22 votes

Best way to copy all files, ignoring errors?

I like using rsync in order to copy files from a corrupted source to a functional destination: rsync -auv --delete --ignore-errors /path/to/source/ /path/to/destination/ Where: -a = "archive mode" =...
Yuri Sucupira's user avatar
20 votes
Accepted

Backup files from Terminal in Recovery Mode

My goal was to copy files to the external hard drive. They are stored in Macintosh HD (I originally thought I will find Macintosh HD in a subfolder of OS X Base System - wrong assumption). There was ...
sanjihan's user avatar
  • 2,635
17 votes

Backup files from Terminal in Recovery Mode

For new macs using disks with APFS (Apple file system) you can simply do: diskutil apfs unlock "Macintosh HD" And then access it by: ls "/Volumes/Macintosh HD"
Andrey Gordeev's user avatar
14 votes

Is it technically possible to recover iPhone 11 data after reset (ios15)?

No, this is not possible for any practical scenario. It is also totally false that this was "very easy" before iOS 12. This is basically a duplicate of your other question here: How to copy ...
jksoegaard's user avatar
  • 75.6k
13 votes
Accepted

Backup to External in Recovery Mode (Terminal or Time Machine)

Whatever you do, leave the faulty disk alone until you know what you are going to do. The risk that the disk breaks entirely any moment now is very high. This answer assumes you don't have FileVault ...
n1000's user avatar
  • 7,544
12 votes
Accepted

Size of /Users folder is way too low, where is my data?

Finder is probably just counting the /Users/Shared folder or other public folders. You probably don't have permission to the folders containing data for the user, so even though the data is there, ...
grg's user avatar
  • 197k
10 votes

How to recover data from formatted encrypted external hdd?

Unfortunately, it’s gone. When you encrypt your drive, it gets scrambled with a randomized key so, if you were to look at the actual sectors of the drive, it would just be a jumbled mess. The key is ...
Allan's user avatar
  • 97.6k
9 votes

Can I Recover an Erased Time Machine Disk?

The chances of recovering the directory structure & therefore the data intact in its original form are minimal. Time Machine uses a complex structure of links to files in order to reduce disk ...
Tetsujin's user avatar
  • 112k
8 votes

Recover deleted Encrypted OS X Extended volume

Under certain circumstances a deleted external HFS+ encrypted volume can be recovered after the disk has been formatted to a FAT32 volume: The whole disk has been encrypted (to one volume). The whole ...
klanomath's user avatar
  • 65.9k
8 votes

What's the safest way to ship diskettes?

Any time I shipped magnetic media, I used the anti-static bags that electronic components came in. Granted, when you have access to an IT department, they are easily available; we would save them for ...
Allan's user avatar
  • 97.6k
7 votes

Notes.app - how to access history?

If you use backup software such as Time Machine, you may be able to access your Notes.app history/older versions of your notes by restoring the 3 .sqlite files in: ~/Library/Group Containers/group....
Roman Sheydvasser's user avatar
7 votes

Re-install Python on macOS

Ideally you can restore whatever you‘ve deleted from a backup. If you removed the standard Python installation of macOS, boot into the Recovery Partition (if any) and reinstall macOS from there. ...
146438's user avatar
  • 233
6 votes

Can I reinstall a single iOS app without losing its data?

Xcode can reinstall an app. Go to Window -> Devices and click on your device on the left. You can tap the '+' button and browse for an app, or just drag any app you want onto the 'Installed apps' ...
pwnified's user avatar
6 votes

Data Recovery for Accidentally Erased Hard Drive

There is a product called DiskDrill that I have used with good success. You can use the product for free to see what it can find. To actually recover your files, you will need to purchase a license. ...
Allan's user avatar
  • 97.6k
6 votes

Recovering Notes from Water Damaged iPhone

Have a technician (not an apple one) carefully open up the iPhone (hopefully you dont have a warranty). Remove the SIM card and battery. Then lay the halves flat and then use a vacuum cleaner with a ...
Melvin Jefferson's user avatar
5 votes

What are next steps when fsck reports "could not be repaired after 3 attempts"?

To add here I had the similar situation. The steps I took: Boot in single mode. Run /sbin/fsck_hfs -drfy /dev/disk0s2 many times, it didn't help. In the output I noticed there is a circular link ...
Nikolay Shmyrev's user avatar
5 votes

Backup files from Terminal in Recovery Mode

When booted to OS X Recovery the root of the Macintosh HD is not /, it's: /Volumes/Macintosh HD/ To get to your Home directory in Terminal, use: cd "/Volumes/Macintosh HD/Users/User_Name" Where ...
user3439894's user avatar
  • 57.5k
5 votes

How to make sector level copy of external hard drive with FileVault 2 enabled?

At least Carbon Copy Cloner is just a wrapper for either dd or rsync. I suspect that it's the same with SuperDuper!. Since both tools (of which rsync is not needed here) are already included in OS X ...
klanomath's user avatar
  • 65.9k
5 votes
Accepted

How to recover apparently missing directory and data from APFS volume? `found zeroed-out block`

There is a particular fsck error: ** Checking the object map. error: (oid 0xd31c1) om: btn: found zeroed-out block Object map is invalid. Here, om refers to the object map of the macOS volume, and ...
Jivan Pal's user avatar
  • 1,175
5 votes
Accepted

Will a buyer be able to recover my files if I format my mac HD and sell it?

The accepted procedure these days is that you already have FileVault enabled, right from the first time you use the Mac. If you do, then the simple format & reinstall in Apple's instructions is ...
Tetsujin's user avatar
  • 112k
5 votes

How do I access files that are owned by another user?

Even if you have the same username on a different instance of macOS (it could be the same computer), the OS doesn't see the two as being the same. What you need to do is take ownership of the files. ...
Allan's user avatar
  • 97.6k
5 votes

How to copy all bytes of a phone (formatted or not, 64GB/64B) into a computer hard drive?

No, that's not a typical way to recover lost data on iPhones. In almost every instance, your old data is either UNMAP'ed (TRIM'ed) or it was encrypted and now the encryption key is gone. So a copy of ...
jksoegaard's user avatar
  • 75.6k
5 votes

Reset name and password to access macOS

You can ask Apple to request access to the Apple ID account: this would cover photos stored in iCloud, Calendar, Contacts, email and any documents in iCloud Drive. https://support.apple.com/en-gb/...
benwiggy's user avatar
  • 32.8k
4 votes
Accepted

How to recover files from the home directory that malware removed on OS X 10.10.5 Yosemite?

After some deep investigations we come to the preliminary conclusion that the culprit wasn't any malware but an unhappy coincidence involving org.macosforge.xquartz.startx.plist, .bashrc and an xrd --...
klanomath's user avatar
  • 65.9k
4 votes

Rebuild partition table on external HDD - not writable

OS X uses three different types of valid partition tables. Only one of those is written to a particular disk: GUID partition table Apple Partition Table MBR The default partition table on OS X is ...
klanomath's user avatar
  • 65.9k
4 votes
Accepted

Recover QuickTime 7 Pro registration from backup?

The file that contains the serial number, if you still have it, would be here: Macintosh HD/Library/Preferences/com.apple.QuickTime.plist *NOTE: This is the main Library folder, not your User folder ...
Pixelwiz's user avatar
  • 1,011
4 votes

Switch back to HFS+ from APFS

I'm afraid there's no non-destructive way to revert back to HFS once converted. You may use diskutil apfs deleteContainer /dev/disk(x)s(x) (where x is your correct APFS container). This will revert ...
David Baverstock's user avatar
4 votes

Data Recovery for Accidentally Erased Hard Drive

Another alternative to the awesome TestDisk is GetDataBack, it's a paid software, but I used it successfully on hard drives that TestDisk could not recover. You can try the demo to see if the files ...
gaborous's user avatar
  • 141
4 votes

Recovering Notes from Water Damaged iPhone

Btw you could immediately have disconnect the battery from board if possible. That will prevent further short circuits. One thing I can suggest is, replacing battery and try turning on if possible. In ...
Native7i's user avatar
4 votes

What's the safest way to ship diskettes?

Well-wrapped packaging with a bit of insulation is as good as you are going to get. Anything more elaborate (Faraday cage?) is liable to attract attention of customs agents, who may then take them ...
benwiggy's user avatar
  • 32.8k

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