Drive Devices in Disk Utility for Mac
Apple added drive devices to Disk Utility in OS X Mountain Lion. You can use it to erase, partition, and restore drives that you’re having trouble with. Drive devices are also included in Sierra (10.12) and High Sierra (10.13). Let’s look at what they do and how to find them.
First, open Disk Utility in your Applications > Utilities folder. If you don’t see the devices list on the left, click on the button with three dots in it at the bottom of this window. Then choose Show Drive Devices from the pop-up menu.
what is other volumes in container mac
That’s the drives section of Disk Utility. It includes drives that might be connected to your computer, as well as any drives inside USB enclosures attached to your Mac. You can use this section to troubleshoot and repair those hard drives and SSDs. Let’s take a look at how it works.
External drives attached with USB use a slightly different method of locating them in Disk Utility. Drive devices are listed under three menus: External, Volumes, and encfs volumes. You can use the same techniques to manage those devices as you would internal disks.
What are drive devices in Disk Utility for Mac, and what do they do?
“Drive devices in Disk Utility for Mac lists all drives on your system that it can detect. You can use these tools to manage a drive’s partitions and erase a disk,” says Scholle McFarland from the Official Apple Support website.
Apple added some new partition management options in OS X Mountain Lion (10.8) and later, including options to remove and restore partitions. Let’s look at how it works in the latest version of Disk Utility, in Sierra (10.12).
How to create a new drive device in Disk Utility for Mac
Apple’s Disk Utility can create a disk image from a file or folder. It’s a quick and easy way to copy a file to use as a backup, for example. The Disk Utility also lets you encrypt the contents of the disk image with 128-bit AES encryption . That keeps your data safe if your drive gets lost or stolen.
Disk images are the same as drive devices in Disk Utility, but they’re used for different purposes. A disk image might be mounted by other applications. Or you may see one attached to your Mac when it’s running, but not when it’s turned off or restarted. That indicates that the disk image is “disappeared” until you reboot your Mac.
How to format a drive device in Disk Utility for Mac
When you format a drive, you erase any existing data and make it possible to store new information on the drive. Formatting works with all types of storage, including hard drives and solid state disks (SSD). You can format an entire drive or just part of it. The process is the same whether the disk is inside your Mac or connected with a cable.
First, open Disk Utility in your Applications > Utilities folder. Then choose the drive or partition you want to format from the list on the left. If you don’t see it, click on the button with three dots in it at the bottom of this window and select Show All Devices from the pop-up menu.
How to erase a drive device in Disk Utility for Mac
Remember that when you erase a disk, all the information on it is erased. That includes any drives inside USB enclosures attached to your Mac.
When you erase a drive, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8) and later lets you choose whether or not you want to securely erase any free space remaining on the drive after its formatted. This option is available under Erase Free Space.
Conclusion
Apple added some new partition management options in OS X Mountain Lion (10.8) and later, including options to remove and restore partitions. Let’s look at how it works in the latest version of Disk Utility, in Sierra (10.12).