How to Use Target Disk Mode on Intel and M1/M2/M3 Mac

Mac provides some tools to help boost productivity and troubleshoot problems, such as repairing hard drives in Disk Utility and restoring Mac from Time Machine. Target Disk Mode is another practical program that we are going to dig deep into. Stay tuned to know more.

Target Disk Mode Overview

Target Disk Mode is a boot mode on Intel-based Macs that helps data transfer through Thunderbolt Bridge when Migration Assistant doesn't work. Intel Mac Target Disk Mode does not boot Mac's operating system but makes Mac's drive behaves as an external storage device on the destination Mac, where you can mount, access, format, and partition the drive of the Mac booted into Target Disk Mode.

It should be noted that there is no Target Disk Mode on Apple silicon Mac. The previous Target Disk Mode is replaced by Share Disk (also called Mac Sharing Mode), a new startup option on M1 Mac. Similarly, M1/M2/M3 Mac Target Disk Mode offers a way for you to access the startup disk of your Mac from another connected Mac.

So what you can do after entering Mac Target Disk Mode? Now that this feature can mount your Mac's drive as an external drive on another Mac, you can view, edit, move, and copy files stored on the drive just like any other external drive. But far more than that, Target Disk Mode works to:

Prepare to use Target Disk Mode

Before proceeding to enter Mac Target Disk Mode, you need to have preparations for a smooth and successful data transfer.

How to start a Mac in Target Disk Mode

In the first place, you need to identify the model of your Mac, whether it is equipped with an Intel chip or an Apple silicon processor. Then you can follow the corresponding steps to boot an Intel Mac in Target Disk Mode or boot an Apple silicon Mac into Mac Sharing Mode - M1/M2/M3 Target Disk Mode.

How to boot into Intel-based Mac Target Disk Mode

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How to boot into M1/M2/M3 Mac Target Disk Mode(Mac Sharing Mode)

There is a video tutorial to follow.

After entering Target Disk mode on Intel Mac or Mac Sharing Mode on M1/M2/M3 Mac, you can transfer all the files stored on the target disk including folders, movies, music, documents, etc. For other info such as apps, user accounts, and macOS, you need the help of Migration Assistant.

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How to fix Target Disk Mode not working

Sometimes, the Target Disk Mode not showing up on host computer, or the target disk Mac doesn't appear as an external hard drive on the connected Mac. Don't worry. There are some remedies to fix the Mac Target Disk Mode not working issue.

Solution 1. Check the cables and ports

With the wrong ports or bad cables, the two Macs can not be connected successfully to use macOS Target Disk Mode. Change different ports or cables to check if there is a connection problem, causing the Target Disk Mode not working.

Solution 2. Disable the Firmware password

With the Mac firmware password turned on, you will not be able to enter the Target Disk Mode from a cold boot. You can boot your Mac into macOS recovery mode, and choose Utility > Firmware Password Utility to disable it with your password.

Solution 3. Update macOS

If the hard drive on the host Mac is in APFS format, then the destination Mac must run in macOS High Sierra or later. Earlier macOS can't read APFS so it won't recognize and mount your Mac's drive. Therefore, updating macOS from the Apple Menu > System Preferences > Software Update may make the Target Disk Mode function well.

Solution 4. Check the Preferences in Finder

When the external hard drive not showing up on Mac, it might be the Finder where you set to hide the drive. In this case, the target disk will not show up. You can check by navigating to Finder > Preferences > Sidebar > Locations. Check if the boxed next to Hard disks and External disk are ticked.

Solution 5. Mount the hard drive

If the target disk fails to appear after making changes in Finder Preferences, you can try to mount the disk manually when the external hard drive not mounting on Mac. Open Disk Utility on the connected Mac and find the target disk. If it is grayed out, select it and click the Mount button. Then, try to access Mac Target Disk Mode again.

Unfortunately, the approaches mentioned above can not make the Target Disk Mode work on your Mac, the reason may be related to Mac's hardware malfunctions. You can contact Apple Support for further help.

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To sum up

With the detailed steps in this post, you can boot an Intel Mac into macOS Target Disk Mode, and boot an Apple Silicon Mac into Mac Sharing Mode(M1/M2/M3 Target Disk Mode). If the Mac Target Disk Mode functions abnormally, you can try the fixes above to get it to work again.