Why can't I write to my external hard drive?

I have a new Macbook pro, but when I plug in a USB hard drive it is "Read Only." I can find various places to change this, but they are never active for me. Anyone know what to do? Thanks!

How is the external drive formatted?
If it is formatted as NTFS and your Mac doesn't have third party software to support wrting to NTFS then it will be read only.
Allan

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Why can't my MacBook find my external hard drive through wireless network

I have a 1 TB Western Digital My Book Essential external hard drive connected to my AirPort Extreme. I've been using it with my MacBook via my wireless network (mainly for music and movies) now for about 2 years without any trouble. Recently my MacBook has been unable to find the HD, it gives me the following message "The operation can't be completed because the original item for "My Book 1TB HD" can't be found". If I reboot my entire system (fios router, AirPort Extreme, MacBook, and external HD) I can access it for a short period of time but then the same problem arises. What can I do to resolve this issue and/or figure out where the actual problem is?
Thanks in advance!

The USB port on the AirPort Extreme has always been borderline as far as being able to provide sufficient power for a hard drive. It is not a high power port like you would find on a computer.
If you have not been using a powered USB hub with the AirPort Extreme....it is possible that the power supply on the Extreme has aged a bit, and it no longer puts out quite as much power as before.
Try a powered USB hub, but check the store's return policy before you buy in case this is not the solution.
Atter the powered USB hub, I have no suggestions other than the obvious..... check/replace the USB cable from the hard drive to the USB port on the AirPort.
Also check using an Ethernet connection from your Mac to the AirPort Extreme...to eliminate the possibility of a wireless interference issue being the culprit.

Why can't my mac locate an external hard drive?

I'm unable to install yosemite as right at the end of the install (some 3 hours) it states I don't have enough memory. I didn't really think I had that much on it but hey ho. When I connect an external hard drive to me mac it can't find it.
I've tried to book a session at the genius bar but they don't offer appointments for mac users.

I can't see the external drive by pressing command + shift + c in Finder?
It is listed in System Information.app > Hardware > USB?

Why can't I connect to my external hard drive anymore through my AirPort extreme?

I have a WD 500 GB external hard drive connected to my AirPort extreme that I have been using just fine for some time now. All of a sudden, I cannot access the files on the hard drive and when I try to connect to my AirPort in finder, the connection fails. What can I do to fix this?

If I restart my Mac it notices them
This is puzzling. You should not have to restart your Mac for drives to mount.
Also I plugged the hard drive directly into my Mac and had to restart it before it noticed it
Same as above. You should not have to restart the Mac for the drive to be recognized.
Connect the drive directly to the Mac and restart the Mac if necessary to mount the drive. Then run Verify Disk using Disk Utility on the Mac. If repairs are needed, run Repair Disk. Locate Disk Utility as follows:
Macintosh HD > Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility
See if the drive is recognized at the AirPort Extreme. Post on your results.

Why can I no longer access my external hard drive?

I've been accessing my (powered) external hard drive for several months through my AirPort. It was never formatted for a Mac, since I had purchased it when i was still using a PC. And we still have PCs in the house that I want to be able to have access as well.
When I purchased the AirPort I was told that I could use it as an external drive, so I had moved some files onto it. Then... I was told, NO, don't put files on your AirPort because it could eventually lead to corrupt files in the Time Machine.
Yesterday, I was in the process of removing files from the AirPort and copying them to the external drive. I hit a point where my computer seemed to be thinking too hard and too long. The majority of the file transfers had been fine, but when I went to look at the external drive it appeared to be empty. After a bit of freaking out, we plugged the external drive directly into my Mac book to confirm that the files are still there. I've rebooted the computer, powered down the AirPort, and powered down the external drive to no avail.
While speaking with Apple customer service last night, we reset the AirPort as well. Nothing. I was finally told that my only option was to reformat the external drive. I'm hoping that someone here might have more insight before I jump through moving everything again.

#:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *1.0 TB     disk0
   1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk0s1
   2:                  Apple_HFS Macintosh HD            999.3 GB   disk0s2
   3:                 Apple_Boot Recovery HD             650.0 MB   disk0s3

Suddenly can't write to an external hard drive that I have been using consistently

I have been using a WD 1 terabyte external hard drive to transfer movie files between 2 MBP's and suddenly I cannot write any files to the HD. The error message is that the external hard "cannot be modified" if I try to add any files. I have tried the same hard drive on another MBP and it works fine and I can write to the hard drive (with the aid of Paragon NTFS for Mac OS). I have Paragon NTFS on my computer as well and have been able to write to the hard drive previously. I spoke to Western Digital phone support and told them the problem and noted that the icon for the hard drive is grey with a clock on my computer and is orange on the other MBP. They explained that the icon change was due to Time Machine on my computer. I currently have Time Machine turned off.
Of note, I recently upgraded my internal hard drive on my computer to a WD 500 GB internal drive. Not sure if this will make a difference. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks,

Found the issue. When I changed the internal hard drive, most softward transferred over, but not all. I had to reinstall the Paragon NTFS and I was then able to write to the external hard drive. That seemed to solve the problem.

I do not have permission to write in my external Hard Drive

Hello everybody.
I have recently bought a MacBook Pro (15, 2.16 Ghz with OS X 10.4.9) and I have a Beyond Micro 300Gb external Hard drive that I have been using with my PC. This drive has a Windows NT File System.
When I first plugged it to the Mac, I changed its name to recognize it better. Now, I am not able to transfer documents from my Mac to it, but I am able to do so through the PC.
Am I done something wrong?
Am I blocked this drive? (Once open, I see a pen crossed on the lower left corner)
And if so, Could I unblocked it to make it writable?
When I try to transfer any documents with the Mac I get a message saying that I can't do it and because I do not have permission. (I am the administrator).
I read a previous posting talking about a similar problem, but I really couldn't understand the solutions and/or differences beteween NTFS, FAT 32, MS-DOS and MacFuse (I am a complete novice).
I also tried (as suggested in the posting) to use the Disk Utility to set the permissions from there, but when I select the external Hard Drive all the options are dimmed. Also, the info panel says I only have permissions to write, having no other available alternatives to choose from.
The question is: How can I make this drive available to both Operating Systmes without erasing all the information inside (format)?
Thank You in advance.
Cordially,
Juan Carlos
MacBookPro Mac OS X (10.4.9)
MacBookPro Mac OS X (10.4.9)
MacBookPro Mac OS X (10.4.9)

Thank You rvdparis
I have just intalled MacFuse (with Tools and Core) and it does allow me now to read and write in my external Hard Drive.
Once again, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
And yes guys, this seems to work. Forget about formatting your external hard drive. MacFuse changes the permission instantly.
Cordially,
Juan Carlos
MacBookPro Mac OS X (10.4.9)

I can not save any data to external hard drive from my mac pro. Is there anyone can help me in this regard?( note, when i first plug my ext. drive to mac i chose option to backup later)

I can not save any data to external hard drive from my mac pro. Is there anyone can help me in this regard?( note, when i first plug my ext. drive to mac i chose option to backup later)

The device may be formatted for Windows, as NTFS. The format is readable, but not natively writable on a Mac. To write to the device, you must either reformat it (erasing all the contents) or install third-party software to enable write access to NTFS.

Time Machine will not let me restore from backups after June, 2013. I can see the files on the external hard drive but Time Machine skips all of them and goes back to June, 2013. Does anyone have any idea what the problem is?

Time Machine will not let me restore from backups after June, 2013. I can see the files on the external hard drive but Time Machine skips all of them and goes back to June, 2013. Does anyone have any idea what the problem is?

rtilghman wrote:
telling me to buy a new router is NOT a solution.
And why not? Apple is selling these things like BigMacs. They can't make enough of them. You've been suffering since May because you refuse to get a decent router.
Can you imagine if a company that makes a refrigerator told me that I needed to upgrade my electrical system to rectify a problem with their device? What kind of response IS that?!?!
What if the problem with their device is that it requires a new-fangled "grounded" outlet and your circa 1890 house doesn't have grounded outlets. Would you refuse to purchase a $ 25 adapter on principle?

How can I install ntfs on an external hard drive so that my Samsung Smart TV can see my media files? Or is there a better option?

How can I install ntfs on an external hard drive so that my Samsung Smart TV can see my media files? Or is there a better option?

OS X cannot natively write to a drive formatted as NTFS, nor can it format a drive as NTFS. There are third-party NTFS drivers available on the market.
Just out of curiosity: Even with NTFS, how is your TV going to access the external hard drive? Does the TV have a USB port?

Can I install Bootcamp on an External Hard Drive?

*Bootcamp on External Hard Drive?*
Can I install Bootcamp on an external Hard Drive? I don't see why it wouldn't work. Do I need to install the Mac OS on the external Hard Drive first, then Bootcamp?
Parallels
Another question. Does Parallels allow you to not have to use the "option" key to boot into Windows? I mean if I use Parallels can I use XP or Vista at the same time as my mac applications?
What, (if any) are the drawbacks to using "Parallels"?
*What Options are there...*
Is it possible for Apple to allow users to program a key on their keyboard, when pressed will bring up Windows so they don't have to always restart? I need to switch between Windows and mac OS quite often and it's a real pain to always restart. What options do I have?
Thanks

Hi Paint Guy,
*Bootcamp on External Hard Drive?*
Can I install Bootcamp on an external Hard Drive? I don't see why it wouldn't work. Do I need to install the Mac OS on the external Hard Drive first, then Bootcamp?
By Microsofts Design no Windows can be installed and booted from external HDs. BootCamp just follows this.
However, according to this http://tubeshards.wordpress.com/2006/12/05/install-windows-to-a-macintosh-usb-dr ive/ it can be done.
Parallels
Another question. Does Parallels allow you to not have to use the "option" key to boot into Windows? I mean if I use Parallels can I use XP or Vista at the same time as my mac applications?
What, (if any) are the drawbacks to using "Parallels"?
Parallels is an OS X application which don't need a restart of your Mac to run Windows.
Therefor you can run OS X and Parallels Windows side-by-side.
Main drawback is, that Windows runs not native (on the real hardware) but in a virtualized environment.
While this is more than acceptable for 'standard' Office programs, any program that needs direct hardware access (especially games and 3D-programs) either do not run at all or run at noticeable slower speed.
Also you have to realize that the amount of RAM in your Mac is divided between OS X and Parallels Windows.
*What Options are there...*
Is it possible for Apple to allow users to program a key on their keyboard, when pressed will bring up Windows so they don't have to always restart? I need to switch between Windows and mac OS quite often and it's a real pain to always restart. What options do I have?
BootCamp is no option then, since it needs a reboot everytime you want to switch between OS X and Windows.
Parallels (and VMWare Fusion and VirtualBox, BTW) run alongside OSX.
Thanks
You're welcome. Hope it helps.
Have Fun
Stefan
Message was edited by: Fortuny

Can i use applications from an external hard drive?

Can i use applications from an external hard drive?

Photoshop itself needs to reside inside of it's Applications folder so that it has access to it's Libraries and plugins. So if you are going to attempt to store and run it from an external drive you need to copy the whole Application folder or install it directly to the external drive. Even still I am not 100% positive it will work as I know it still needs to access your Library/Application Support for additional files and licensing.
Why do you want to run Photoshop from an external drive?
George

Can I read mail on an external hard drive without importing the account?

HI - I have a large mail account on an external hard drive which i do not want to import on my mac due to hard drive space limitations. Can I review the mail within the Mail app, (or some other app) without importing everything into mail or onto my hard drive? Thanks very much!!

Hi Paint Guy,
*Bootcamp on External Hard Drive?*
Can I install Bootcamp on an external Hard Drive? I don't see why it wouldn't work. Do I need to install the Mac OS on the external Hard Drive first, then Bootcamp?
By Microsofts Design no Windows can be installed and booted from external HDs. BootCamp just follows this.
However, according to this http://tubeshards.wordpress.com/2006/12/05/install-windows-to-a-macintosh-usb-dr ive/ it can be done.
Parallels
Another question. Does Parallels allow you to not have to use the "option" key to boot into Windows? I mean if I use Parallels can I use XP or Vista at the same time as my mac applications?
What, (if any) are the drawbacks to using "Parallels"?
Parallels is an OS X application which don't need a restart of your Mac to run Windows.
Therefor you can run OS X and Parallels Windows side-by-side.
Main drawback is, that Windows runs not native (on the real hardware) but in a virtualized environment.
While this is more than acceptable for 'standard' Office programs, any program that needs direct hardware access (especially games and 3D-programs) either do not run at all or run at noticeable slower speed.
Also you have to realize that the amount of RAM in your Mac is divided between OS X and Parallels Windows.
*What Options are there...*
Is it possible for Apple to allow users to program a key on their keyboard, when pressed will bring up Windows so they don't have to always restart? I need to switch between Windows and mac OS quite often and it's a real pain to always restart. What options do I have?
BootCamp is no option then, since it needs a reboot everytime you want to switch between OS X and Windows.
Parallels (and VMWare Fusion and VirtualBox, BTW) run alongside OSX.
Thanks
You're welcome. Hope it helps.
Have Fun
Stefan
Message was edited by: Fortuny

How can I move my project from external hard drive to my macbook pro?

How can I move my project from external hard drive to my macbook pro? every time I try to do some editing, the sequence is very slow, thanks in advance

Try here...
Setting-up a new Mac from an old one, its backups, or a PC

HT1660 I have two iTunes libraries on two different pc's (one windows and one Mac). Can I consolidate these on an external hard drive?

I have two iTunes libraries on two different pc's (one windows and one Mac). Can I consolidate these on an external hard drive?

I'm sorry I just saw the last post. I had two users on my hard drive, one for me and one for my daughter, but I am not sure what you mean by partioning my external????? I have heard the term before, but don't know how to do it. I am having serious crashing issues with this computer and believe I really need to do a clean install. I just want to make sure everything for both ipods is safe (is???? I think so, everything is......I hate when the English language does this to me!)

Why can't I write to my external hard drive?

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