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2 TB External HDD keeps randomly ejecting, OS X warning me to eject before doing so?

ideal.dreams

ideal.dreams

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Jul 19, 2010
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I just bought a 2 TB portable external HDD and I've got two partitions on it. I've been getting notifications from OS X that I should eject my disk via Finder before removing the disk but I'm not removing the disk at all, it's been plugged in, stationary on my desk since I got it.

Does this sound like a software or hardware issue? I'm not sure what the problem could be. Both connections are tight and I'm not bumping the drive or anything.
 
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It seems that this issue only occurs when I have the drive plugged in to my powered 7 port USB 3.0 hub. When I plug it directly into a port on my computer, this issue does not occur. I am baffled as to why it's occurring when connected to the port because not only is it powered, but I'm running two other HDDs off of it as well, neither of them having the same issue.

Any ideas? I'm stumped. As a precaution, I've requested a replacement cable for the drive (even though that's likely not the issue) and I've also contacted the company that sells the hub to see if they can offer me a fix. In the meantime, this is going to drive me mad!
 
I'm having the same issue with a single 2TB WD MyBook drive. It just randomly ejects itself.

I've updated the firmware, tried different cables etc and it still happens.

The drive is connected directly to the computer along with 3 other WD MyBook drives and this one, no matter which port, will be ejected at some point during the day.
 
I had this with a 1TB Samsung drive (the one from inside my 2011 iMac, which was replaced and used externally in a Freecom Firewire dock) and whilst it didn't cause any problems was a little frustrating. I recently upgraded the drives in my NAS so removed this drive from service and now have a 3TB drive in the dock. This hasn't ejected once, so I'm putting it down to a problem with the previous drive as nothing else has changed.

I'd be tempted to replace it, or at least back it up regularly if it contains any valuable data.
 
I've had similar issues, primarily with my 1 TB Samsung drive. I have two USB hubs attached to my iMac , one has 4 external hard drives attached and is pretty much stagnant. The second hub I use for plugging in items I don't use regularly and have noticed the issue primarily occurs if I attach either my Cardreader or my Smartphone to the second hub. The last time i attached the phone it actually kick 4 drives off the system. I don't know if it is the problem but the common denominator that I see is, the card reader and the phone run SSD type drives where as the others are old style drives.
 
I've contacted the manufacturer of the hub I'm using and they told me that they've seen this issue occur before. He had me run a debug diagnostic tool and after looking at it, they saw that I was using a hub with an outdated firmware version. They are actually sending me a new hub with the latest firmware that has been pre-tested with a drive like mine to make sure it works. I'll update this thread with the results!
 
Just received the new hub with the updated firmware and........same issue. I've contacted their support team to see if they can help me any further but otherwise I'm going to have to return the hub back to Amazon and just pick a different brand I guess.

I have 5 other devices hooked up to it and don't have this problem with any of them, and one of them is another Western Digital passport drive!
 
I am now having this issue regularly and it involves all my external drives and both my Nextel hubs. I don't believe that coincidentally both my hubs would act up at the same time. The problem is getting worse and the ONLY common denominator that I can see based on this thread is MAVERICKS.
 
Too Many.....

You probably have too many devices connected to the hub at the same time....even though it is powered, it probably doesn't supply enough amperage for every device simultaneously.
 
dsquard2 said:
Too Many.....

You probably have too many devices connected to the hub at the same time....even though it is powered, it probably doesn't supply enough amperage for every device simultaneously.
Click to expand...

Simple Fix

So to SYSTEM PREFERENCES, [TURN DISPALY OFF AFTER:] = [NEVER]....check the box [x] PREVENT COMPUTER FROM SLEEPING AUTOMATICALLY
 
kendall69 said:
Simple Fix

So to SYSTEM PREFERENCES, [TURN DISPALY OFF AFTER:] = [NEVER]....check the box [x] PREVENT COMPUTER FROM SLEEPING AUTOMATICALLY
Click to expand...

This would make sense for me - My RMB does this when i close the lid or put it to sleep , sometimes the hardrive dissapears and only a restart of the macbook would bring it back on finder.
 
It's not just happening with external drives. I have a large SD card which I keep in my MBA permanently (thanks to a Nifty adapter). Sometimes I randomly get notification that the disk was ejected improperly.
 
I have been having this problem with several different devices including three different external hard drives as well as two different card readers for my CF Cards. The problem is getting worse and I have done everything I can find in all of these forums. This is obviously a problem bigger than the device. I am not using a hub, I have turned off any option for the computer to go to sleep or start a screen saver. I have tried different USB ports, I have tried it with the power supply connected, as well as not connected. I am importing into lightroom. I thought Macs were supposed to work! I have closed all other running programs such as photoshop, mail, etc. I have turned off wifi, I am not using maverick, but am a photographer who currently transfer pictures off of my card in order to edit them. I feel like I am back in the Windows world fighting issues! Please help! It has gotten so bad I am unable to transfer any pictures!
 
Did you ever get your ejecting issue fixed? I am having this problem with three different external drives as well as two different CF card readers. Multiple cables and yes, I have tried endless "solutions" offered in these threads. None have worked.
 
Marshmutt said:
Did you ever get your ejecting issue fixed? I am having this problem with three different external drives as well as two different CF card readers. Multiple cables and yes, I have tried endless "solutions" offered in these threads. None have worked.
Click to expand...

I am having the exact same issue. And even when I do manage to copy my RAW's over (usually one at a time), the images appear corrupted. I've just "upgraded" to Mac, but right now my 5 year old HP Elitebook running Windows 7 is still spanking this garbage. So angry - wish I could put this 5k iMac back in the box and return it, but it was a high end custom order so they won't allow it. Fuming!!!!!!

Come on someone - help us out with this!!!!!!
 
mkgilmore said:
I am having the exact same issue. And even when I do manage to copy my RAW's over (usually one at a time), the images appear corrupted. I've just "upgraded" to Mac, but right now my 5 year old HP Elitebook running Windows 7 is still spanking this garbage. So angry - wish I could put this 5k iMac back in the box and return it, but it was a high end custom order so they won't allow it. Fuming!!!!!!

Come on someone - help us out with this!!!!!!
Click to expand...

I figured out that the issue is when external devices do not have their own power. When I plugged the camera into the computer it worked fine and when I use the external that is powered it works. My other external drives mostly work but I do occasionally have the issue. I am waiting on my new card reader in hopes that spending more than $12 on it will make a difference.
 
Marshmutt said:
I figured out that the issue is when external devices do not have their own power. When I plugged the camera into the computer it worked fine and when I use the external that is powered it works. My other external drives mostly work but I do occasionally have the issue. I am waiting on my new card reader in hopes that spending more than $12 on it will make a difference.
Click to expand...
So it's a power issue? I paid quite a bit for the nice Sandisk flash reader I have, but it does draw power from the USB port - I don't really want to have to replace it, but I suppose I'll have to! I have no idea where the driver CD is for my 5D, otherwise I'd try plugging it into the Mac directly.
 
mkgilmore said:
So it's a power issue? I paid quite a bit for the nice Sandisk flash reader I have, but it does draw power from the USB port - I don't really want to have to replace it, but I suppose I'll have to! I have no idea where the driver CD is for my 5D, otherwise I'd try plugging it into the Mac directly.
Click to expand...

Don't know that you will need a driver. I shoot the Nikon 810 and just plugged it in, not sure about the Canons though. The reader that I ordered is a Moshi Cardeta that a friend who is a Mac Technician suggested. They run about $40-50. I looked at the Sandisk but went cheap. I love how well Mac works, my old PC couldn't do the math in Lightroom much less Photoshop. I am upgrading my memory since the scratch disk memory of PS was eating up space. I just don't think Mac makes good USB ports and will ask about it when my buddy upgrades the memory. Currently have 250 (I think) and always seem to be low on space. 36MP in RAW can eat up some space quickly. I am far from a computer guy but all the info I read seemed to not help but I can say as long as the device is powered I don't seem to have the problem. A friend of mine uses the Lexar disk reader and has the problem occasionally but not consistently. Sadly no one has given any real good answer, they keep guessing or assuming I have too many things plugged in. Hope this helps, keep me posted. I'll let you know if the Moshi works better.
 
Marshmutt said:
Sadly no one has given any real good answer, they keep guessing or assuming I have too many things plugged in. Hope this helps, keep me posted. I'll let you know if the Moshi works better.
Click to expand...

All i can do is assume too, i had littel hiccups with 4 times 4 TB extern hdds connected with firewire on my macmini.

One thing is the firmware of the devices

It could be the permissions

or different original Users who originally formatet the HDDs

the sleep setup is another factor (4 tb extern Hdd Firmware update says: the drive does not go to sleep modus with new firmware...

and another hint: mixed partition shemes on the bus, GUID ect.

sorry for language i'm Bavarian, ;-)
 
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Something that everyone here seems to be purposely overlooking...

Lets look at the facts:
1) All devices are plugged into Macs.
2) The issue affects multiple brands and types of devices.

What's the common denominator? The Mac.

In other words, if you take your device that has the issue to another, different Mac, it will probably work just fine.
Don't let the fact that other devices are working on your Mac mislead you to believing that your Mac is working just fine.

There is an article that describes this infamous issue as well as offering suggestions on how to fix it here:
http://www.macissues.com/2015/06/01/tackle-external-hard-drives-randomly-ejecting-in-os-x/
 
I've had this issue on every mac I've owned in the past five or ten years, though I'm guessing it won't happen with the new USB-C MB Pros. I'm pretty sure my issues were due to the mac not having enough power to drive the external drives. For example, today I tried to connect a 2TB Samsung 840 EVO in a couple different external cases and copy over my music from a drobo mini (connected via Thunderbolt). With the drive attached directly to the iMac (Late 2014 Retina), it would disconnect at random intervals. I finally tried connecting it to my Anker powered 10-port USB 3 hub, with most of the ports open, and it hasn't disconnected since. In my case, it seems the iMac isn't providing enough power for the external drive to stay connected while performing disk operations. Though it sounds like this may not be the OP's issue.
 
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