Devices · MacBooks & Macs
The encryption of storage starts from day one on new Macs. Storage is often soldered straight onto the motherboard (logic board), as well as being distributed across two disks when using a Fusion machine. At this point, retail purchased software will walk away. A true workbench does not, provided the drive can be removed. We do not take on storage soldered directly to the motherboard (T2 and Apple Silicon based Macs), and if you are unsure what type of storage your Mac has, please ring us before sending. From Exeter, our lab is just a parcel away: get a quote first, via phone or using the form, then post just the drive (for a Fusion Mac, both drives), never the entire computer. Or drop the drive off at our intake laboratory in Bristol, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5:30pm, with no appointment needed. Bring the password and we will handle everything else.
Talk it over with an engineer
0800 6890668
| What it says | What it usually means | Step one |
|---|---|---|
| A blinking folder with a question mark inside | There are no systems for the Mac to boot into | Do not reboot: test the disk |
| A struck-through circle at power-on | macOS is there but won't boot | Damage to the disk/container |
| First Aid hit damage it couldn't put right | APFS corruption (beyond what Disk Utility will fix) | First an image, then decide how to proceed |
| com.apple.DiskManagement.disenter error -119930868 | Failed mount of APFS volume | Read back from clone |
| Your disk could not be repaired — back up as many files as possible | The system's last warning | Believe what it says: power off |
| Boot loop straight after updating macOS | Damaged firmware/container, but good data under the brokenness | High chances that your data will be recovered |
Your device will be logged under its own case number on the day it comes into our lab. The engineer who works on your device identifies the problem with it, clearly states what we think has a good chance of coming back and provides you with one fixed quote. There are no charges for this assessment; there is no obligation for you to do anything; and paid work does not begin until you authorise us to start.
Whatever encryption method a Mac uses (FileVault, T2 or Apple Silicon), data is always encrypted on the device. However, T2 and Apple Silicon data storage is soldered to the motherboard, and that isn't something our company takes on (if you are unsure what type of storage you have, please call prior to sending). On a drive that comes out of the Mac, with your password in hand, our recovery process begins as usual: the initial step will create an exact copy of the original data that will actually decrypt.
Removable storage drives get imaged normally: the storage can still be read even while the Mac itself is unable to be booted. However, soldered NAND storage drives are the exception and are not taken on by us, so ring us first if you're unsure what type of storage you have.
One file on a Fusion Mac may be split across the SSD and the (spinning) hard drive. We image each portion, join the two portions into a single volume by rebuilding the CoreStorage or APFS map, and return full files rather than broken pieces.
You have access to a complete list of every item recovered from your device, which you approve prior to any fees being applied. The files will be returned via new media (brand new) with the return postage paid by us, and the case remains open for as long as it takes to confirm that all the files open properly on your own machine.
Being honest about numbers: no data on reliability by model ever leaves Apple, and no public studies have included soldered Mac storage for a failure study, including Backblaze's. Anyone saying they can give you the "failure rate" of an individual MacBook made this number up. In short, no one outside of Apple knows.
There were problems with the hard-drive side of the Fusion pair. As this part failed, it pulled the entire volume down with it. We decided to image each side of the Fusion pair and rebuild the mapping across both parts. A design company got back ten years of their clients' projects, all taken from a machine the Apple Store had already deemed no longer usable.
Yes, wherever FileVault is concerned, we will require either a password or the recovery key. Without either of these, Apple's encryption is working as designed and no lab on earth can read that data. The storage on T2 and Apple Silicon Macs is soldered to the motherboard, so this isn't something we take on; if you're unsure about your model, please call us before attempting anything.
Apple fixes hardware for their customers; however, recovering lost data is not part of that service. When the Genius Bar at an Apple Store says a file is unrecoverable from your machine, it typically means the circuit board will be swapped with a new one while your data remains on the original one. The trade you go to gives you different results, as long as the drive comes out of the Mac: we do not perform board-level work on soldered storage devices, so if you are unsure whether or not your device uses a soldered or removable hard drive, please call us first.
One volume is actually two different parts of the computer system. It has a very small solid state drive (SSD) and a larger spinning disk. When files are written to either part of the pair they may be split across both, so when you read one you get some fragmentary information. That's why we create images of both parts of the pair; afterwards, we put all the pieces back into the logical order.
No, we will not accept soldered storage devices from customers (we do not perform that board-level work), and the chip cannot simply be removed from your MacBook and read at another location either. If you're not sure, call us before you send in an item to see if your MacBook uses the soldered chip.
Every time a failing hardware component is powered back up, there is additional lost data. First open a case with us: the inspection (look over) is always at no cost, whichever way it goes.