Corrupt file?

I don't think there's a problem getting rid of the file, it's copyimg it someplace that's an issue...

But do you think it will be possible to ZIP the entire library when I cannot zip the corrupt file? Surely it will fail when it comes to that file? Hell, it will take a while but I'll give it a try and report back...

Wasn't possible to zip the library...

In that case there's only one thing you can do:

Get that file out of your Library and then use Terminal to copy the file over to the destination drive.

Then move the Library to the destination drive as well.

- Ronny

DmitriZigany wrote: ...I tried to zip the file but that also stops at about the same place....

It sounds like the HDD is encountering a bad block when it does I/O to that block. There is CRC data in each disk sector that ensures it will either be read error-free or an error raised. It makes no difference whether Finder or Zip or any other app encounters the error during an I/O. Once that happens the app usually stops the operation.

Either the disk, driver or app can re-try the I/O but if it fails once if will probably fail again. Disks usually re-try automatically at a low level, so the app returning "fail" usually means the retries have already been unsuccessfully attempted.

There may be ways to suppress an abort on the copy when encountering the error, but this only means the file will be copied with bad data in that block. That might be better than nothing.

Here are a few links discussing this:

aeroquartet.com/wordpress/2012/06/06/how...file-with-io-errors/
arstechnica.com/civis/viewtopic.php?t=1197911

Be extremely careful trying anything with Terminal.

Each file type has an internal structure and in some cases that can be repaired using specialized utilities specific to the file type. However those data structures are there for a reason and usually the file won't function properly without them, just like a car engine won't function properly with missing parts.

File repair can be further uncertain because of inconsistent or contradictory information. In some cases structures like a binary tree index are redundant to the actual data and can be rebuilt. However there is often an internal mis-match in these structures and the repair utility cannot know which one to trust. E.,g is the b-tree pointing to the data wrong, or is the data itself wrong and the b-tree right? Or are they both wrong?

Ronny mentioned one repair utility for some video files. Things like that may be worth trying but the probability of encountering these situations is quite low, so it would likely be a one-time investment with uncertain outcome.

Update to this:

It has happened to more files.
In some cases, I was able to move files after removing other files as I was emptying the drive. I eventually managed to move all files from the drive (gave up on the original troubled file and threw that one away).

I guess bad blocks could be the culprit.
There used to be applications that remapped bad blocks. But from what I read, the drives firmware is supposed to handle that these days?
Anyway, I did a secure format of the drive, something I read makes the drive's firmware remap bad blocks so it no longer uses them.

Disk Utility reports that there's nothing wrong with the drive.
I'm still rather scared to use it though. Problem is all my drives are getting full and I can't afford to buy new ones at the moment...

In laymen's terms; there is a normal rate for blocks on a drive to go bad. A drive itself can handle remapping these. But if a drive is going bad, the blocks die off too fast for the firmware to keep up with. Disk Utility is not good and detecting drives that are going bad, but not totally dead. Disk Warrior is, because it verifies blocks and sectors individually and meticulously. Run Disk Warrior on that drive to rebuild the directory, and if it can't, trash the drive.

A drive with less than 10% of its capacity left as free space will also exhibit these same symptoms.

From your symptoms, I'd never trust that drive again.

I will not trust it again either... But might have no real choice than to use it to some extent :-o

Be very careful, have a backup!

BenB wrote: Be very careful, have a backup!

That's the problem right now, can't afford a new drive and all other are almost full... But yeah, will not put anything too critical on it.

In the end I got everything off it (except the first file displaying the issue) and files worked flawlessly while on it. It was only when trying to move files away from the drive there were issues. Which is the first time I ever seen in 22 years of Mac use... So I would like to figure out what was really the cause of this... Combination of being rather full (15% free) and some bad blocks maybe?