How to unlock Seagate hard drive on mac??

[millort_y]

Hey everyone, I’ve run into an issue and could really use some advice. I’m unable to unlock my seagate external hard drive on my Mac. The drive is a seagate one touch, 5tb

[PixelDreamer5]

Hey, welcome to this forum

 

When you say you can’t unlock your Seagate, do you mean you forgot the password or you’re just confused about where to type it?

 

Quick tip - maybe your drive is APFS encrypted and the password prompt doesn’t pop up automatically. I had this happen to me too. Just unplug the drive and plug it back again and that usually brings up the unlock menu. If it still doesn’t appear, try openin the drive from Finder’s sidebar. And if you don’t even see it there, double-check Finder’s sidebar settings in Preferences - sometimes it’s just hidden there. That should get the unlock menu back up

[UrbanExplorer7]

Bro, hate to break it to ya, but if you’re locked out and legit don’t have the encryption key, you’re kinda screwed. Best advice? 😂 Kiss those files goodbye and format the disk. I mean, I’ve never seen anyone crack an encrypted drive without the key…unless you’re buddies with the CIA and their crazy quantum computers or somethin’

[millort_y]

Oh, I should’ve clarified earlier - luckily, I do know the password. My friend originally encrypted the disk on his PC using some Seagate utility, as he explained to me

 

The trouble I’m having now is that there’s an unlocking application stored directly on the drive itself - two actually, one for Windows and one for Mac. Naturally, I’m trying to run the Mac version. But whenever I attempt to launch it, macOS gives me an error saying something like “this application is damaged or incomplete”

[PixelDreamer5]

1 hour ago, millort_y said:

Oh, I should’ve clarified earlier - luckily, I do know the password. My friend originally encrypted the disk on his PC using some Seagate utility, as he explained to me

 

The trouble I’m having now is that there’s an unlocking application stored directly on the drive itself - two actually, one for Windows and one for Mac. Naturally, I’m trying to run the Mac version. But whenever I attempt to launch it, macOS gives me an error saying something like “this application is damaged or incomplete”

Ahh okay I see what’s goin on here… Could you tell me what macOS version you’re running and what Mac model you have?

[millort_y]

I’m running macOS Monterey on a MacBook Pro 2020 - just recently bought it, actually, as my first step into the Apple ecosystem. Still figuring things out a bit, honestly

[PixelDreamer5]

You’ve got two options here - one’s easy and the other’s a bit trickier.

 

The easy fix is to update your Mac to a newer macOS version - your Mac should even handle the latest macOS Sequoia. The issue you’re having is common on Monterey, specifically with those Seagate unlocking apps. In theory, once you update macOS, the problem should go away and the app should launch normally.

 

The other solution is unlockin the drive through the ToolKit app. If you prefer this one, let me know - I can walk you through the process step by step.

 

P.s. also worth mentionin - on newer macOS versions, unlocking with Toolkit works just fine too.

[millort_y]

Hey @PixelDreamer5, could you please elaborate a bit more on the second option you mentioned? I’ve got a couple of apps that only work properly on my current macOS version, so I’d rather not update my Mac just yet

[PixelDreamer5]

No problem buddy! Here’s exactly what you need to do - go to Seagate’s official site (https://www.seagate.com/gb/en/support/downloads/) and grab the Toolkit app from there. Install it on your Mac, and once it’s installed, you’ll likely need to authorize it under Security & Privacy settings.

 

Since you’re runnin an M1 Mac, there’s one extra step - boot into Recovery Mode and adjust the security policy if you haven’t already done this. In Recovery Mode (restart holdin down the power button), click on the Security Policy option in the menu bar, and choose the second option - the one allowin kernel extensions from identified developers.

 

After that’s set up, just launch the Toolkit app (it runs in the menu bar), agree to the updated app policy, and you should see your drive pop up in there. Click over to the “Seagate Secure” tab, hit “Unlock”, enter your password, and boom - the drive unlocks, and your files should all show up again

[millort_y]

@PixelDreamer5, huge thanks for such detailed info - I really appreciate it! I’m going to give it a shot now. I’ll update you once I see how it goes!

[millort_y]

Phew, it worked perfectly - huge thanks again for all your help! I honestly started thinking I’d never get my files back because of that broken unlocking app on the drive. Really glad it all turned out okay

[PixelDreamer5]

Glad it worked out for ya! If you run into any more issues with your Mac or macOS, feel free to ask - sounds like you’re pretty new to Apple stuff, so I’m always happy to help))

[oleksandr-lukashyn]

👤 For future users who might land on this thread, here’s a short guide on how to unlock your Seagate hard drive:

• If the drive is encrypted with APFS (APFS Encrypted): When you connect the drive or try to access it via Finder, you should see a popup asking for a password. Simply enter the password and click the Unlock button.
• If the drive is encrypted using Seagate’s own utility: You’ll need to unlock it with the “Unlock Drive for Mac” app, which should be located on the drive itself.

❗️ Important: This app may not function on macOS 12 Monterey. If you’re on Monterey, your only option might be the Seagate Toolkit application. Within Toolkit, use the Seagate Secure feature to unlock the drive.
A critical point to mention: If you don’t have the password, there is no way to unlock the drive. The data is encrypted, and without the correct key, recovery is not possible. This isn’t a software lock - it’s full encryption.