Unable To Copy Files Over WiFi Network - Big Sur M1 Hangs Every Time

[maclogon789]

Hi,

Trying to copy files (in directories) from a networked Windows 10 computer over WiFi onto a 11.2.1 Macbook Air M1. Every time it hangs, sometimes after 3/6GB or 7/8GB or even 1.5/2GB. Last example is about 50 40MB files.

Computer basically just hangs mid-copy and the process cannot be stopped - requires a force restart.

Apple support has run hardware diagnostics remotely and has been unable to identify a problem. They have escalated but will take a few days.

Has anyone experienced this and have any solutions? It would be much appreciated.

Thank you

 

[bernuli]

Hi,

Trying to copy files (in directories) from a networked Windows 10 computer over WiFi onto a 11.2.1 Macbook Air M1. Every time it hangs, sometimes after 3/6GB or 7/8GB or even 1.5/2GB. Last example is about 50 40MB files.

Computer basically just hangs mid-copy and the process cannot be stopped - requires a force restart.

Apple support has run hardware diagnostics remotely and has been unable to identify a problem. They have escalated but will take a few days.

Has anyone experienced this and have any solutions? It would be much appreciated.

Thank you

When the copy hangs, can you still ping the Windows 10 machine?

Suggestions:

1) Hardwire ethernet. Although I have had failure issues with various USB-C hubs with ethernet, this model has been rock solid for me:

j5create JCH474 USB 3.0 (Gen 1 Type-C) Gigabit Ethernet & HUB Multi Adapter - Micro Center

Get it now! j5create's USB Type-C Gigabit Ethernet & HUB Multi Adapter JCH474 provides extra connectivity for your computer with 5 Gbps faster transfer speed. These pocket-sized multi-adapters allow you to add additional USB computer accessories and Gigabit LAN through your USB Type-C port.

www.microcenter.com

2) I have seen some problems with Finder copies to/from SMB network volumes with 10.15 in the past. Better for me lately but I still think recent Finder might have some bugs.

3) The Windows 10 machine isn't going to sleep is it?

4) Recommend using cp or rsync if you are having ongoing issues. That way if the copy fails, you will still have at least some of the files. And with rsync you can pick up where you left off. rsync command would look like:

rsync -a --stats --progress /Volumes/Win10NetworkShare/directoryYouWantToCopy ~/Desktop

4a) Don't put a trailing forward slash on the directory you are copying that way rsync will create the parent folder as you might expect).

4b) If there are spaces in the path you are trying to copy you will need to escape with "\ ". This will be done for you if you drag the directory you are trying to copy into the Terminal window.

 

[HDFan]

1. How is the Windows computer networked? How is it accessed on the Mac?
2. How are you doing the copy?

There is another thread that mentions large file transfers failing on an M1 (MacBook Pro):

Wifi issues? M1 Macbook Pro

Just updated to beta 3 from beta 2. First time I was able to download OS update without any issues. Beta 3 brings a new wifi driver from 19 February (beta 2: driver form 3 February).

forums.macrumors.com

 

[maclogon789]

Hi Bernuli and HDFan,

Thank you for your suggestions.

I also upgraded Big Sur from 11.2.1 to 11.2.3 but the problem is still occurring. The PC is a Surface Pro 7 on Win 10 and the 2 computers are on the same home WiFi network and when I use Finder > Go I can connect to the Surface IP address and access files.

I am using Finder and initially was selecting a parent directory (e.g. Documents) of around 5GB and using Copy then Paste into the Mac Documents folder but it always hangs around 1/2 to 3/4 of the way into the copy process.

Even trying to copy the Video directory with a couple of dozen files it hung at 2.89 out of 2.90 GB with 5 seconds to go!

The reason I am not using Migration Assistant is that it resets all document modification dates to that of the transfer and I need to preserve them.

The Surface is not asleep and works normally but after the Mac freezes it becomes totally unresponsive - Force Quit does not resolve the freezing and the only solution is to hold the power button and restart.

Sometimes there is no error but on one occasion I got "The operation can't be completed because one or more required items can't be found Error Code -43)

Thanks again!

 

[maclogon789]

Also to add that I have not had any WiFi issues - the only issue is when attempting this copy.

 

[bernuli]

Hi Bernuli and HDFan,

Thank you for your suggestions.

I also upgraded Big Sur from 11.2.1 to 11.2.3 but the problem is still occurring. The PC is a Surface Pro 7 on Win 10 and the 2 computers are on the same home WiFi network and when I use Finder > Go I can connect to the Surface IP address and access files.

I am using Finder and initially was selecting a parent directory (e.g. Documents) of around 5GB and using Copy then Paste into the Mac Documents folder but it always hangs around 1/2 to 3/4 of the way into the copy process.

Even trying to copy the Video directory with a couple of dozen files it hung at 2.89 out of 2.90 GB with 5 seconds to go!

The reason I am not using Migration Assistant is that it resets all document modification dates to that of the transfer and I need to preserve them.

The Surface is not asleep and works normally but after the Mac freezes it becomes totally unresponsive - Force Quit does not resolve the freezing and the only solution is to hold the power button and restart.

Sometimes there is no error but on one occasion I got "The operation can't be completed because one or more required items can't be found Error Code -43)

Thanks again!

When I/O functions go bad it can hang the machine and take a while to time out and free up.

Some more troubleshooting steps:

When it hangs, could you see if the light on caps lock key cycles on and off when you press it.

Also, after it hangs, you could try powering down your wifi router completely for 10 or more minutes and see if the Mac comes back, or shutdown the surface and wait 10+ min. If it is hanging on the copy, that might free it up and give us some insight.

 

[maclogon789]

When I/O functions go bad it can hang the machine and take a while to time out and free up.

Some more troubleshooting steps:

When it hangs, could you see if the light on caps lock key cycles on and off when you press it.

Also, after it hangs, you could try powering down your wifi router completely for 10 or more minutes and see if the Mac comes back, or shutdown the surface and wait 10+ min. If it is hanging on the copy, that might free it up and give us some insight.

Thanks Bernuli - I appreciate your help (and of all those who contribute)

I realized after I posted that I was ambiguous - the Surface does not hang - it is fine. It is only the Mac that freezes.

Just tried copying the Video directory again. The Mac hung at about 500MB out of 2GB download. It copied 4 JPGs and appeared to stop whilst copying a 600MB .mov file as that did not complete copying.

Toggling Caps Lock worked - green light on and off

Error messages:
- Server connection interrupted (I noticed The connection to the Surface disappeared from the Finder window. Note there was nothing untoward that happened to the Surface - it did not lose it's internet connection during the process.)

Another pop up window: The operation could not be completed because an unexpected error occurred - error code 100060

This time the Mac came back to life rather than freezing and is working.

Hope that helps with your diagnostics! Level II Apple support was on the phone with me for 3 hours and got nowhere!

Best regards

 

[maclogon789]

I tried an experiment - connected to the PC but did not try to copy a file. During this process I did making an amusing though unrelated observation - if I delete a file on the PC it is removed immediately from the file list on Finder but takes much longer to be removed from the PC itself!

At some point I ended up getting the message on the Mac "Server connection interrupted"

I have noticed other reports of this in similar circumstances over wired as well as wireless connections.

Network Connectivity After Accessing Othe… - Apple Community

discussions.apple.com

Big Sur Network Connectivity Issue - Apple Community

discussions.apple.com