That’s a tough situation, and it’s more common than you’d think—especially when revisiting older Logic Pro projects after system updates or hardware changes. Apple macOS updates, especially major ones, can unintentionally reset or alter file permissions and access controls, which can wreak havoc on apps like Logic Pro that rely on precise file paths and media access. The OSStatus Error -108 typically points to a file access or permissions issue, not necessarily a total loss of data. Here’s a breakdown of what might be going on and how to troubleshoot:
What the Error Means
- Error -108 is a macOS system error that usually indicates a memory allocation failure or file access problem.
- In Logic Pro, it often appears when the app can’t locate or load audio files, even if the regions are still visible in the timeline.
Common Causes
File Path Changes
If the project was moved, renamed, or stored on an external drive that’s no longer mounted, Logic may not know where to find the audio files.
Permissions Issue
macOS updates can reset folder permissions. If Logic doesn’t have access to the folder where the audio files are stored, they’ll appear greyed out.
Corrupted Project or Audio Files
If the files show a creation date like January 1, 1970, that’s a sign of metadata corruption—possibly from a failed backup or disk error.
Outdated Templates or Legacy Projects
Projects created in older versions of Logic (e.g., LP9) may behave unpredictably in newer versions like LPX or Logic Pro 11.
🛠️ Steps to Try
Move the Project Folder
Try relocating the entire Logic project folder to your Desktop or Documents folder. Some users found that Logic could access files properly from these locations.
Repair Permissions
- Right-click the project folder → Get Info → Check “Sharing & Permissions”
- Make sure your user account has Read & Write access.
- Use Disk Utility to run First Aid on the drive.
Relink Audio Files Manually
- Open the Project Audio Bin (⌘9)
- Try to import the greyed-out files manually from the Audio Files folder.
- If they’re unresponsive, try converting them to a different format (e.g., WAV to AIFF) and re importing.
Check Backups or Time Machine
If you’ve used Time Machine or iCloud, you might be able to restore an earlier version of the project or the missing audio files.
Try Opening from External Drive
One user noted that opening the same project from a backup drive worked fine, while the internal drive version failed.
Final Thoughts
You may not be out of luck yet. The regions loading without audio suggests Logic still recognizes the project structure—it just can’t access the media. If the files are still physically present (even greyed out), there’s a chance they can be recovered or relinked.
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Regarding the 1970 date example:
files do normally have creation and modification dates. But when you see a file dated January 1, 1970, especially in a digital audio or project context, it's usually not a nostalgic throwback—it's a red flag
That date marks the beginning of Unix Epoch Time, which is the zero point for timekeeping in many operating systems and programming languages. In technical terms:
- Unix time counts seconds from 00:00:00 UTC on January 1, 1970.
- If a system or application encounters a missing, corrupted, or uninitialized timestamp, it may default to zero—which translates to that date.
