Checking a disk
Check Disk reads the Linux filesystem from your Mac, without changing anything.
On this page 3 sections
Check Disk in the Maintenance card's Disk section examines the instance's Linux filesystem from your Mac and reports what it finds. It never changes anything.
Before you start#
- Shut the instance down. Checking a disk while Linux is using it gives meaningless answers — it's only safe when nothing has it open.
- No hibernated session. If the instance is hibernated, start it and shut it down first.
- Install e2fsprogs on your Mac (see below).
Installing e2fsprogs#
Linux disks are checked with a tool called e2fsck. macOS doesn't come with it, but it's free through Homebrew. Until it's installed, the card says so and offers Copy Install Command, which copies this:
brew install e2fsprogsPaste it into Terminal. MSL finds it where Homebrew puts it — no other setup needed.
What the results mean#
| Result | Colour | Means |
|---|---|---|
| No problems found | green | The filesystem is consistent. |
| Problems found | orange | "Nothing was changed. Run Repair to fix them — a backup of the disk is taken first." |
| The check didn't run | red | Something stopped the check itself, and the result "says nothing about the disk". The reason follows. |
Show details has e2fsck's own output.
A big disk can take a few minutes — "Checking the disk… a large disk can take a few minutes."