How to scan a drive for errors in macOS

Updated: 02/04/2024 by Computer Hope
macOS logo

On Apple desktop and laptop computers, there is a disk utility called First Aid. This feature can scan for and repair errors on storage devices such as an HDD (hard disk drive) or SSD (solid-state drive). To learn how to find and correct errors on your storage devices in macOS, follow the steps below.

How to scan a drive for errors in macOS

  1. Navigate to the macOS desktop, then press Command+Shift+U at the same time.
Tip

Press the keyboard shortcut Command+Option+H+M to minimize all open apps and show the desktop.

  1. In the Utilities window that opens, double-click the Disk Utility icon.

Disk Utility icon in macOS.

  1. In the window, on the left side, under Internal, select a device or volume to scan. Then, click the First Aid icon located at the top of the right section.

Starting First Aid in macOS.

  1. In the prompt, click the Run button to confirm your choice.

Running First Aid in macOS.

  1. Click the Continue button in the next prompt.

Running First Aid in macOS.

  1. Another prompt appears showing the progress of the First Aid scan on the device or volume.

Running a First Aid scan in macOS.

  1. When finished, click Show Details to see more information about the scan. If nothing is wrong with the drive or volume, click the Done button to exit the scan.

Finished First Aid scan in macOS.