Can't decrypt external WD HDD on Mac!

[ExclusiveMac]

Hello,

I have an WD 2TB external HDD, cannot decrypt with the 100% password, i live it all night with the password promt on screen and in the morning i put the password and is the same, just the windows shake, so for me the waiting is not working. Also i try to put some random wrong passwords and the window shake always when the password is wrong, but if i put the right password the window shake again after 5-10 sec, if i put the password again the right one the window disappear and that's all. Also in disk utillities not even appear after this, but before to put the right password, in disk utillities is grey out...The HDD was encrypted on macOS High Sierra. Other suggetions to unlock this drive?

 

[Fishrrman]

Your predicament illustrates why I do not encrypt my drives...

 

[killawat]

The HDD was encrypted on macOS High Sierra. Other suggetions to unlock this drive?

OP Has anything changed in your setup? New thunderbolt dock? Is this a portable solution or does it have its own power source? Do you have another Mac you could test? Is your caps lock on? Have you restarted your machine? Have you tried a different cable?

I used to see the behavior you describe when trying to mount an encrypted drive that had been unmounted but was still powered on. I'd have to power cycle the drive, but 10.13 fixed that for me.

Surely you have a backup? Hopefully this was your backup?

 

[ExclusiveMac]

I tryed on OSX Mavericks and OSX El Capitan, on this OS's not even appear the window to put the password, on disk utilities i cannot do anything, mount or unmount. But when i put the HDD on High Sierra the window appear to put the password. The HDD is WD 2TB external drive USB 3.0 is a small one not with an external power source. I use the original cable that came with the HDD, also i tryed to change the cable, the same issue. I check also the HDD on 3 different macs, the same issue. If i connect the HDD appear the window to put the password, as i said already it takes 5-10 sec and after i see a shake, the password remain written there on the promt box if i press unlock again the window dissapear or even if i try to put any password dissapear also. And after i cannot do anything on disk utilities and if i try to restart the mac is not restaring, most probably because it use something from HDD, also even if i unplug the HDD is the same issue cannot restart or use the disk utilites, only if i force restart from the power button, then after restart if i put the HDD again the same story as i already said. I tryed also to repair the HDD in disk utilities but there is no problems, everything is ok. I have 700GB of important files, and i don't have a backup, this is the backup.

Please i really don't want to erase the HDD, want the files, and yes the password is 100% true, and i am the only one that use the HDD.
Guys please help with a solution, anything. Tommorow i will try to talk with somebody from apple, maybe they know something.

 

[killawat]

Honestly if the data is that important you should stop working on it and bring it to someone who can clone the drive or do it yourself if you have the tools.

Mav. and El Cap won't see it because they don't do AFPS, so that's expected I'd try to upgrade one of those nodes to High Sierra and try again.

If you don't want to do that you could download a copy of vmware fusion from vmware.com. Download and create a new VM from the OS X recovery partition, that'll give you a new copy of high Sierra to try on. After that, connect your drive and connect it to the virtual machine.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"But when i put the HDD on High Sierra the window appear to put the password."

Sounds good to this point.

"If i connect the HDD appear the window to put the password, as i said already it takes 5-10 sec and after i see a shake"

That generally indicates that the password is wrong.
You need the CORRECT password.
Without it, the drive isn't going to mount, ever.

"I have 700GB of important files, and i don't have a backup, this is the backup."

If it really is a "backup" doesn't that mean that the "original files" are somewhere else. Can't you get them from those places?
If this drive is the ONLY place those files exist, it's NOT "a backup".

Is the password that's on there now one that was created with a Western Digital application (that may have come bundled with the drive)?
If so, does it have any ability to reset the password?
You might have to call WD on this one.

 

[ExclusiveMac]

OP wrote:
"But when i put the HDD on High Sierra the window appear to put the password."

Sounds good to this point.

"If i connect the HDD appear the window to put the password, as i said already it takes 5-10 sec and after i see a shake"

That generally indicates that the password is wrong.
You need the CORRECT password.
Without it, the drive isn't going to mount, ever.

"I have 700GB of important files, and i don't have a backup, this is the backup."

If it really is a "backup" doesn't that mean that the "original files" are somewhere else. Can't you get them from those places?
If this drive is the ONLY place those files exist, it's NOT "a backup".

Is the password that's on there now one that was created with a Western Digital application (that may have come bundled with the drive)?
If so, does it have any ability to reset the password?
You might have to call WD on this one.

I think that you didn't read very clearly what i wrote. I will repeat.

1. Is a backup, how can you say that is not a backup? "doesn't that mean that the "original files" are somewhere else" what?
The original files are on this drive, obviosly again...from where to take files if i said this is the ONLY BACKUP, it means that the files are ONLY ON THIS DRIVE, PERIOD!

2. Again if you read clearly you will understan, the encryption was made on High Sierra with High Sierra setting to encrypt, everybody here already understand that, so WD cannot help me.

3. Again, the password is 100% true, because if i write any password the window shakes after 1 sec everytime i put a random password. When i put the true password it shakes after 5-10 sec, and after disspear the windows completely.
If i put random passwords it shakes forever everytime i put a random password, not getting stuck...

Hope that you understand my issue now.

 

[dianeoforegon]

If all the data that is on the encrypted drive is on your internal drive, then erase the drive and reformat as HFS+. You might have to boot into the Recovery Drive for High Sierra to do this. Make a new backup once the drive is set correctly.

I just helped a user reformat an internal APFS drive back to HFS+ so they could go back to Sierra. In Disk Utility the only option was to select the drive then select Partition. In Partition, there was the option to reformat as HFS+

 

[MrGimper]

I think that you didn't read very clearly what i wrote. I will repeat.

1. Is a backup, how can you say that is not a backup? "doesn't that mean that the "original files" are somewhere else" what?
The original files are on this drive, obviosly again...from where to take files if i said this is the ONLY BACKUP, it means that the files are ONLY ON THIS DRIVE, PERIOD!

2. Again if you read clearly you will understan, the encryption was made on High Sierra with High Sierra setting to encrypt, everybody here already understand that, so WD cannot help me.

3. Again, the password is 100% true, because if i write any password the window shakes after 1 sec everytime i put a random password. When i put the true password it shakes after 5-10 sec, and after disspear the windows completely.
If i put random passwords it shakes forever everytime i put a random password, not getting stuck...

Hope that you understand my issue now.

I think the confusion has arisen because use of the term "backup" implies that this is a copy of data that is stored somewhere else, not the only copy of the data. For example, I have a clone of my internal disk stored on an external disk, and I'd consider this clone to be a backup.

From what I can read from your post, your external encrypted copy is your ONLY copy of the data. As others have said, if you aren't able to mount the drive with the password you are using, then either it's the wrong password or something with your installation is causing to not to recognise the correct password.

 

[mikecwest]

I think that you didn't read very clearly what i wrote. I will repeat.

1. Is a backup, how can you say that is not a backup? "doesn't that mean that the "original files" are somewhere else" what?
The original files are on this drive, obviosly again...from where to take files if i said this is the ONLY BACKUP, it means that the files are ONLY ON THIS DRIVE, PERIOD!

2. Again if you read clearly you will understan, the encryption was made on High Sierra with High Sierra setting to encrypt, everybody here already understand that, so WD cannot help me.

3. Again, the password is 100% true, because if i write any password the window shakes after 1 sec everytime i put a random password. When i put the true password it shakes after 5-10 sec, and after disspear the windows completely.
If i put random passwords it shakes forever everytime i put a random password, not getting stuck...

Hope that you understand my issue now.

I think the confusion has arisen because use of the term "backup" implies that this is a copy of data that is stored somewhere else, not the only copy of the data. For example, I have a clone of my internal disk stored on an external disk, and I'd consider this clone to be a backup.

From what I can read from your post, your external encrypted copy is your ONLY copy of the data. As others have said, if you aren't able to mount the drive with the password you are using, then either it's the wrong password or something with your installation is causing to not to recognise the correct password.

I read that exactly the same way, if it is the "only backup", would imply that there are two copies. The way that is written seems to make it clear. A backup by definition is an extra copy, to have as a backup in case something goes wrong with the original.


That would be like having the four tires on your car and calling the one on the left rear your spare tire, and not having one in your trunk.

Also a note to ExclusiveMac, I can see that you are new here, but new to life. Here, and other user forums on the internet, it helps to have a better attitude when asking people for help. I don't know you, so maybe you did not intend to come across that way. You will really have better luck, not only here, but in life if you present your problems/ideas in a more polite manner.

 

[MrGimper]

I read that exactly the same way, if it is the "only backup", would imply that there are two copies. The way that is written seems to make it clear. A backup by definition is an extra copy, to have as a backup in case something goes wrong with the original.


That would be like having the four tires on your car and calling the one on the left rear your spare tire, and not having one in your trunk.

Also a note to ExclusiveMac, I can see that you are new here, but new to life. Here, and other user forums on the internet, it helps to have a better attitude when asking people for help. I don't know you, so maybe you did not intend to come across that way. You will really have better luck, not only here, but in life if you present your problems/ideas in a more polite manner.

Wise words ... being ****** to people you need help from isn't really the best course of action....

 

[ExclusiveMac]

mikecwest, i was not polite, i was very polite, if you didn't understood the meanings it means that you really don't know how to be a rude person, and i have a lot of experience in life, maybe you are very sensitive, but who cares, nobody insulting, bad words or other "rude" things, i explain to that guy to understand better my issue, you don't know me, i don't know you, so try next time not to judge peoples without reasons and try to be on topic like others from thread, let's look in our garden first, and stay on topic. Also MrGimper look on other forums they have special threads for "wise words" here we talk about other things, try to be helpful or ignore the thread in the future if is not for you.

And talk about topic, i solved the problem by sending the HDD to Apple Store for "repairing, cheking", i give them also the password of the HDD, the problem was a partition issue, that's why the password didn't work, so they create a clone of the HDD, use the password and they manage to save everything from the HDD, aproximately 700GB. After they also format the HDD and copy those 700GB. Of course this issue come also with a cost, and cost me 130$ to fix the issue. Now i will use the HDD with WD Security to have a password, i will never use encryption from macOS. Hope that it helps for others with similar issue.

 

[simonsi]

...and now make a proper backup. By everyone else's definition, a second copy. Then you would have saved $130 which is likely already the cost of the 2nd drive that would have held a 2nd backup copy.

 

[BLUEDOG314]

Sometimes the interfaces Macs use to handle encryption don't work the way they should, for example at log in, I have had an instance where the password that I have always used stopped working and I had to manually decrypt.

With the drive connected, open Terminal and type "diskutil cs list" and paste what it shows. I doubt that the drive is formatted with APFS yet. Post what you get and I may be able to help you get your information provided you do indeed know the correct password.

 

[ExclusiveMac]

...and now make a proper backup. By everyone else's definition, a second copy. Then you would have saved $130 which is likely already the cost of the 2nd drive that would have held a 2nd backup copy.

I already maked the 2nd backup locked with a key safe in my home, i also travel around the world and is so good to thing that you have already home everything that you lost. Yeah i payed a lot of money, but you know, we learn from our mistakes, and for sure many users now i hope that they will make the same.

 

[mikecwest]

mikecwest, i was not polite, i was very polite, if you didn't understood the meanings it means that you really don't know how to be a rude person, and i have a lot of experience in life, maybe you are very sensitive, but who cares, nobody insulting, bad words or other "rude" things, i explain to that guy to understand better my issue, you don't know me, i don't know you, so try next time not to judge peoples without reasons and try to be on topic like others from thread, let's look in our garden first, and stay on topic. Also MrGimper look on other forums they have special threads for "wise words" here we talk about other things, try to be helpful or ignore the thread in the future if is not for you.

And talk about topic, i solved the problem by sending the HDD to Apple Store for "repairing, cheking", i give them also the password of the HDD, the problem was a partition issue, that's why the password didn't work, so they create a clone of the HDD, use the password and they manage to save everything from the HDD, aproximately 700GB. After they also format the HDD and copy those 700GB. Of course this issue come also with a cost, and cost me 130$ to fix the issue. Now i will use the HDD with WD Security to have a password, i will never use encryption from macOS. Hope that it helps for others with similar issue.

Ive been here awhile as has MrGimper, (I have actually been around longer lingering in the dark before actually creating an account) and was just trying to offer you some advice. It might just be language barrier, I see that you are in Japan, so maybe English is not your first language. Your post certainly did come off as being rude, and people here are less likely to offer you help if your post seems rude, whether or not it is intentional. Nobody is "judging you."

I would love to see how the Reddit crowd would have reacted to your post.

 

[killawat]

Ive been here awhile as has MrGimper, (I have actually been around longer lingering in the dark before actually creating an account) and was just trying to offer you some advice. It might just be language barrier, I see that you are in Japan, so maybe English is not your first language. Your post certainly did come off as being rude, and people here are less likely to offer you help if your post seems rude, whether or not it is intentional. Nobody is "judging you."

I would love to see how the Reddit crowd would have reacted to your post.

Lol, I kinda had to back off after that one, I disagree with most everything @Fishrrman says over on the MBP forum but he isn't rude. I wonder if people realize we don't get paid for this? And same, been here over 8 years under a different handle.

Anyway OP glad you got your stuff fixed.