignore or eject. Disk Utility displays no unusual information, but a check of the system log on Console turned up this:
Sep 8 11:05:21 Hard-Drive diskarbitrationd17: unable to probe /dev/disk1 (status code 0x00000047).
Has anyone encountered this problem before? I suspect it's related to Boot Camp but not to the initial installation - CD reading worked fine right after the install. Note that this only affects CDs - Burned and retail DVDS read without any trouble.
Michael
P.S. The CDs tested include one just out of the shrink wrap, so please, no "have you checked your CDs they may be scratched" replies.

Thanks, but no thanks. This is a software/hardware (driver?) issue, not a hardware issue alone. I kept a bootable backup copy of my 10.5.8 installation on an external drive, and a quick restart into that yields a desktop where CDs still load perfectly. I'm looking for power users with specific experience with this particular error and insights into what is causing it in 10.6.4.
Message was edited by: mlach, who is tired from simultaneously troubleshooting this and an X11 error and has forgotten how to type.

Need help with Error message "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer"

I got this message this afternoon "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" with the options to either "Ignore" or Eject"
This is in reference to my External Hard Drive "Buffalo" 1TB. I just got my Mac 27inch this week and when i got it i hooked up this hard drive to it, historically used on my old windows machine, but was still FAT32 formatted. I was able to upload all my pics to Aperture and music to iTunes. Was able to surf the data no problem.
This afternoon i noticed that it was no longer visible in the "Finder" and afre rebooting several times, got this message "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer"
Neither the mac nor the HD was moved since yesterday, early this am when it worked.
Is there an easy fix to this? whats going on.
Some info:
I had used this external storage unit for more then a year.
I sold my PC today so cant test if the hard drive still works on that.
I have the latest 27 inch mac (2.7GHz)
Storage is connected to a power source ( I tried both USB and FireWire, both yield the same message)
Any advice?

Have you tried the Repair Disk feature in Disk Utility?

New message - "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer"

Time machine was working just fine with my Maxtor external hard drive, once I had reformatted it, but this morning when I was booting up I got the message, "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer." The message gave me the options of "initialize", "ignore", or "eject".
What gives? Why the sudden change? If I initialize, then I lose all the previous saves and defeat the purpose of Time Machine in the first place.
Any suggestions?

Do you still have a drive with Mac OS X 10.4 installed on it? If you do, you can see if the drive mounts in 10.4. If you get the same message, it might be a problem with the drive and not be related to TM. I had a problem with an external Maxtor drive that TM corrupted, but the drive mounted without any problems. I just couldn't write to it in 10.5.
If you can mount it in Mac OS 10.4 or on another Mac, see if you can repair the drive with Disk Utility or with a program like Disk Warrior. Another option you can try is to disconnect the drive and then reconnect it. If that doesn't work, try disconnecting it and rebooting and then connecting it again.
If you can get the drive to mount, copy the TM files to another drive and then reformat the drive. See this page from Seagate/Maxtor for information on formatting the drive:
http://seagate.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/seagate.cfg/php/enduser/stdadp.php?p_faqid=5005&p_created=1195077097&p_sid=U7nFhdSi&p_accessibility=0&p_red irect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MzMsM zMmcF9wcm9kcz00MTAsNDIxLDQ2MSw1NzUsNTc2JnBfY2F0cz0wJnBfcHY9NS41NzYmcF9jdj0mcF9zZ WFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MSZwX3NlYXJjaF90ZXh0PW1hYw**&p_li =&ptopview=1
Hope those suggestions help.
Claire

Why does it say \'The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer\'

I have been using an HP Photosmart Plus B210a printer for a year. Recently I have many inconsistent printing problems, it's slow, in a queue, just doesn't move until I reboot - pull out plug, download again etc... anyway now it's defunct I'm steaming - shall I chuck it and buy another if so which - thinking of HP Envy 120??? Anyway when I try to use usb and not eprint a box pops up saying: The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer. So here lies the problem, but I;ve changed cables and still it pops up. What does this mean? My Lion 10.7 mac OX is as new as the printer. Please advise, before I go insane.

Sounds like you are having a configuration issue with the software. Initially, my first response will be to completely remove the software from your computer and reinstall it using the software that HP makes available to download. Here is a link to that download :
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/product?cc=us&lc=en&dlc=en&product=4021935
Have you also considered trying a different method of communication (e.g. wirelessly or using an Ethernet cord)? This might allow me to make better assumptions on where the issue lays if I know the circumstances which lead to it.
Let me know and have a great day!

New USB stick - "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer'

I recently bought a 32GB USB stick to transfer data from my current Powerbook G4 with Mac OS X 10.4.11 to a new laptop.
However, when I insert the disk I am told "The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer" with the options to "Initialise", "Ignore" or "Eject".
In all honesty I just want to avoid having to send the USB back, getting a refund and finding one that is compatible with my computer.
Consequently I was wondering if there's a way I can alter the USB disk to become readable by my computer?
Also the USB is described as an "iBoutique 32GB USB 2.0 Hi-Speed Elite Flash Drive".
Would be really grateful if you could help as my my current laptop is dying due to it's age and I would like to move the data over to the new laptop as soon as possible.
Thanks,
Becca

It would lose all data re-initialising it.
A few options...
You could format that HDD as Fat32/MS-DOS, but you'd be limited to 4 GB Filesizes.
NTFS-3G Stable Read/Write Driver...
http://www.ntfs-3g.org/
MacFUSE: Full Read-Write NTFS for Mac OS X, Among Others...
http://www.osnews.com/story/16930
MacDrive for the PCs... allows them to Read/Write HFS+...
http://www.mediafour.com/products/macdrive/

How do I view and open all my files again that are on my external hard drive?? Error message saying 'The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer' Three options are Initialize, Ignore or Eject.

I have recently purchased Toshiba 1TB hard drive and I set it up and I was able to transfer all my files onto it such as my music, photos, documents. I had correctly ejected and used it again and all these files were safely stored and accessible afterwards. However after I rebooted my computer as it had been going slow and I had too much clogging it up once I reconnected the external hard drive I have error message saying 'The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer' Three options are Initialize, Ignore or Eject. How do I access all my files? I set it up to work on both mac and windows. I have tried both another mac and windows computer and same issue occurs?? I am worried that all my personal files are gone but am confused as the drive has had absolutely no damage to it as it was in a very short time frame and its never left the same spot. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

Thanks for your quick response. I had a look at your discussion... I tried it on a Windows machine and I thought that was compatible with ExFAT?
Therefore I need to attempt to use my external hard drive with a machine that boasts OS X 10.6.5 or above and then it should work?
Thanks

Unable to read usb memory stick + "the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer"

Hi Everyone,
Today I was tryign to use a brand new memory stick 8GB-Samsung PNY on my Mac Book Pro. (Mac OSX 10.7.5)
1. I do not see this drive in the Finder.
   2. Diskutil could detect the drive.
   3. I was trying to put ubuntu image file on the drive from the terminal uitility and I have this error message in a dialog box:
      "the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer"
4. Clicking on initialize helps me realise that the drive is detected. But I do not have a clue on how to proceed from here. I am new to Mac and its file system formats.
The same issue happened with my 500GB external Western Digital Hard Drive. I was reading on forums that WD got some issues with Apple is trying to resolve. I expected to not have this road-block with another brand but it happened with my memory stick. Now I was forming an impression that something should be done to external storage devices inorder for me to use them Mac OSX.
Kindly enlighten me and help overcome this issue.
Thank You

Thank You OGELTHORPE.
I erased the memory stick and formatted to "Mac OS Extended(Journaled)".
I attempted once again to use the "sudo dd" command from termial trying to copy the Ubuntu image file to the memory stick.
The operation termainates with the same message
      "the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer"
The termainal message says some bytes got transffered in so many seconds. It looks like this operation is being terminated in the middle.
Have any suggestions and work arounds?

I went to back up my Mac on the same Seagate Free Agent I've been using for a year, but I got a message "the disk you inserted was not readable by this computer." I'm still using Snow Leopard like I've always been. What is going on, and how do I fix it?

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