Yeah, that's the nature of the problem I experience. I have a feeling it's not an OS bug, just a poor design decision by Apple.
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External USB Hard Drive spins up/down all the time
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Yeah, that's the nature of the problem I experience. I have a feeling it's not an OS bug, just a poor design decision by Apple.
I have a Mac Studio (Monterey) with a Sandisk G-Drive attached via USB-C. I was experiencing constant drive activity even with the drive attached but unmounted. I moved the USB-C connection from a thunderbolt port to a usb only port and now when the drive is unmounted I no longer get phantom disk activity. I wonder if part of the problem is thunderbolt port polling (for chained devices) and that interfering with the drive controller or USB interface. This issue is frustrating in many different ways - glad to see I'm not alone in experiencing unexpected behavior for external drives on Monterey.
This thread will live on I guess.
So, I have had this problem since I could remember…sleeping Intel MacBook Pro 13-in 2017 (with Blackmagic Design eGPU, 2 WD external drives and 1 housing SSD plugged into it) TO Intel MacBook Pro 16-in i9 2019 with all the same externals TO now my M1 MacBook Pro 14-in on Ventura (and with just the same external drives through a hub, no use for the eGPU). [Note: I also had had 2011 Mac mini with at least one external drive, I don’t remember having this problem.]
Anyway, Still spinning up and down during sleep...
So, I have had this problem since I could remember…sleeping Intel MacBook Pro 13-in 2017 (with Blackmagic Design eGPU, 2 WD external drives and 1 housing SSD plugged into it) TO Intel MacBook Pro 16-in i9 2019 with all the same externals TO now my M1 MacBook Pro 14-in on Ventura (and with just the same external drives through a hub, no use for the eGPU). [Note: I also had had 2011 Mac mini with at least one external drive, I don’t remember having this problem.]
Anyway, Still spinning up and down during sleep...
I think there are a few different issues, but I can only speak to mine where the disks spin up when I do certain things. I finally took note of a specific example that just happened. I was in Safari and I tried to save the page I was viewing to disk. I then had to wait 10 or so seconds while the disks spun up until the save dialog appeared.
I'm having the same issue on Ventura with a LaCie 2 Big that keeps going to sleep every 30 seconds or so, and deleting the Power Management plists seems to help.
In my case I am using Western Digital's EasyStore 2TB Hard drive. I found that the drive seems to disconnect when I use it a lot. I think it gets too hot and disconnects to protect the data.
AND - Spotlight was trying like mad to index the drive. So, in the background the hard drive is spinning madly, getting hot, and dis/re-connecting every 30 seconds or so.
So, I turned off Spotlight: https://www.computerworld.com/artic...ndexing-by-spotlight-for-external-drives.html
AND, I immediately tried to use `rsync` to copy the drive contents to a SanDisk SSD. But, `rsync` was working too hard, causing the drive to disconnect again.
SO: I decided to write my own `rsync.sh` which scanned the WD HD, and copied files, one at a time, and paused for 1 second between file copies. If the drive crashes, the script halts. I can wait for it to come back online and re-run the script. It will pick up where it left off.
This appears to be working. However, I have 750,000 files to copy which means it will take almost 9 days to copy the hard drive to a "safe" location.
I've attached my script here.
NOTE: This is the third Western Digital hard drive that has failed on me. And it is the only one I've been able to safely recover my data from.
LESSON LEARNED: Avoid WESTERN DIGITAL at all costs.
EDIT: I see I left a step off. I don't scan the HD every time I run the script for fear of overworking the drive.
`find "/Volumes/NewGregsDropbox" | cut -c 25-10000 | grep -v '^[.]' > list3.jnk`
Is the command I used to get all the files from the HD and 'cut' off the Volume name and remove 'special' folders.
AND - Spotlight was trying like mad to index the drive. So, in the background the hard drive is spinning madly, getting hot, and dis/re-connecting every 30 seconds or so.
So, I turned off Spotlight: https://www.computerworld.com/artic...ndexing-by-spotlight-for-external-drives.html
AND, I immediately tried to use `rsync` to copy the drive contents to a SanDisk SSD. But, `rsync` was working too hard, causing the drive to disconnect again.
SO: I decided to write my own `rsync.sh` which scanned the WD HD, and copied files, one at a time, and paused for 1 second between file copies. If the drive crashes, the script halts. I can wait for it to come back online and re-run the script. It will pick up where it left off.
This appears to be working. However, I have 750,000 files to copy which means it will take almost 9 days to copy the hard drive to a "safe" location.
I've attached my script here.
NOTE: This is the third Western Digital hard drive that has failed on me. And it is the only one I've been able to safely recover my data from.
LESSON LEARNED: Avoid WESTERN DIGITAL at all costs.
EDIT: I see I left a step off. I don't scan the HD every time I run the script for fear of overworking the drive.
`find "/Volumes/NewGregsDropbox" | cut -c 25-10000 | grep -v '^[.]' > list3.jnk`
Is the command I used to get all the files from the HD and 'cut' off the Volume name and remove 'special' folders.
Last edited:
Following Strangebirds’ post (#77) I was optimistic that a factor in the continuous spin-dow/spin-up that many if us have been reporting might be the use of a USB external on a USB/Thunderbolt port. Accordingly, I have tried moving my OWC enclosure from a USB-C port on my M1 Mini to a USB-A port. Despite my optimism, the drives within it continue to spin up and down if I ever allow my Mini to sleep and then wake it. At least in my case the choice of Mac port does not seem to be a factor.
For what it’s worth, my external drives are as follows:
4.0TB Seagate Barracuda Compute: ST4000DM004-2CV104 Firmware Version: 0001 File System: APFS
8.0TB Seagate Barracuda Compute: ST8000DM004-2CX188 Firmware Version: 0001 File System: HFS+
I also have a 1.0TB NMVe SSD connected to another USB-C port displaying no problems
Now running Ventura 13.0.1
Perhaps other sufferers could report common or contradictory factors in their configuration to help us figure out what might be uncovering the problem (which seems to be an Apple software bug).
For what it’s worth, my external drives are as follows:
4.0TB Seagate Barracuda Compute: ST4000DM004-2CV104 Firmware Version: 0001 File System: APFS
8.0TB Seagate Barracuda Compute: ST8000DM004-2CX188 Firmware Version: 0001 File System: HFS+
I also have a 1.0TB NMVe SSD connected to another USB-C port displaying no problems
Now running Ventura 13.0.1
Perhaps other sufferers could report common or contradictory factors in their configuration to help us figure out what might be uncovering the problem (which seems to be an Apple software bug).
Add me to the list as well. Had Intel Macs for years and never had this issue with the drives spinning down so frequently. I have a 16" MBP with the M1 Pro connected to a CalDigit TS4. I have a WD Elements enclosure and a MyPassport both connected to the TS4 and they both spin down after mere seconds of inactivity. It can't be more than a minute. I have not noticed if it is in any way related to system sleep, because my computer is on 24/7 except for the rare occasion where I undock it. It is in clamshell mode whenever connected to the TS4. The drives are all connected to the TS4, but this issue existed since the first day I got the MBP and had the drives connected to a USB-C hub. I tend to think this is an issue with the Apple Silicon machines since my 2018 Mini was on the same macOS as the MBP when I made the switch and the issue did not exist on the former. Hopefully Apple will take notice of all of us having this issue and get a fix deployed.
I thought it worth mentioning to some of the other posters here that the issue with the drive spinning up at (seemingly) random times has been around for as long as I can remember. It seems like any OS action that triggers a search for files (Spotlight search, Open dialog box, Save dialog box, new Finder window, etc.) spins up inactive drives. I assume the thought process here was to have all drives ready so that you don't experience a delay when browsing for their contents later. That's, obviously, just a guess on my part. But yeah I've been begrudging that for the past 14 or so years since I got my first Intel Mac.
I thought it worth mentioning to some of the other posters here that the issue with the drive spinning up at (seemingly) random times has been around for as long as I can remember. It seems like any OS action that triggers a search for files (Spotlight search, Open dialog box, Save dialog box, new Finder window, etc.) spins up inactive drives. I assume the thought process here was to have all drives ready so that you don't experience a delay when browsing for their contents later. That's, obviously, just a guess on my part. But yeah I've been begrudging that for the past 14 or so years since I got my first Intel Mac.
...and after a few wonderful days without any problems (even after stand by and restarts), we're back to the sleep-wake-sleep rhythm of my LaCie. To make things even better, deleting the PM Plasts doesn't help any longer! I'm going crazy here...
I'm back to using amphetamine (no, the app), but would prefer not to have to rely on an extra tool.
i have the same issue with a new mac Mini M1 with Ventura 13.0.1
Extremely annoying.
The same external Drives worked fine under Catalina, no sleeps/spin-downs as i turned off the sleep option in the controlpanel („put Drives to sleep if possible“ turned off)
I filed a bug report to Apple and hope you all did the same.
The drives work normal after a reboot/power on, but once the mini had been to sleep and is woken again, the option is ignord and even worse, the drives are being spinned down after about 30-40 seconds. This is ridiculous and will kill the drives anytime soon…
Extremely annoying.
The same external Drives worked fine under Catalina, no sleeps/spin-downs as i turned off the sleep option in the controlpanel („put Drives to sleep if possible“ turned off)
I filed a bug report to Apple and hope you all did the same.
The drives work normal after a reboot/power on, but once the mini had been to sleep and is woken again, the option is ignord and even worse, the drives are being spinned down after about 30-40 seconds. This is ridiculous and will kill the drives anytime soon…
Has this issue been fixed with the release of 13.1? Haven't yet had a chance to test it myself, but maybe someone else here did.
I just tested it with 13.1 : The bug is still there
I reported the bug as Web-Feedback prior to 13.1, is there a better way to report the bug to Apple? More official with a "trackingnumber" ?
Type feedback assistant into SpotlightI just tested it with 13.1 : The bug is still there
I reported the bug as Web-Feedback prior to 13.1, is there a better way to report the bug to Apple? More official with a "trackingnumber" ?
I turned off all Spotlight activity to external drives. That has helped a lot.
I wrote a script and copied all my files to SSD. In my case the WD drive is overheating. I removed it from its case and have an external fan blowing on it to keep it cool. Once everything is xferred I'll reach out to WD for a replacement / refund.
But I'll never use WD or hard drives again. Only SSD. And, I'm backing everything up to S3 buckets in AWS cloud.
I wrote a script and copied all my files to SSD. In my case the WD drive is overheating. I removed it from its case and have an external fan blowing on it to keep it cool. Once everything is xferred I'll reach out to WD for a replacement / refund.
But I'll never use WD or hard drives again. Only SSD. And, I'm backing everything up to S3 buckets in AWS cloud.
Another annoyed user here with a MacStudio.
Open or save dialogs hang while waiting for external drive to spin up (even when internal SSD is the target). Same issue often occurs when I simply click on an editing timeline in Adobe Premiere. 10-15 seconds of Beachball / Hanging system / No interaction with any part of the OS until the drives spin up. This interrupts my working flow state about 30 times per day (sometimes more, sometimes less). It's infuriating.
The same drives did not have this issue on a 2019 Intel MBP, it has only been on the MacStudio M1 Ultra. I now rely on using the Amphetamine App to keep the drives running constantly.
I've connected with every cable combination available.
USB MicroB -> USB-A on Mac.
USB-C straight to Mac.
Thunderbolt straight to Mac.
USB Micro-B -> USB-A on Thunderbolt Dock. TB dock to Mac.
The problem persists on the MacStuio, yet has never happened on the Intel MBP (which is now gone, so I can no longer compare, or use the laptop as a source of respite).
This is madness. It's killing my productivity, and hurting my media drives.
I can't believe this issue has been going on for over a year and it's not fixed.
I wouldn't be surprised if a class action develops, given the potential damage it can cause.
Open or save dialogs hang while waiting for external drive to spin up (even when internal SSD is the target). Same issue often occurs when I simply click on an editing timeline in Adobe Premiere. 10-15 seconds of Beachball / Hanging system / No interaction with any part of the OS until the drives spin up. This interrupts my working flow state about 30 times per day (sometimes more, sometimes less). It's infuriating.
The same drives did not have this issue on a 2019 Intel MBP, it has only been on the MacStudio M1 Ultra. I now rely on using the Amphetamine App to keep the drives running constantly.
I've connected with every cable combination available.
USB MicroB -> USB-A on Mac.
USB-C straight to Mac.
Thunderbolt straight to Mac.
USB Micro-B -> USB-A on Thunderbolt Dock. TB dock to Mac.
The problem persists on the MacStuio, yet has never happened on the Intel MBP (which is now gone, so I can no longer compare, or use the laptop as a source of respite).
This is madness. It's killing my productivity, and hurting my media drives.
I can't believe this issue has been going on for over a year and it's not fixed.
I wouldn't be surprised if a class action develops, given the potential damage it can cause.
I agree that this is madness. Have you tried the solution of never allowing your MacStudio to sleep? On my MacMini that completely avoids the behavior you described. Of course, now you have a different problem but instead of putting the Mac to sleep you can shut it down. Now you'll just get mad once a day instead 30 times! If you don't need the external drives you can manually spin them up and down, for example with Disc Utility.
Full disclosure: despite my best efforts, my Mac spontaneously goes to sleep maybe twice a month. If it does, I immediately shut it down and then restart. As I reported previously, it has to be a shut down, restart does not fix the problem.
Full disclosure: despite my best efforts, my Mac spontaneously goes to sleep maybe twice a month. If it does, I immediately shut it down and then restart. As I reported previously, it has to be a shut down, restart does not fix the problem.
Things have gotten worse for me since updating to Ventura (maybe a few weeks ago). One thing I notice is that I get hangs in Disk Utility now. I have 3 disks with 3 encrypted volumes on each. The hangs can happen any time. It happened just before I decided to make this post. Disk Utility had already been running for at least 30 minutes and I just brought it to the foreground with cmd-tab. Then the mouse beach-balled for 3 seconds when I hovered over the app.
Running into the same problem with my OWC 36TB Raid drive… running Ventura 13.1 on a Mac Studio. Never had this problem before. OWC Raid Disk Spinning Down - watch the video there. Tried everything and nothing works.
Have this same problem with a OWC Thunderbay 4 (thunderbolt 2) with 4 drives. Only thing that fixed it is using Amphetamine. I haven't tried Ventura since it has too many other bugs.
2 different Mac Pro 6.1: no problem
Mac Pro 7.1: no problem
Mac Studio Ultra: drives spin down every 30 seconds and then back up into infinity.
2 different Mac Pro 6.1: no problem
Mac Pro 7.1: no problem
Mac Studio Ultra: drives spin down every 30 seconds and then back up into infinity.
Adding my name to the list. Apple support is blissfully unaware of this issue.
Are M1 chips simply incompatible with HDD drives? Has anyone anywhere gotten an external HDD drive to work PROPERLY with their M1 computer? I've resorted to restarting my computer several times a day, but it just seems crazy to me that this is as good as it gets.
Are M1 chips simply incompatible with HDD drives? Has anyone anywhere gotten an external HDD drive to work PROPERLY with their M1 computer? I've resorted to restarting my computer several times a day, but it just seems crazy to me that this is as good as it gets.
I've got an Intel Mac. IIRC the problem started for me with one of the Monterey updates.