Time Machine Made My External Files Disappear

I have a 750 GB external hard drive with 160 gigs of important files on it. I set it up with Time Machine and made it a "Time Machine" hard drive, and after some backing up of my MacBook's hard drive, I noticed all the folders and files on the external hard drive, except the one Time Machine folder, have disappeared.... but the space is still missing.
I need those files back, very badly. I've searched high and low on the internet for similar issues. I've used Data Rescue 3 to search for deleted files, none found. I've used Terminal commands from the internet to make all hidden files viewable, and all I found was a .Trashes folder in the external drive, which after much work to repair permissions, finally got into... and it was completely empty.
Where are my files?? How can 188 gigs be taken up, but only 3.72 be accounted for in the Time Machine folder, even when I show all hidden files? Why have I wasted a couple hours on Time Machine when it was supposed to be so simple? This is crazy.

Have you tried Repairing the drive, per #A5 in [Time Machine - Troubleshooting|http://web.me.com/pondini/Time_Machine/Troubleshooting.html] (or use the link in *User Tips* at the top of this forum).
Before you set it up as a Time Machine disk, how was it formatted?
When you "set it up," exactly what did you do?

Similar Messages

Time Machine made my External Hard Drive Unrecognizable

Hi, Last night I set up Time Machine to only use a section of my backup hard drive. I woke up this morning and it said that it did not have enough space on the drive and there was a preparing box open. Then I got the spinning beach ball for about an hour, then I just said this is enough.
I did a hard reboot because a soft one was just not working, then when I restarted, I got about a series of 8 loops of the opening Apple sound. Very weird, I did another hard reboot but unplugged the External Hard Drive this time and it booted up fine. But now when I plug in my External Hard Drive, it makes some noises as if it is connecting but it never does. It doesn't show up in finder at all. It does show up in Disk Utility though.
My question is, can anyone tell me how I can either fix this problem or recover the data from my hard drive in any way. I read some about using dd, but just became utterly confused. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Unfortunately that did not work, if I start with my External Hard Drive the way it is now, it just gives me a loop of the Apple start up sound for about 4 minutes then finally starts up.
UPDATE: Ok, very weird, I guess your instructions did work. Even though it did not boot properly with the external hard drive powered on, when I booted it after start-up, it showed and now lists all my files. Miraculous!
Now my question is, is there something I should delete that Time Machine left over on my External Hard Drive that would prevent the looping start up sound?
Thank you all very much, your advice was greatly appreciated.
Message was edited by: Steve Lutsky

My iphoto library disappeared. i am trying to restore my library from time machine -- from an external drive -- but everytime it tries to copy my library it tells me it can't do it because i don't have access to my iphoto library??!!! help!!

My iphoto library inexplicably disappeared! i am panicked but i do back up by time machine to an external drive and also to JustCloud. I am trying to restore my iphoto library from a back up on feb 28, 2014 and it says it's copying but then gives me a message that it can't do it because i "don't have authorization to access iphoto library"?! what does this mean? i really want to get my library back on my mac. Also if anyone knows why this happened or where my photos might be on my computer, i'd appreciate help with that, too.

Thank you Terence for your help. I was able to restore my backup from my time machine ext drive to a new 1tb seagate ext drive. so i felt sort of ok. but yesterday that older ext drive i used for time machine wouldn't open! i called applecare and they trouble shooted with me and said it's probably a goner and data is probably corrupted. it's only a few years old and i'm very careful with it. my husband accidentally dropped my new drive last night -- i know, unbelievable, i was SO upset, poor guy -- but I'm so stressed with all of this. i have 10 years of photos and videos. so now i only have the one newer drive with a backup. i have to buy another one today to backup again so i at least have two backups. i tried to delete a ton of files last night to free up the 30 gb of space i need to get my full library back on my mac. i have 90gb free and deleted 7 years worth of photos i had on picasa that were in my "pictures" folder and also a ton or random photos and videos i had in that same pictures folder and thought that would give me the 30 gb but it hardly freed up any space at all! do you know why that is? all of this stuff is really a pain and really stressful. thank god i did have a backup in the first place but now i am panicked the one i have left will somehow crash. especially after my husband dropped the drive lastnight! it didn't fall far and fell onto a wood floor and seems fine, but after my older ext drive crashed yesterday -- and i lost my entire iphoto library a fewweeks ago off my mac -- i feel cursed. any answers you have would be great. thank you.

HT201250 i am using for first time the time machine and an external hard drive because I want to erase my macbook and start from zero files. do i keep my files in the portable hard disk when I connect it again with the macbook or the time machine will era

i am using for first time the time machine and an external hard drive because I want to erase my macbook and start from zero files. Am i keeping my files in the portable hard disk when I will connect it again with the macbook or the time machine will erase all?
I would like to know if after I erase all my data, empy hard drive inside the macbook, the time machine will erase all my files that I have saved in my "WD "My passport" external hard drive

Welcome to Apple Support Communities
Time Machine has to erase the external disk in order to make backups. Before setting Time Machine up, copy the files of your external disk to the hard disk of the Mac in order not to lose them, and then, set up Time Machine. The first backup will start automatically.
If you want more information about Time Machine, read the Pondini's site > http://pondini.org

I've used an external drive for time machine which has important files on it. After trying to back up my computer, it suddenly needed to be "repaired" by utilities. Now it's not being "seen" at all! How do I recover my important files off the drive?

I've used an external drive for time machine which has important files on it. After trying to back up my computer, it suddenly needed to be "repaired" by utilities. Now it's not being "seen" at all! How do I recover my important files off the drive?

If the external drive can be seen at all in Disk Utility, follow the instructions for repair here.

How do I use my Time Machine as an external hard drive to just dump files no longer needed on my computer?

How Do I use my time machine as an external hard drive?

Time Machine is software that allows a Mac to backup to a Time Capsule or other hard drive, so I think you are asking about the Time Capsule here, correct?
http://www.apple.com/timecapsule/
How do you plan to connect the Time Capsule to your network, or is it already connected and configured?
When you have it configured on the network, you can use the Finder to copy/paste or drag/drop files from your Mac to the Time Capsule disk.

HT4500 how do I transfer files I backed up with Time Machine in an external disk to a PC?

I back up using Time Machine in an external hard drive in my Mac Air. I need to open those files in a PC, but I can't open the files. How do I open them from a PC?

TimeMachine first saves a complete state of your Mac's boot drive, then it saves incremental updates consisting of changes and uses placeholders (file names with no content) for those files that didn't change between states.
Now it will do this until there isn't enough room on the drive and then it starts deleting older states.
So it does it like this so there isn't any duplicated files wasting precious drive space.
Now what does that have to do with your problem? Well there is no TimeMachine software for PC's that can decode this mess and get to the files you want.
However if you understand a bit more details about it, then you can perhaps recover your files.
TimeMachine uses the same drive formatting as on a Mac, OS X Extended Journaled otherwise known as HFS+ or JHFS, and Windows PC's can't read that format natively.
However there is third party software called MacDrive which you install into Windows that can read that drive format.
The next trick, if it works, is to look a the TimeMachine folders and find your data, but have to recall when it was created as to go back into the correct folder or else you will find the empty placeholder with the same name and no data.
Next if you can recover files, is being able to open those files in a compatible PC program, which a lot of Apple software and OS X based software might not have PC versions.
Neutral formats like Mp3, jpg, .mov, .doc, .txt and so forth can be opened on other platforms using other programs, however the more platform or proprietary the files are in, then the harder it is to find a PC version that will work.
What you can do is to use the TimeMachine drive on a temporary Mac (OSX version has to be same or later than on the TM one) and restore the users accounts/software to that Mac and then go about retrieving data or simplifying the data or transporting it into more neutral/cross platform formats.
LibreOffice is excellent for this as it's the only Office suite that's cross platform with Linux, Windows and OS X, plus works with OfficeMac/Office Win files. So pasting into that will preserve a lot of formatting etc, that will be lost if you just pasted into txt format.
I've been aiming to create a transition to Windows User Tip, perhaps one day I will.

HT1553 DO I HAVE TO HAVE THE ORIGINAL INSTALLATION DISCS IF MY HARD DRIVE IS REPLACED BUT I MADE A BACK UP WITH TIME MACHINE TO AN EXTERNAL HARD DRIVE ?

I have an imac from late 2009 and received an email saying the seagate hard drive may fail and apple is going to replace it free of charge. I will back up using time machine to an external hard drive but do I absolutely have to have the original installation CD's or is there a way around this to restore the computer once they replace the hard drive??

Yes, you can partition your 2TB drive that way. In fact, I have an external hard drive with 3 partitions: one for a SuperDuper! clone of my Snow Leopard partition, one to clone my Lion partition, and one larger partition for Time Machine (which only backs up the Lion partition).
I would expect the authorized reseller to have a complete set of OS X disks.

HT201250 how do I get Time Machine to back up files (e.g. iPhoto) stored on an external hard drive?

Installed a new 3TB external hard drive for Time Machine. I have 2 other external hard drives attached to my iMac that contain iTunes and iPhoto. How can I point Time Machine to those external drives to include in the backup?

What is listed in System Preferences > Time Machine > Options... > Exclude these items from backups:?
Any attached external disk not listed there should be backed up.

Time Machine on Mavericks: restore file doesn't work

I've successfully located a file I need to restore from Time Machine backup by doing a Finder search for the filename (something.graffle, an OmniGraffle document), and when 0 items are found, I "Enter Time Machine..." and use the back arrow or click on a date some months ago. This process finds two copies of something.graffle, and I can select these and Copy them, or I can select them and click Restore. Neither, however, works. When I try Copy, then Cancel out of Time Machine, there is nothing to Paste. When I try Restore, the image of the item glides to the present-day folder and is present for a moment in the present-day Finder window after Time Machine closes, but it instantly disappears, and Find once again cannot find it.
My Time Machine backup is on an external disk connected by Firewire.
I found some other threads mentioning a bug with dual displays, so I already tried disconnecting my external displays--it didn't help. Seems to be a different problem.
Any ideas?

I solved this problem, which also appears on this thread: time machine can't restore files
The solution, for me, was to open the folder that I thought probably had the file. I knew it was probably in one of my two ~/Documents/OmniPresence folders, and in fact it was in a sub-sub-folder of OmniPresence, i.e. ~/Documents/OmniPresence/workfiles/stencils/something.graffle. This time doing the search produced 0 items, I entered Time Machine, went back to the earlier date where I'd seen it before but been unable to restore, and again Time Machine showed me two copies of the file. But this time, the files had their proper OmniGraffle document icons, and the context menus showed Restore options that hadn't been present earlier. I used Restore this file to… and successfully brought it into my presentday OmniPresence folder. From there I moved it into the workfiles/ subfolder where it belonged.
I hope this helps others.

HT1338 Purchased a used macbook pro with Mountain Lion. My old Mac runs Snow Leopard is backed up to Time machine. How do I register the operating system to me and how do I use Time Machine to move my files to the new used computer?

Purchased a used macbook pro with Mountain Lion. My old Mac runs Snow Leopard is backed up to Time machine. How do I register the operating system to me and how do I use Time Machine to move my files to the new used computer?

If you look at the User Tips tab, you will find a write up on just this subject:
https://discussions.apple.com/docs/DOC-4053
The subject of buying/selling a Mac is quite complicated. Here is a guide to the steps involved. It is from the Seller's point of view, but easily read the other way too:
SELLING A MAC A
Internet Recovery, and Transferability of OS & iLife Apps
Selling an Old Mac:
• When selling an old Mac, the only OS that is legally transferable is the one that came preinstalled when the Mac was new. Selling a Mac with an upgraded OS isn't doing the new owner any favors. Attempting to do so will only result in headaches since the upgraded OS can't be registered by the new owner. If a clean install becomes necessary, they won't be able to do so and will be forced to install the original OS via Internet Recovery. Best to simply erase the drive and revert back to the original OS prior to selling any Mac.
• Additionally, upgrading the OS on a Mac you intend to sell means that you are leaving personally identifiable information on the Mac since the only way to upgrade the OS involves using your own AppleID to download the upgrade from the App Store. So there will be traces of your info and user account left behind. Again, best to erase the drive and revert to the original OS via Internet Recovery.
Internet Recovery:
• In the event that the OS has been upgraded to a newer version (i.e. Lion to Mountain Lion), Internet Recovery will offer the version of the OS that originally came with the Mac. So while booting to the Recovery Disk will show Mountain Lion as available for reinstall since that is the current version running, Internet Recovery, on the other hand, will only show Lion available since that was the OS shipped with that particular Mac.
• Though the Mac came with a particular version of Mac OS X, it appears that, when Internet Recovery is invoked, the most recent update of that version may be applied. (i.e. if the Mac originally came with 10.7.3, Internet Recovery may install a more recent update like 10.7.5)
iLife Apps:
• When the App Store is launched for the first time it will report that the iLife apps are available for the user to Accept under the Purchases section. The user will be required to enter their AppleID during the Acceptance process. From that point on the iLife apps will be tied to the AppleID used to Accept them. The user will be allowed to download the apps to other Macs they own if they wish using the same AppleID used to Accept them.
• Once Accepted on the new Mac, the iLife apps can not be transferred to any future owner when the Mac is sold. Attempting to use an AppleID after the apps have already been accepted using a different AppleID will result in the App Store reporting "These apps were already assigned to another Apple ID".
• It appears, however, that the iLife Apps do not automatically go to the first owner of the Mac. It's quite possible that the original owner, either by choice or neglect, never Accepted the iLife apps in the App Store. As a result, a future owner of the Mac may be able to successfully Accept the apps and retain them for themselves using their own AppleID. Bottom Line: Whoever Accepts the iLife apps first gets to keep them.
SELLING A MAC B
Follow these instructions step by step to prepare a Mac for sale:
Step One - Back up your data:
A. If you have any Virtual PCs shut them down. They cannot be in their "fast saved" state. They must be shut down from inside Windows.
B. Clone to an external drive using using Carbon Copy Cloner.
1. Open Carbon Copy Cloner.
2. Select the Source volume from the Select a source drop down menu on the left side.
3. Select the Destination volume from the Select a destination drop down menu on the right
side.
4. Click on the Clone button. If you are prompted about creating a clone of the Recovery HD be
sure to opt for that.
Destination means a freshly erased external backup drive. Source means the internal
startup drive.
Step Two - Prepare the machine for the new buyer:
1. De-authorize the computer in iTunes! De-authorize both iTunes and Audible accounts.
2, Remove any Open Firmware passwords or Firmware passwords.
3. Turn the brightness full up and volume nearly so.
4. Turn off File Vault, if enabled.
5. Disable iCloud, if enabled: See.What to do with iCloud before selling your computer
Step Three - Install a fresh OS:
A. Snow Leopard and earlier versions of OS X
1. Insert the original OS X install CD/DVD that came with your computer.
2. Restart the computer while holding down the C key to boot from the CD/DVD.
3. Select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu; repartition and reformat the internal hard drive.
Optionally, click on the Security button and set the Zero Data option to one-pass.
4. Install OS X.
5. Upon completion DO NOT restart the computer.
6. Shutdown the computer.
B. Lion and Mountain Lion (if pre-installed on the computer at purchase*)
Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because
it is three times faster than wireless.
1. Restart the computer while holding down the COMMAND and R keys until the Mac OS X
Utilities window appears.
2. Select Disk Utility from the Mac OS X Utilities window and click on the Continue button.
3. After DU loads select your startup volume (usually Macintosh HD) from the left side list. Click
on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
4. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Optionally, click on the Security button
and set the Zero Data option to one-pass.
5. Click on the Erase button and wait until the process has completed.
6. Quit DU and return to the Mac OS X Utilities window.
7. Select Reinstall Lion/Mountain Lion and click on the Install button.
8. Upon completion shutdown the computer.
*If your computer came with Lion or Mountain Lion pre-installed then you are entitled to transfer your license once. If you purchased Lion or Mountain Lion from the App Store then you cannot transfer your license to another party. In the case of the latter you should install the original version of OS X that came with your computer. You need to repartition the hard drive as well as reformat it; this will assure that the Recovery HD partition is removed. See Step Three above. You may verify these requirements by reviewing your OS X Software License.

When Time Machine is backing up files, I can't work on other apps

When Time Machine backs up files, I am not able to work on other apps such as Safari. I try to cancel the back up but nothing happens. Then the rainbow-colored wheel appears and I can’t do anything. I have turn off the computer and the external hard drive, restart both and log in. After this happens, I see that Time Machine is no longer backing up anything and I am able to continue work on Safari. What is happening? Should I quit Safari before Time Machine starts backing up files? Please help. Thanks.

to ssis6:
I guess this is something that happens once in a while because Time Machine is backing up files now and I am able to work on Apple Discussions and reply to your post. I just wonder if in addition to your explanation, there is any other explanation as to why what I described happens. Thanks for your help.

Time machine backup on external drive shared with windows PC

Can I use time machine to back up files on my mac to an external hard drive, which also is used to back up files on my windows PC? Can time machine do this without erasing my pc's files?

The only way to accomplish this would be to partition the drive. The partition for Time Machine needs to be Mac Extended (Journaled) GUID. Once partitioned and TM is backing up to the Mac partition, it won't effect the other partition that has your windows backup.
You may need to move your windows backup elsewhere temporarily in order to partition your drive then move it back to your windows partition. -GDF

I am out of space on my Macbook Air and have a Time Machine Backup. I want to complete reset my mac, but wonder if I can pick and choose what I restore to my computer? Can I also use my time machine backup and external storage as well?

I am out of space on my Macbook Air and have a Time Machine Backup. I want to complete reset my mac, but wonder if I can pick and choose what I restore to my computer? Can I also use my time machine backup as external storage as well for the files I don't need everyday?

If you are using "Restore from Time Machine Backup" option from OS X Recovery, you can only choose from the broad categories presented.
... Can I also use my time machine backup as external storage as well for the files I don't need everyday?
To be clear, if you are asking if you can use the volume containing your Time Machine backup to store additional, non-Time Machine files, the short answer is yes.
It's not a good idea though, since the Time Machine backup will eventually fill all available space, after which it begins to remove old, "expired" backups to make room for newer ones. The presence of additional files doesn't change that fact, and Time Machine will not erase them, but you will encounter a dilemma should you want to store additional files on that volume when there is no remaining space. You will have to make room for them on your own, by deleting existing files. Furthermore, since Time Machine cannot back up its own volume, those additional files will not be backed up by Time Machine.
The easy solution for what you describe is to purchase additional external storage. External USB hard disk drives have become very inexpensive; about $55 will buy a perfectly suitable 1 TB drive.
You can also choose to replace your MacBook Air's internal storage with a larger capacity one. Look for a suitable replacement from OWC / MacSales:
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/SSD/OWC/Air-Retina
That gets a little more expensive but it is the optimum solution.

HT201250 Using Time Machine as an external hard drive

I backed up my iMac with an external hard drive using Time Machine; can I delete all the data from my iMac now? My real goal is to use the 1TB external hard drive I just got to store all my music, photos, and other files on. I want to clear all the space off of my iMac, and may by a new Macbook. I want to be able to access all the files from my original computer on either, while cleaning out the iMac. Was it pointless for me to use Time Machine? Thanks so much for the feedback!

You cannot use the files in the Time Machine backup and while it is possible to partition or otherwise use free space on the Time Machine drive as external storage Apple does not recommmend it. Your best solutions are either replace the existing hard drive in your MacBook Pro with a larger capacity drive or add a bus powered external HD. A 1TB USB 2 or 3 drive runs just a bit over $100 and the internal drive about $20 less. In either case remember the Time Machine drive should have two to three times the space of the drive(s) it is backing up.

Time Machine Made My External Files Disappear

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