My external HDD is loaded on my desktop but does not appear in Startup Disks. I have changed the Security Settings on the Mac to see if that would allow it to appear but it does not.
Any help will be appreciated. I have the iMac M3.
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
iMac 24″, macOS 15.3
Dedo wrote:
It’s to have a saved., relatively current, copy of the internal HDD, located on an external HDD, from which to reload, reinstall on a new internal HDD, should it be necessary.
Did you read the link provided by Owl-53?
This link, by the CCC vendor whose software you are using to make your "clone," indicates that booting from an external has become problematic with the most recent versions of MacOS. There are similar warnings by SuperDuper, another "clone" software tool provider. Also, both CCC and SuperDuper warn that if you want to keep the external drive MacOS current, you should not apply MacOS updates to their "clones," you need to erase that entire drive and reclone the entire internal drive again.
In short, the external bootable clone is not useful in the way that it used to be. Having a full and complete backup of your files is important, but the external bootable clone cannot be used anymore to restore the MacOS and all files to the internal. Instead, the process that Apple requires now is to boot into recovery, erase the internal drive, reinstall the MacOS from Recovery, and then migrate files and user accounts from a backup (which can be that external clone). In other words, for file recovery, the external "clone" need not have a current or working bootable MacOS, it just needs to have a complete backup of all user files. The MacOS is reinstalled from the Apple servers in Recovery.
Dedo wrote:
It’s to have a saved., relatively current, copy of the internal HDD, located on an external HDD, from which to reload, reinstall on a new internal HDD, should it be necessary.
Did you read the link provided by Owl-53?
This link, by the CCC vendor whose software you are using to make your "clone," indicates that booting from an external has become problematic with the most recent versions of MacOS. There are similar warnings by SuperDuper, another "clone" software tool provider. Also, both CCC and SuperDuper warn that if you want to keep the external drive MacOS current, you should not apply MacOS updates to their "clones," you need to erase that entire drive and reclone the entire internal drive again.
In short, the external bootable clone is not useful in the way that it used to be. Having a full and complete backup of your files is important, but the external bootable clone cannot be used anymore to restore the MacOS and all files to the internal. Instead, the process that Apple requires now is to boot into recovery, erase the internal drive, reinstall the MacOS from Recovery, and then migrate files and user accounts from a backup (which can be that external clone). In other words, for file recovery, the external "clone" need not have a current or working bootable MacOS, it just needs to have a complete backup of all user files. The MacOS is reinstalled from the Apple servers in Recovery.
Do you mean a bootable macOS USB installer? If so, it won't appear in the Startup Disk System Settings since you will only need to use it one time. Since you are using an M3 iMac you will access it by booting to the Startup Options screen by holding the power button until it says "Loading startup options....".
If the external is something else, then what OS is supposed to boot on that external drive?
How did you create that external boot drive?
And what exact Mac computer did you create that external boot drive?
FWIW in the past bootable external volumes did not always appear in the Settings > Startup Disk but worked OK via Option-boot anyway. I always use Option-boot unless for some reason I want to more permanently set an external volume as the default boot.
I have the iMac M3.
…from which to reload, reinstall on a new internal HDD, should it be necessary.
With Apple Silicon, if the internal drive fails, you cannot boot from anything. The old ways are dead. Stop wasting time creating a bootable clone. If you want some sort of recovery to use offline (but internal drive is still functional), create a bootable USB installer.
This external drive has exactly what on it ?
Normally, a disk you what as part of your Startup Disk array, would the the Disk You have the Operating System loaded onto
Have to installed the Operating System onto the External Drive ?
If Yes, do you what to run the computer from the External Drive ?
It is a Seagate External HDD that is a bootable copy of my M3 and continually updated via CCC. I have tried booting to Startup Options but still doesn’t appear.
Since it is just a copy of the three volumes I have my desktop partitioned to, I guess I will just erase and reinstall and see if it shows up that way. Otherwise, I wonder if the External HDD is failing?
Dedo wrote:
My external HDD is loaded on my desktop but does not appear in Startup Disks.
Hello Dedo 🙂
Forgive me if this is too simple a point - is your external drive properly plugged in to your computer?
Have you tried with a different connection lead?
Please advise.
Performing a " Clone " of the Internal Drive via Carbon Copy Cloner
FYI - if the intent for the Legacy Clone was to use the Clone, in the event that the Internal Drive were to fail
Forget that idea
On any Apple Silicon computer when the Internal Drive should fail which I have yet to see
Not even a working and tested External Clone is going to " save the bacon " per se
To quote @HWTech 👍
Bootable Clone >> " Since you are using an M3 iMac you will access it by booting to the Startup Options screen by holding the power button until it says "Loading startup options....".
ALL good questions put forth by all those appearing in your question.
The only issue currently, is If you have received a Notification of these posting ?
To my fellow contributors
I do not know about you all but I have not received notifications in the macOS Forums since about Monday of this week
Obliged to keep 1 tab in a Working tab and second in My Subscriptions
its a bootable total backup of my hdd. It appears on my desktop and in Disk Utility but not as an option in Startup Disk. It has been there and I booted from it but now it isn’t showing up. I changed security settings to allow for it. I probably s o have done that because it wasn’t necessary before. It normally was just there.
It is a Seagate External HDD that is a bootable copy of my M3 and continually updated via CCC. I have tried booting to Startup Options but still doesn’t appear.
Since it is just a copy of the three volumes I have my desktop partitioned to, I guess I will just erase and reinstall and see if it shows up that way. Otherwise, I wonder if the External HDD is failing?
I want it as a backup if I should have a problem with my desktop HDD and need an external bootable duplicate.
Thank you, Davis, with computers there is no such thing as too simple. Sometimes, that is what it is. But this time, no, I did check that and changed ports, rebooted, checked Finder settings to make sure all the boxes were checked. ‘‘Tis a puzzlement.
I am away from home overnight but when I get back home, I’ll erase and start over with the external HDD and see if that makes a difference. If not, it’s the Seagate!
Dedo wrote:
It’s to have a saved., relatively current, copy of the internal HDD, located on an external HDD, from which to reload, reinstall on a new internal HDD, should it be necessary.
To reiterate
On any Apple Silicon Computer " iMac M3 " when the Internal Drive should fail , which I have yet to see
Not even a working and tested External Clone is going to " save the bacon " per se
To be more blunt
You can Not Replace the Internal Drive with a New Internal Drive
Why you ask
It, the Internal Drive, is Soldered to the Logicboard
So the idea put forth " reinstall on a new internal HDD," is dead - full stop
Dedo wrote:
It’s to have a saved., relatively current, copy of the internal HDD, located on an external HDD, from which to reload, reinstall on a new internal HDD, should it be necessary.
I've done the same! 🙂
What did you mean by "it's the Seagate"?
Why is my External HDD not showing up on Startup Disk?
