Space missing from SSD

[jjb410]

I had a bootcamp partition that I must of removed incorrectly and now I'm missing about 80GB from my Hard Drive. Any suggestions on how to get the space back?

I went to merge the disk in Terminal, but was prompted to remove it. I thought the space would get reallocated, but it didnt.

 

[Fishrrman]

Sometimes the only "surefire" way to do this is to:
1. Backup the drive
2. Erase the drive back to HFS+
3. Restore from the backup.

Takes some time but guaranteed to do the job.

 

[jjb410]

Sometimes the only "surefire" way to do this is to:
1. Backup the drive
2. Erase the drive back to HFS+
3. Restore from the backup.

Takes some time but guaranteed to do the job.

I tried this and still seem to have 80GB missing. It's as though the partition is still there and I only erased part of the hard drive before the restore.

 

[Fishrrman]

"I tried this and still seem to have 80GB missing. It's as though the partition is still there and I only erased part of the hard drive before the restore."

Did you select the right icon in Disk Utility?
You want the icon that represents the "physical disk" itself.

 

[jjb410]

"I tried this and still seem to have 80GB missing. It's as though the partition is still there and I only erased part of the hard drive before the restore."

Did you select the right icon in Disk Utility?
You want the icon that represents the "physical disk" itself.

OMG, thanks... I believe I probably missed that. I'll try another backup/restore with this in mind.

 

[jjb410]

Hmmm now I get this error. Any suggestions?

 

[kohlson]

You've been saved. Disk Utility wouldn't let you erase your system disk.

 

[jjb410]

You've been saved. Disk Utility wouldn't let you erase your system disk.

??? But I want to wipe it

 

[kohlson]

If you want to erase your system partition (Macintosh HD) then boot into the recovery partition. If you want to completely reformat your drive (and I would caution you on that before proceeding) then boot into another drive.

 

[jjb410]

What would your hesitation be? I erased the system partition and still am missing 80gb

 

[DeltaMac]

You are only erasing the system partition, which would not include the missing space. You need to erase the entire device now.
Boot to your Internet Recovery system (Restart, holding Option-Command-R) You should see the spinning globe, indicating that you are booting to Apple's server. If you see only the Apple icon, then you are not booting to internet recovery, so you will want to try that again.
In Internet Recovery, again go to Disk Utility, and erase the device (not just your named partition. That should clear the storage, and reset your missing space. Then, you can reinstall macOS, and restore whatever files and apps that you need from your backup.

 

[jjb410]

You are only erasing the system partition, which would not include the missing space. You need to erase the entire device now.
Boot to your Internet Recovery system (Restart, holding Option-Command-R) You should see the spinning globe, indicating that you are booting to Apple's server. If you see only the Apple icon, then you are not booting to internet recovery, so you will want to try that again.
In Internet Recovery, again go to Disk Utility, and erase the device (not just your named partition. That should clear the storage, and reset your missing space. Then, you can reinstall macOS, and restore whatever files and apps that you need from your backup.

Thank you! I still get the same
Error. “Couldn’t open device”.

Maybe my Format and scheme settings are wrong?

 

[DeltaMac]

The

Thank you! I still get the same
Error. “Couldn’t open device”.

Maybe my Format and scheme settings are wrong?

The answer might depend on what your settings actually are...
Can you share those with us?

First, try the task again:
Shut down (so your iMac is completely off)
Unplug the power cord (disconnecting ALL cords from the back for this won't hurt anything 0
Wait 15 or 20 seconds, then plug cord(s) back in.
Perform an NVRAM reset during this boot, then Start up to your Recovery partition again.
Try the erase again. I expect it will work this time
Use the Mac OS Extended (Journaled). When you reinstall High Sierra, your SSD will be converted to APFS during the install.

 

[jjb410]

Still failing after powering down, unplugging, resetting nvram. When going to erase the SSD I chose Mac OS extended and guid partition map for scheme

 

[DeltaMac]

hmm...

An NVRAM reset (PRAM reset) usually clears up that kind of issue when I see it.
Make sure that you and I are on the same page: Restart, holding Command-Option-p-r
You should hear the boot chime sound.
Keep holding the same 4 keys until you hear the boot chime 3 more times, then immediately change to Option-Command-r.
Does this boot to internet recovery (the spinning globe)?
If not, try again.
If Yes, go to Disk Utility, and try the erase again.
Do you still get exactly the SAME message?

When this happens, I usually grab my external drive, which has multiple systems installed, boot up to something older, like Yosemite, use THAT Disk Utility. The partition tab works better for me than from newer versions of the Disk Utility.

I don't know which iMac you have?

 

[jjb410]

hmm...

An NVRAM reset (PRAM reset) usually clears up that kind of issue when I see it.
Make sure that you and I are on the same page: Restart, holding Command-Option-p-r
You should hear the boot chime sound.
Keep holding the same 4 keys until you hear the boot chime 3 more times, then immediately change to Option-Command-r.
Does this boot to internet recovery (the spinning globe)?
If not, try again.
If Yes, go to Disk Utility, and try the erase again.
Do you still get exactly the SAME message?

When this happens, I usually grab my external drive, which has multiple systems installed, boot up to something older, like Yosemite, use THAT Disk Utility. The partition tab works better for me than from newer versions of the Disk Utility.

I don't know which iMac you have?

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014)

Wow, so I tried the NVRAM (4 chimes total) and still get the "couldnt open device" error.

I even tried booting from an external usb with high sierra on it and same error in disk utility.

Totally stumped.

 

[DeltaMac]

iMac (Retina 5K, 27-inch, Late 2014)

Wow, so I tried the NVRAM (4 chimes total) and still get the "couldnt open device" error.

I even tried booting from an external usb with high sierra on it and same error in disk utility.

Totally stumped.

I would expect the same error also when booting to another High Sierra system.
I would try an older system. Your iMac originally shipped with Yosemite.
This would be a good time to have that old system, which will NOT recognize your APFS formatted drive as a usable volume, but the Yosemite Disk Utility should not be blocked from erasing the drive. Worth a try...!

 

[jjb410]

I would expect the same error also when booting to another High Sierra system.
I would try an older system. Your iMac originally shipped with Yosemite.
This would be a good time to have that old system, which will NOT recognize your APFS formatted drive as a usable volume, but the Yosemite Disk Utility should not be blocked from erasing the drive. Worth a try...!

You were totally right! Was able to boot from Sierra and wipe it. All is good and I've got my space back. Thank you so much for you're help!