Hi Stephen, I have assumed that you formatted the external drive correctly for Time Machine -Format: 'Mac OS Extended (Journaled)' and that the Partition Map Scheme is 'GUID Partition Table'. As you have not answered my question, I do not know what WD Portable External Hard Drive model you are using...
But we seem to have come to the conclusion the problem is happening when the iMac goes to sleep. And that the Firmware Upgrade you have downloaded and installed has not corrected the problem. So an explanation as to why you are receiving the "Improper Eject" message on your new iMac running Mountain Lion using a WD portable external drive and what I would suggest you do to stop this from happening. The power management in newer Macs use a VERY LOW POWER sleep mode, almost to hibernation levels. Most external drives can only detect a connection to a computer when the computer is sending a line level signal via connection cable. When newer macs enter sleep mode the power is beneath the threshold level the external devices are capable of sensing. Therefore, when the computer sleeps, the drive thinks the computer is off and puts itself to sleep causing improper dismount or self-eject, and of course generating the message that the device has been improperly ejected. NOTE: This can damage files. What is required when using these devices: 1. Is to either Eject the drive manually through the Finder Window, and then let your computer sleep at will. OR 2. Adjust your power management setting in System Preferences "Energy Saver" tab to "NEVER" for the 'Computer Sleep' setting. Also in the Energy Saver window, be certain to UNCHECK 'Put hard disks to sleep whenever possible," and UNCHECK 'Enable Power Nap.' Many external drives have their own power management features as well, that can be set from its own settings window and these operate independently of OSX. If these devices are set for a sleep mode before OSX sleeps, it will cause itself to eject improperly from the OS and you will get error messages and possibly corrupt data, and, or your back up. Where these devices offer power management settings, it is advisable to disable any sleep settings. What I would recommend you to do is: Until all of the manufacturers catch up with ultra low power connection discovery, I would recommend that you Manually Eject your drive through OSX Finder prior to any time you plan to let your computer sleep, or before you turn it off. This should be rule of thumb for any external storage device connected to a Mac. Cheers, Ronni 17" MacBook Pro 2.3GHz Quad-Core i7 “Thunderbolt" 2.3GHz / 8GB / 750GB @ 7200rpm HD OS X 10.8.4 Mountain Lion Windows 7 Ultimate (under sufferance) On 17/08/2013, at 5:08 PM, Stephen Chape <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Ronni, > I just downloaded and installed firmware for WD Drive. > Then put iMac to sleep and woke a few minutes later. > Got told off again for ejecting incorrectly …… BUGGER ! > I will take at look at Roberts Google link ! > > > On 16/08/2013, at 7:31 PM, Ronda Brown <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Hi Stephen, >> >>>> What model WD portable drive is it? >> >> When the external drive is not showing on the desktop, have you checked if >> it is showing in Disk Utility? ... You should be able to select the volume >> in DU and then click "Mount". >> >> When your iMac goes to sleep, the light on the external drive should go off >> and the drive power down, and then when the iMac wakes it should power up. >> >> Definitely check as I mentioned before - if there is a Firmware Upgrade for >> your WD drive, the firmware upgrade could fix the problem. >> >> Cheers, >> Ronni >> >> Sent from Ronni's iPad4 >> >> On 16/08/2013, at 4:20 PM, Stephen Chape <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> That could be what causes it Ronni. >>> I usually put the iMac to sleep when I leave it for a few hours. >>> In fact just came back to after about 3 hours and it had un-mounted again. >>> I will try not "sleeping" the iMac and see what happens. >>> >>> On 16/08/2013, at 8:44 AM, Ronda Brown <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>>> Hi Stephen, >>>> >>>> Do you receive this message after the iMac wakes from "Sleep"? >>>> Some external drives will give this message when the computer wakes from >>>> an extended sleep. >>>> >>>> What model WD portable drive is it? >>>> Have you tried other USB ports? >>>> >>>> 1. Check first if your WD external has a firmware upgrade available. In >>>> some cases, the firmware upgrade may be enough to make the disk more >>>> responsive to the iMac waking up. >>>> >>>> 2. If there is no firmware upgrade available, check if your power/data >>>> USB cable is properly working. >>>> >>>> Cheers, >>>> Ronni >>>> Sent from Ronni's iPad4 >>>> >>>> On 15/08/2013, at 7:07 PM, Stephen Chape <[email protected]> wrote: >>>> >>>>> Hi Ronni, >>>>> >>>>> That item is already disabled. >>>>> My Time Capsule and my old wired modem had both been playing up recently. >>>>> So I replaced both of them with a Telstra WiFi Modem. >>>>> So I plugged in this spare HD and switched Time Machine to it. >>>>> I just can't figure why it un-mounts randomly like this ? >>>>> >>>>> I have the very latest OX on the latest i7 iMac. >>>>> >>>>> On 15/08/2013, at 6:44 PM, Ronda Brown <[email protected]> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> Hi Stephen, >>>>>> >>>>>> What OS X are you running? Is the WD external connected by USB of FW? >>>>>> >>>>>> First thing to check go into the "Energy Saver" preference pane in >>>>>> System Preferences. >>>>>> Check to see if you have enabled the item: "Put Hard Disk(s) to sleep >>>>>> when possible." >>>>>> If it is enabled, DISABLE it. >>>>>> This item is enabled by default but it is inappropriate for Time Machine >>>>>> use, so it should be disabled. >>>>>> >>>>>> Cheers, >>>>>> Ronni >>>>>> >>>>>> Sent from Ronni's iPad4 >>>>>> >>>>>> On 15/08/2013, at 5:20 PM, Stephen Chape <[email protected]> wrote: >>>>>> >>>>>>> Hi folks, >>>>>>> >>>>>>> About a week ago I installed a 1TB WD Portable Hard Drive to use as my >>>>>>> Time Machine. >>>>>>> It has worked fine except for one point. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Every so often I return to my iMac after a few hours away to find a >>>>>>> message that I have unplugged the hard drive without ejecting it. I >>>>>>> have NOT unplugged it. So I then unplug it and plug it back in again in >>>>>>> order for it to re-mount. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Has anyone any idea why this happens and perhaps how to prevent it ? >>>>>>> >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Regards, >>>>>>> Stephen Chape
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