How to repair corrupted photos

[braveheart0707]

Hi guys,

So I removed the SSD of my macbook air (running Sierra), put it into a USB enclosure and tried to export the files manually to my PC. It worked fine for documents and etc, but when I got to the photos, I realized that I shouldn't have done it this way and moved all the photo files back to the Macbook SSD.

When I reinstalled the SSD into my macbook, all of the photos becomes unreadable and shows up like below.

http://imgur.com/shuSG6Y

Please help and let me know how I can restore access to these photos and export them out from the Mac.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello and welcome.

First off, the SSD in the MacBook Air is not a user-serviceable part. It and the internals of the MBA can easily be damaged without proper anti-static precautions and repair training.

-Which exact model MacBook Air?
-Are your photos loose in folders, or in the Photos Library?
-Do you happen to have a current Time Machine or other backup of the SSD?

It looks to me like the photos were moved out of the Photos Library improperly, which would cause the missing photo icon shown in your photo. You will need to replace the Photos Library from a backup, or manually recreate it from scratch.

C

 

[braveheart0707]

It is a Macbook air 11 inch 2011 model. I don't have a time machine backup.

How do I recreate it from scratch? Or is it possible to just grab the photos from the hard drive directly?

 

[Cory Cooper]

OK, thanks for the additional information.

-How did you "move all the photo files back to the Macbook SSD"?
-I meant you would have to launch Photos holding the Option key, click Create New.. to make a new Photos Library, then reimport all the photos manually into it.
-Depending on how you copied the photos to the PC, they should still reside on the Mac where they were originally. However, the Photos Library may have become corrupted somehow.

It may be best to visit an Apple Store if possible, as this may be easier to do in person. They would be able to easily see what the status of the Mac and Photos is, and should be able to correct it.

We always strongly suggest having a Time Machine or other backup of your data, because you can lose your files/data if the SSD fails or becomes corrupted beyond repair.

C

 

[braveheart0707]

I cut and pasted the 'Pictures" folder from the Mac SSD into my PC hard drive, then copied and paste the "Pictures" folder from the PC hard drive into the Mac SSD.

I understand what you mean by creating new library and importing the photos into it, but where are the photos? I am sending this mac off to repair and I only care about getting these pictures out safely. I don't actually care about them showing up in Photos properly, because I may not be using this macbook anymore. I just want to get the picture files.

 

[Cory Cooper]

OK.

-Open the Pictures folder in your user on the Mac, and see what is in there.
-Where did you paste them back to on the Mac?
-Since you cut an pasted when it was connected to the PC, that is why they were totally removed from the Mac SSD. They would still be there if you had done a copy and paste.
-Are they still on the PC where you pasted them?

C

 

[braveheart0707]

On the picture folder on the mac, i only see this

http://imgur.com/a/A8hpa

I pasted them back to the Mac under the same directory, under users I think.