5 Ways to Fix Why Mac Cannot Paste to External Drive [macOS]

Hey there, tech lovers! Has your Mac been acting a bit finicky with your external drive?

Wondering why “Mac OS cannot paste to an external drive?” Well, you’re not alone. This problem is more common than you’d think.

Did you know? The issue usually stems from factors like your drive’s format, permissions, or the drive’s health. But don’t worry; we’re going to dive in deep and find some solutions together.

Let’s get to the bottom of “Why can I not transfer files from a Mac to an external hard drive?“

Understanding Mac’s External Drive Paste Problem

Before we get to solving the problem, let’s understand it first. When you connect an external drive to your Mac, you expect it to work like a charm, right?

After all, you’re just trying to copy and paste some files. It should be as easy as making a sandwich, no?

Let’s break this down. This issue usually pops up due to one or more of the following reasons:

The drive’s format: Not every drive format is fully compatible with MacOS. Sometimes, the Mac can only read the drive but not write to it.

Permissions: The Mac may be prevented from writing to the drive due to certain permission settings.

Drive health: If your drive is damaged or corrupted, it might not accept new data.

How To Fix Why macOS Cannot Paste To External Drive

Here are the three (3) different ways you can use;

Method 1: Checking Your Drive’s Format

Alright, first things first. Let’s see if the format of your drive is causing the “Mac OS cannot paste to external drive” problem. This might be your “Eureka!” moment.

Think of your drive’s format like the language it speaks. If your Mac and your drive don’t speak the same language, they’re not going to understand each other.

Some formats, like NTFS, are like Latin to your Mac—it can read it, but can’t write to it.

Here’s what you gotta do:

Connect your external drive to your Mac.
Go to Finder, find your drive in the Devices section, and right-click on it.
Choose Get Info.
Look for Format in the window that pops up.

Suppose the format of your drive is NTFS; then bingo! We’ve found the root of the issue. The solution then lies in changing the format to something your Mac can fully interact with, like exFAT.

But we’ll cover that bit later in “Method 5: Reformatting the Drive.”

If you’re looking for a way to make your Mac and an NTFS formatted drive to speak the same language without reformatting the drive, a couple of tools could come in handy.

Here are my top two picks:

Paragon NTFS for Mac: This is a popular choice amongst Mac users. It lets your Mac easily read from and write to NTFS formatted drives. It’s pretty easy to set up and works smoothly once installed. Remember, it’s not free, but they offer a 10-day free trial.

Tuxera NTFS for Mac: This is another solid option. Tuxera allows full read-write compatibility with NTFS-formatted drives on your Mac. It’s reliable, safe, and easy to use. Like Paragon, Tuxera isn’t free but offers a 15-day free trial.

Before installing these or any software, make sure to check that it’s compatible with your current MacOS version. You wouldn’t want to install something that’s incompatible with your system.

Now, armed with these tools, you’ll be able to break the language barrier between your Mac and your NTFS drive in no time. Give it a shot and see how it works for you!

Method 2: Fixing Permissions

Okay, we’ve checked the drive’s format. If that’s not the issue, it’s time to consider another suspect: Permissions.

Permissions are like your Mac’s rules of engagement with the external drive. So, let’s ask the burning question, “How do you unlock permissions on an external hard drive on a Mac?”

Here’s your step-by-step guide to doing just that:

Connect your external drive to your Mac.
Open Finder and locate your drive in the Devices section.
Right-click on your drive and select Get Info.
In the info window, find Sharing & Permissions at the bottom. You might need to click on the tiny triangle to expand this section.
Check if you have the privilege to Read & Write under your username. If not, click on the lock icon at the bottom right to make changes. You’ll need your admin password here.

Remember the guide on our blog, “How to create an admin account on Mac without an admin”? This could come in handy right about now.

Method 3: Using Disk Utility to Repair the Drive

Still with me? Alright, let’s kick things up a notch. It’s time to introduce Disk Utility into the mix. Disk Utility is like your Mac’s personal toolbox.

It can help you check the health of your drive and fix minor issues. “How do I fix my external hard drive not copying files?” you ask. Let’s find out!

Here’s what you need to do:

Connect your external drive to your Mac.
Open Disk Utility. You can do this by pressing Command + Space, typing in “Disk Utility” and hitting Enter.
In the left panel of the Disk Utility window, find your external drive and select it.
Click on First Aid at the top of the window.
Click on Run.

Disk Utility will now check your drive for any issues and try to repair them. It’s kind of like running a diagnostics test on your car and fixing any minor issues it finds.

For more detailed steps, you can also check out our blog post on cleaning up your Mac using terminal commands. This guide could be a good reference, even though we’re not directly using terminal commands here.

If Disk Utility finds and fixes some issues, try copying your files again. If it doesn’t find any issues or fixing them doesn’t solve your problem, it’s time to move on to the next method.

Method 4: Using Terminal Commands

Whoa, you’re still here? You’re a true tech warrior! Now let’s get a bit technical and bring out the big guns: Terminal commands.

Before we start, a small caveat. Be careful while using the Terminal. It’s a powerful tool, and incorrect use could cause issues with your Mac.

Okay, got your game face on? Here’s how to tackle the issue:

Connect your external drive to your Mac.
Open Terminal. You can do this by pressing Command + Space, typing in “Terminal,” and hitting Enter.
In the Terminal window, type in: diskutil list and press Enter.
From the list that pops up, find your external drive. You’re looking for something like /dev/disk2s1, but the exact name will depend on your system and the number of drives connected.
Once you’ve found your drive, type in sudo chflags -R nouchg /Volumes/YourDriveName, replacing “YourDriveName” with the name of your external drive, and hit Enter.
You’ll be asked for your password. Type it in (it won’t show up on the screen for security reasons) and hit Enter.

What did we just do? This command removes any user-imposed restrictions on the drive. Think of it as lifting a curfew on your Mac’s interactions with the drive.

Method 5: Reformatting the Drive

Alright, we’re down to our final option here. It’s a bit of a nuclear solution, but sometimes, it’s what’s needed to get things working again.

We’re talking about reformatting your drive. This is kind of like wiping the slate clean and starting from scratch.

Remember though, reformatting will erase everything on your drive, so make sure you’ve got everything important backed up somewhere else.

So, how do you reformat your drive? Here’s how:

Connect your external drive to your Mac.
Open Disk Utility. You can do this by pressing Command + Space, typing in “Disk Utility,” and hitting Enter.
In the left panel of the Disk Utility window, find your external drive and select it.
Click on Erase at the top of the window.
In the window that pops up, choose a format that’s fully compatible with MacOS, like exFAT or Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
Click on Erase.

And voila! Your drive is now reformatted and should be fully compatible with your Mac. It’s like moving into a brand new house—everything is clean and ready for you to start afresh.

Conclusion

Whew! We’ve been on quite a journey, haven’t we? Thanks for sticking with me as we went through this deep dive into fixing the “Mac OS cannot paste to external drive” issue.

It’s not a fun problem to have, but hopefully, one of the methods we explored will have helped you sort things out.

Just like in life, troubleshooting tech issues often requires a bit of detective work and a lot of patience. But remember, every problem has a solution, even if it’s not immediately apparent.

And if all else fails, there’s always the extreme option of reformatting.

And hey, look at you now, armed with newfound knowledge about drive formats, permissions, Disk Utility, Terminal commands, and reformatting. You’re well on your way to becoming a Mac expert!

I hope this guide was helpful and your external drive and Mac are now playing nice together. If you’re still facing problems or have more questions, please comment below or contact us. We’re always here to help.