Many people think that utilities such as DW or TechTool are no longer needed with SSDs but they clearly misunderstand what those utilities are doing! DW just resurrected my main SSD that MacOS had declared dead and unrecoverable after a big crash. This time, TechTool was unable to do anything — it's always been like this: when TechTool fails, DW succeeds and vice versa!
Under Mojave 10.14.6 on maxxed-out MacPro 5.1, I still use it (DW v5.2) all the time for Volume Rebuilds on Mac OS Extended (Journaled) HDDs, and SSDs and NVMEs I specifically formatted as Mac OS Extended (Journaled), which are either extra work drives, back-up drives, or Cache drives. It also recently sorted out a dicky Time Machine drive for me, so it still has worth and value in my eyes (as of Jan 2021).
Apple actually HAS NOW a majority of the APFS format documentation in June of 2020, so Alsoft has finally been able to start v6.0 during Summer 2020! Have faith folks!
Also you just need to give your the app "Full Disk Access" manually in "Security & Privacy' to see all the non-APFS (Mac OS Extended Journaled), and Time Machine disks.
See here: https://www.alsoft.com/diskwarrior5apfs
For years DW has been the ONLY app that could fix broken Mac OS directories - that is until APFS. Ever since then (2017) Alsoft has not been able to make a version of DW that can talk to an APFS directory.
To be clear, DW WILL RUN on Catalina, and it can still fix HFS+ directories (secondary or external drives) but it cannot even talk to APFS much less fix it.
I put in a support ticket just 2 days ago for a little "bug" of an issue; the response I got back was nonsensical and brief, as if the person who sent the reply just didn't care or, didn't feel like troubleshooting the issue. I replied back that the response was, "lazy", and never heard back.
I think Alsofts' days are numbered. They've got zero information about having a newer version being able to talk to APFS and the lack of tech support tells me they are either winding down the company or, lack the resources to be of any real help.
And considering that since DW can't talk to APFS volume directories it wouldn't surprise me if their sales have gone to near zero. Time to look into TechToolPro 13 to see what they can do.
Is DiskWarrior (assuming Alsoft can even get it to function with newer versions of macOS) even needed anymore? In the days of HFS+ it was a staple in any utilities toolbox, but does AFPS suffer from the same problems which occurred so often in HFS+, and made DW a necessity in the first place? I never hear Mac users these days saying their volumes are hosed so badly that they would even need DW or an equivalent product. If that were a problem, you'd expect some comments to that effect here on MacUpdate. I don't see any. Also, with the new, more complex, more secure changes to the volumes introduced by APFS and macOS, including snapshots, to say nothing about the Secure System Volume protection beginning in "Big Sur," is it even possible for a 3rd party app to "rebuild" a volume anymore? What does that even mean in the context of all the sophistication and security now baked into macOS and APFS? Just curious. If you have any thoughts, I'd appreciate hearing them. -SB
"Apple File System (APFS) disks are not currently supported." This continues to be the case. The reason continues to be that Apple does not, apparently will not, provide sufficient documentation of APFS to allow third party utilities to repair it beyond what Apple's own Disk Utility does. - - I should point out that I have yet to experience any problems with my APFS formatted SSD. But for those concerned, *only* TechTool Pro v11 onwards is able to test and repair APFS volume structures. Good on Micromat.
DiskWarrior's uselessness is a product of the degeneration of Apple and the Mac.
For over 25 years I purchased only high-end Macs. Two years ago I purchased a MacBook Pro only to encounter countless major problems. Fortunately I have AppleCare, but that runs out in another year and this hardware is junk. And Apple has an attitude problem.
Disk Warrior, which saved many a boot disk for me for a couple of decades, has been useless for several years now. Apple has not released documentation which would allow DW to rebuild APFS disks, the standard for all boot disks for several OS's.
The fault is Apple's, but regardless DW is useless on modern operating systems.
My solution is migration to a PC.
USELESS WITH AN SSD AND WITH APFS. This used to be a GREAT utility. However, ALL disk utilities are now useless because they cannot do a volume rebuild on an SSD (volume rebuild was the one operation that could really fix a screwed up drive), so THEY ONLY WORK ON HDDs. Also, I’m not aware of any disk utilities that work fully on drives formatted with Apple File System (APFS), and most do not yet work on Catalina. DON’T WASTE YOUR TIME AND MONEY ON THIS DOG UNTIL IT WORKS ON SSDs AND WITH APFS.
Let's see now. When did version 5 first come out? This last major update to 64-bit came out in the first quarter of 2014. Then a couple of updates to version 5.2 within a yea of that. That's 2015-2016. It's now 4 or 5 years later and version 5 still does nothing beyond HFS+. Disk Warrior became irrelevant when Apple created APFS as the required disk system several years ago.
Maybe the SSD no longer needs a tool like Disk Warrior.
I really haven't missed it under the flash drive hardware requirement these days. I own version 5.2, but I now see that I really don't need it. And I suppose Apple decided the same thing or they would have provided Disk Warrior with the documentation they say they desperately need.
No one using the more recent Mac OS versions should waste their money on today's Disk Warrior.
DiskWarrior has been the best, most essential disk utility for as long as I can remember. When everything else failed to help you - including Apple's own Disk Utility - and software was telling you that your only answer was to reinstall the OS...that's when DiskWarrior would simply fix everything. No problem. No biggie. There you go...all fixed. It was incredible, and indispensable.
For the moment, until it can be updated to work with APFS, the application I loved so much is useless. Kaput. It has value only for the very small minority running earlier OSes.
So - I just don't get it, guys...are you REALLY charging $120??? How can you justify that? I think you should be giving this version away - just to keep some users of old systems something to get them interested until you have the new version.
And the big question: will we ever see a new version? Seriously guys - will there ever be a new version of DiskWarrior that can do with APFS what it did for HFS+?
So if I interpret to what you say , Apple has found a way to protect its users for others to corrupt the OS.?
I guess this is the price us users had to pay
People need to understand that the problems with disk utility software on newer macOS versions are caused by decisions made inside Apple, not least the decision to ship a new file system that is still, AFAIK, not properly documented.
I used to run Coriolis Systems (now sadly gone), and it pains me to see that Alsoft is still stuck in the mess I was in before I decided to call it a day. Someone said Micromat has APFS support, but I think I’m right in saying that they just run Apple’s fsck tool in the APFS case (apologies to Micromat if I’ve misunderstood and they’re doing more than that). DiskWarrior clearly can’t do that - it’s entire reason for existing is that it was way better than anything that came with the machine.
Anyway, while it’s reasonable to wish for a new version with APFS support and without all the problems cause by SIP, it’s really unfair to blame Alsoft for any of this. The blame lies with Apple, who don’t currently seem very keen on third party disk utilities, even from vendors who have proved themselves trustworthy over the years since Mac OS X first shipped.
Does anyone know when Alsoft are going to come out with a major update to DiskWarrior? Seems to me that it's now been so long that Mojave's been out with no new version of DW to work with it, that surely the company must be in trouble. Up until I upgraded to Mojave last year I'd always run DW about once a month and it never failed to keep my Mac in tiptop running order. I've now been without DW for so long that it's starting to look as if they're just never going to release DW 6. I'm regularly checking Alsoft's website, but it never changes, 5.2 being the latest version. They must be losing a great deal of revenue with Mac having been on Mojave for such a long time now, and a version of DW not to have been released that can rebuild it. I'm loathe to shell out for something like Techtool Pro, if I go and do so only to see a new DW come out the day after.
Bought DiskWarrior to save my Seagate 1T ExFat formatted disk connected to MacBook Air 2019.. Doesn't recognize disk, same as disk Utility on same computer. Decide to plug disk into old iMac - guess what?! works fine. Run Disk Utilities on the disk in old iMac. Plug disk back into MacBook Air - Works Great! Try to run Disk Warrior again just to see what would happen - DOESN'T RECOGNIZE DISK!! DiskWarrior is a $120 piece of S**T!!!
Why are some of the most recent poorly-rated reviews getting put further down the list than much older (and less relevant) 5-star reviews? For the vast majority who use Mac OS Mohave, DW is unusable, plain and simple. Why have a review system that encourages people to go out and spend $120 on something that doesn't work, and furthermore, makes you waste time and want to pull your hair out?
DW used to be my #1 most reliable disk repair and maintenance software. What a pity it no longer works (at all). Blame it on Apple or blame it on DW, but what the software does is make you jump through endless loops to make it work and still it doesn't. Believe me, I've spent hours trying to make it work on my new MB Pro and older iMac (all running Mohave), 3 thumb drives, and 5 hard drives. All I can say is that Alsoft's tech support team has been responsive, but the advice they gave was completely ineffective. I havern't been able to accomplish anything, except waste hours writing my hands in frustatration!
A superb piece of software. Have been using this for some time now and I know of nothing else that can do what Disk Warrior can do. Version 5.2 added much needed APFS support. More software developers that tune in to their customers' needs like Alsoft do are needed.
DiskWarrior is still the only tool that will save my as with broken Disks. Many years. It does not happen often, but if it happens DiskWorrier is here to fix the Problem. And al of the negativ ratings are people with no respect for excellent Programmer out there. They rate a product that has lot of work in it with hundreds of hours engineering and testing. So if you are one of those, put brain in gear bevor typing a bad Review. A programmer has also children that want to go to school and would like to eat something.
I bought Disk Warrior a few years back, used once. When I tried to use again recently, they no longer support new OS system, and want to charge me agin for upgrade. This is a scam as OS systems change on a regular basis, and Alsoft seemingly has no desire to support their products. Unless you pay again. Thanks, but no thanks.
I am finding it quite difficult to update my Disk Warrior flash drive from v5.0 to v5.2. Not a straightforward process, and not something that everyone will find easy to accomplish. It should be much easier and something that the average Mac user can can do without having to contact the developer to get advice.
I will NOT uninstall DiskWorrior!!
I was offered to leave a comment while upgrading to DW 5.2, as the software thought I was uninstalling. So - NO, I was NOT uninstalling. And I will NOT uninstall my DW. Have been using DW since 1995 and it has never let me down.
And regarding the delay for APFS file system - I am old and patient. I trust 100% AlSoft will come up with a reasonable upgrade. Some people don't realize how Apple screws up things for us, the users, and they misdirect their criticism.
Support team is rude and unhelpful. Main product page says it supports Mojave but doesn't support default file system on Mojave. No mention of it on the main product page and refuses to provide any refunds.
Glorified version of free tool included in macOS.
When is this company going to get its act together . . . this dog will not work on new Macs with Apple's new APFS operating system. This means that it won't work with High Sierra or Mojave unless you revert to HFS. So don't plan on rebuilding any directories unless you elect to go back to old operating systems.
v5.2 still cannot rebuild APFS formatted drives. To read about Alsoft's progress, visit this page:
https://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/mojaveapfs.html
Apple recently released a thoroughly overhauled set of web pages for developers about APFS. Hopefully, Apple bothered this time to provide enough information to allow third party repair tools to work with APFS. If that is the case, all of the various repair tools should be updating within the next month or two. For me, having these repair tools available will be the prime reason for upgrading from 10.12 Sierra to 10.14 Mojave. I've specifically ignored 10.13 High Sierra because of Apple's abysmal roll out of APFS.
The file to upgrade to 5.2 runs at just over 5MB. You will need your DW serial number to d/l the file.
Long time user - since DW 1 in 1998 (!) - highly recommended and would encourage those who doubt to buy. Next release will deal with APFS drives.
Have saved numerous drives over the years - rebuilds directories faster than Tech Tool Pro and I believe does it better. Well worth the purchase price as it has paid its way well and truly over the 20 years.
Recommended.
DW for those who don't know has been a must have utility for ages. Currently it can't fix an SSD drive and if you put an SSD on your HighSierra system Apple will automatically turn it into the new APFS file system, no choice in the matter.
Alsoft did finally release 5.1 that will at least not have DW instantly quitting when launched with an SSD anywhere in the file chain. But, 5.1 still won't recognize or repair an SSD drive. I sympathize if Alsoft is at the mercy of Apple on this one. However, I would really like to have something again more than just the Apple Disk Utility program that could keep my SSD drives healthy like DW used to be able to do.
I am not a psychic - nor do I play one on TV. So please take the following with a gain of salt - or a whole pinch of salt for that matter. It sounds like Alsoft is going to release a new version at some point in the future to add in the APFS filesystem changes and, when that happens, I would imagine there would be an upgrade charge. Entirely speculation on my part but also frustrating to imagine as we are coming up rapidly on a year of non working DW software in the current version. Apples fault I guess and the folks at Alsoft have always had a great product so, I can see both sides of the fence with this. It ts frustrating to not have any serious tools for keeping my SSD drives in good health. I had an SSD installed in my iMac as the main drive and I just got a second SSD for my MacBook Pro. I dislike living on luck. I would prefer having either DW back, or something that worked on the new Apple APFS system.
I just checked and Diskwarrior still does not work on APFS drives. Although they released ver. 5.1, they say they are still waiting for Apple to release more info about the OS. Very frustrating.
DW customers are pleased to see that something is moving on the side of Alsoft.
Above all, customers are reassured by the fact that Alsoft has finally resumed communicating and explaining what is happening. Thumb up for Alsoft and let’s hope that Apple will soon be able to sort out her stuff with APFS.
Because of the inability to work with Apple's APFS, even after updating my original flash drive using DWRecovery 1.2, I can't repair/rebuild my internal disk which runs OSX 10.13.4. A wonderful utility for all these years; now it's virtually useless since Apple automatically changes our file system to APFS when we upgrade our system.
And they still advertise this doorstop for sale at $120! WOW - how the most reliable app in Mac history has become almost extinct.
Unclear if 5.1 is a paid upgrade from 5.0? No discussion here that informs me if I have to pay from 5.0 to 5.1. I have 5.0 and there is no 'Check for Updates' option in DW5 so some guidance would be useful to readers.
Ok, some digging around on Alsoft's web page shows a FREE updater pkg 5.0 to 5.1 https://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/highsierraapfs.html
kudos to Alsoft not following Tech Tool Pro path of charging for 0.1 updates!!!!
Here are partial notes from Alsoft's website, providing more information:
https://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/highsierraapfs.html
"Using DiskWarrior 5.1 while started (booted) from macOS 10.13 High Sierra.
• What you need to know
1) DiskWarrior 5.1 is compatible with macOS 10.13 High Sierra.
2) Mac OS Extended (HFS Plus) disks can be rebuilt as before. This includes Fusion and Time Machine disks.
3) The internal Solid State Drives (SSDs) of Macs are automatically converted from Mac OS Extended (HFS Plus) to Apple File System (APFS) when upgrading to macOS 10.13 High Sierra.
4) Apple File System (APFS) disks are recognized by DiskWarrior 5.1 but are not able to be rebuilt. Click here to learn how to identify an APFS disk."
IOW: DiskWarrior runs on macOS 10.13.x High Sierra. But it cannot rebuild/repair 10.13.x High Sierra. The problem is that Apple has not finished APFS and therefore is not providing repair utility developers with adequate documentation of APFS. ALL repair utility developers are hobbled by this problem. The only utility that can at least perform some file system repair of APFS so far is TechTool Pro 9.6.1. But their developer points out that their support of APFS remains unfinished. See the note below by 'DiskWarrior-Proj-Mgr' on May 03, 2018 for further details about this ongoing situation.
DiskWarrior 5.1, a free update from 5.0, was released today, May 2, 2018. It can be read about here: https://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/support.html and here: https://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/highsierraapfs.html
Two things. Ive done some research and also spoken to some other developers. What I have learned is that Apple haven't published the data and requirements for an APFS Utility to be developed. This means that even if Alsoft wanted to bring out 5.1, its unlikely that they could at this stage. What is particularly annoying though, is the deafening silence from their web site. Had they come up with a news item to this effect, there would be little or no tension. However, their lack of communication has, I think, caused undue stress on those loyal DW users who are waiting (apparently in vain) for an APFS version. Thats the state of the nation as I know it. COMMUNICATE ALSOFT.
Codicil: Sent this to Alsoft today from New Zealand. As a critique and no matter how stressed you are, you owe it to your clients to let people know whats going on. Your silence speaks volumes. It tends to indicate that you cant produce the goods and are hiding behind the skirts of Katrina. Nobody knows the size of your company, are you alone or are you a team?
Communication is the name of the game. I have been using DiskWarrior since version 3 and find it indispensible. However I must say that if there was a competing product I would have purchased it long before now simply because you do not posses communication skills.
If you would come clean on your web site and let everyone know what is happening and when a 5.1 release can be expected, you would go a long way to restoring confidence in your product. At the moment you dying the death.
Why dont you write a story starting with Katrina and the effect it has on your company. Let us know how many are on your team. Let us know what is the progress on 5.1. Come clean if you are having problems coming to grips with APFS, just say so. Institute a beta program so that your “base” can try it out.
Really, you have almost reached the end of the road, which is a crying shame for such a vintage and respected product.
Come up to present time guys (or is it guy). Honesty is the best policy in the end.
I write this not in anger but as a hand across the ocean to offer you an insight as to how your clients are viewing you at this moment in time.
