macOS' Disk Utility is a great tool for repairing problems with disks on your Mac, but it tin't set everything, then what practice you lot do when information technology displays a message saying your Mac tin can't repair the disk? Read on to notice out.

Tip:

You've probably tried a few options at this point but this may exist a surprisingly quick fix. You tin run the tool called "Repair Disk Permissions" — it's included in the free version of CleanMyMac X.

Repairing disk permissions fixes certain read-write errors on the drive.

Repair disk permissions in Maintenance module CMMX

How to tell if a disk needs to exist repaired

In that location are a few signs that your hard bulldoze or SSD may need to be repaired.

  • Files accept become corrupt
  • Lots of apps quit simultaneously
  • The disk starts making strange clicking or whirring noises

If you're having whatever of these problems with a deejay on your Mac, whether it's the startup disk or an external hard bulldoze or SSD, your outset port of call should be Disk Utility. Disk Utility is really good at detecting issues and repairing them. However, it can't ready everything.

What is Disk Utility?

Disk Utility is macOS built-in disk erasing, formatting, and repair tool. It'due south very useful, non just for checking and repairing issues, but for reformatting disks, securely erasing data and mounting a volume that the Finder is having trouble mounting. It lives in the Utilities binder in Applications.

How to repair a disk on the Mac

Note:

If the disk y'all're trying to repair is your starting time-upwardly deejay, you'll need to boot into Recovery Style and choose Deejay Utility from macOS Utilities from the startup screen. To boot in Recovery Mode, restart your Mac and concord down Control-R.

  1. Go to Applications > Utilities and double-click Disk Utility to launch it.
  2. In the top left corner of the window, click View and choose View all devices.
  3. In the sidebar, select a disk or book.
  4. Click First Aid.
  5. Printing Run then Continue.
  • If you see a bulletin that says the disk is most to fail, back it upward immediately.
  • If you see a message that says Disk Utility can't repair the disk, try once more.

Practise a fill-in before information technology gets worse

If Disk Utility can't repair your deejay the 2nd time yous effort it, you'll need to resort to other measures. Beginning, though, you should backup your disk. The easiest way to exercise that is to utilise Time Machine, the fill-in tool built into macOS.

  1. Become to the Apple menu and choose System Preferences.
  2. Select Time Motorcar.
  3. Press Select and choose a disk to back up to.
  4. Check the box labelled Show Fourth dimension Machine in the menu bar.
  5. Click on the Fourth dimension Machine menu bar item and choose Backup Now.

If y'all don't want to use Time Machine, you should use a third-party tool to back up, or clone, the drive that is causing the error bulletin. If it fails, y'all will at least accept a backup of your data.

Perform maintenance on your Mac

The Mac maintenance app, CleanMyMac X, has a number of tools that may perform intensive intendance on your drive. Tools that may help you in this case:

  • Cleaning your drive from system junk
  • Running Maintenance scripts
  • Repairing deejay permissions (explained above)

Surprisingly, the remedy may be equally simple as a disk cleanup. Cleaning upwardly system junk and app-related cache files often repairs software conflicts — could be our issue.

As a first footstep, get a download of CleanMyMac Ten — this software was developed by MacPaw and is notarized past Apple.

  • Run the System Junk tool.
  • Run the Maintenance Scripts tool (under the Maintenance menu).
Maintenance Scripts in CleanMyMac X

    Y'all can run whatsoever of the other maintenance routines in the same style. Using these every few weeks will aid keep your Mac running smoothly and should reduce the run a risk of problems occurring.

  • Restart your Mac and run across if the problem comes again when y'all use Disk Utility.

macOS Disk Utility is very good at repairing some deejay issues – usually the earlier you discover a problem and try and repair information technology, the meliorate. Still, it can't ready everything. So the offset thing y'all should do if Disk Utility can't repair a disk is to back it up. That way, if it fails, you won't lose your data. CleanMyMac X has a number of tools that tin keep your disk running smoothly and reduce the gamble of problems occurring. Running its maintenance module regularly should keep your deejay running well.