Recover Files from Mac That Won't Boot Easily with 6 Proven Solutions

If your Mac cannot boot, the best choice to recover files from your Mac that won't boot is by applying EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac. You also can recover files with other solutions, including Time Machine backup and macOS Target Disk Mode.

If your Mac won't boot after update or encounters startup errors and keep your Mac from booting, you may need to rescue data from your unbootable Mac. Some users may think retrieving data from a dead/unbootable Mac is impossible. Actually, even new Mac users can recover data from a Mac that won't.

In the following parts, we will introduce six ways to recover files from Mac that won't boot. If you are looking for the easiest and fastest way, you can get what you want in the next part.

Recover Files from Mac That Won't Boot with Recovery Software

When encountering Mac issues, seeking a professional tool will never be the wrong choice. Are there any programs that can help you recover files from Mac that won't boot? Yes! When your Mac fails to boot, you cannot download recovery software and recover deleted files Mac normally. You need a portable data recovery tool - EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac.

What can you do with this functional recovery tool?

• Make a bootable USB for Mac and recover files from Mac that won't boot.
• Recover files after reinstalling macOS or updating the macOS.
• Recover the files lost due to factory reset macOS.
• Retrieve data from a corrupted hard drive or USB flash drive.

Let's check how to run Mac data recovery in Recovery Mode and restore the data using EaseUS Data Recovery for Mac.

First, you need to enter the Recovery Mode on Mac:

For Apple Silicon Macs: Shut down your Mac, press and hold the power button (Touch ID) until you see "Loading startup options". Select "Options" and click the "Continue" button to enter the macOS Recovery Mode.

For Intel-based Macs: Completely turn off your Mac and turn it on when pressing "Command + Option + R" together. Hold these keys until you see a spinning globe on your Mac's screen.

Step 1. Launch EaseUS Software in Recovery Mode

Select "Utilities > Terminal" from the top menu, and enter the command sh <(curl https://d3.easeus.com/mac/boot.sh). Hit "Return". Wait for the application to open, and it will take several minutes.

Note: If the Terminal displays either "No such file or directory" or "Could not resolve host," you should verify that the command line you entered is correctly spelled, ensure your Mac has a stable internet connection, and confirm that your macOS version is not lower than macOS 10.15.

Step 2. Select the Volume on Your Mac Hard Drive

Select the volume where your lost data is stored, and click "Search for lost files". The EaseUS software will quickly locate all the recoverable data on the selected volume.

Step 3. Choose the Lost Data You Want

EaseUS software categorizes the scanned recoverable data by file type and storage path. Find the data you want by clicking "Type" or "Path" in the left panel. Then, check the boxes in front of the data you want to recover.

Step 4. Recover and Save Data on an External Disk

Click the "Recover" button, and a pop-up window will show up saying, "Please select a target location to save". Choose the external disk as the new storage location of your recovered data.

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Recover Files from an Unbootable Mac with Time Machine Backup

There is a reliable option on macOS called Restore from Time Machine. You can restore files with a previous Mac Time Machine backup. Before the tutorial, you should connect the external hard drive which stores your Mac backups.

How to restore from Time Machine?

Step 1. You need to boot Mac into the macOS Recovery Mode. (Fix Mac won't boot into Recovery Mode by clicking this link.)

Step 2. Click "Restore from Time Machine" and continue.

Step 3. Select a previous Mac backup to restore.

Step 4. Choose the destination to restore your data and files.

Step 5. You will need to erase the disk and click "Restore".

Retrieve Files from Mac That Won't Boot by Creating a Disk Image

To recover files from Mac that won't boot by creating a disk image on Mac, you will need a well-performed external hard drive with a large capacity. By the way, you should make sure your Mac disk is not damaged. Then you can try this method:

Step 1. Connect the external hard drive and boot Mac into Disk Utility.

Step 2. Select the startup disk.

Step 3. Click "File" and move your pointer to "New Image". Click "Blank Image".

Step 4. Choose a destination to save the image. Remember to select "read/write disk image" in image format.

Step 5. Then click "Save" to create a Mac disk image.

Recover Files from Mac That Won't Boot with Target Disk Mode

You should have another working Mac to transfer data from the Mac that won't boot, and you need to turn off the File Vault on the working Mac. This method is complex, and you can follow this tutorial to have a try.

Step 1. Connect both of your Macs with Thunderbolt.

Step 2. Turn on your Mac that won't boot with the power button and T button to use the Mac Target Disk Mode.

Step 3. Check the screen of your healthy Mac, and you will see the storage drive.

Step 4. You can recover files from this drive to your healthy Mac.

Recover Files from Mac That Won't Boot with APFS Snapshots

If you don't have a backup with Time Machine and using macOS after High Sierra, you can try to recover files from Mac that won't boot with APFS snapshots. We will show you how to recover files from Mac that won't boot with this method. By the way, this method cannot recover all the files on your Mac.

Step 1. Boot your Mac into Recovery Mode, and select "Restore from Time Machine".

Step 2. Select the latest APFS snapshot.

Step 3. Then you can follow the prompts to restore with a previous APFS snapshot.

Contact Apple Support to Recover Files from Mac That Won't Boot

If you cannot successfully recover files from your Mac that won't boot, or your Mac hard disk needs a replacement. You need to contact Apple Support to get professional help. Bring or send your Mac that won't boot to Apple Support to recover files manually.

1. 1. Go to the Apple Support official website.
2. 2. Go to local Apple Retail Stores.

Recover Files from Mac That Won't Boot FAQs

We have some frequently asked questions and answers about recovering files from Mac that won't boot, and we hope you can learn more from the following answers.

Can I recover data from a dead Mac?

You can recover data from dead MacBook Pro or Mac by applying EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac.

1. 1. Create a bootable media.
2. 2. Launch the software and scan the Mac disk.
3. 3. Find the lost files and select the files you want to recover.
4. 4. Preview and recover files from your dead Mac or MacBook.

How do I recover files from my Mac that won't boot without the software?

There are five ways can help you recover files from Mac that won't boot without software:

1. 1. Restore from a Time Machine backup.
2. 2. Creating a disk image.
3. 3. Use macOS Target Disk Mode.
4. 4. Restore from APFS snapshots.
5. 5. Contact Apple Support.

How to get files off an unbootable Mac?

If your Mac cannot boot, you'd better create a bootable media with EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac and recover files.

1. 1. Launch the software and scan the Mac disk.
2. 2. Find the lost files and select the files you want to recover.
3. 3. Preview and recover files from your dead Mac or MacBook.

How can I boot Mac from a USB flash drive?

You can follow the steps to boot Mac from a USB flash drive:

1. 1. Prepare and format a USB flash drive.
2. 2. Press the power button or Touch ID and hold the Option key to boot Mac into Startup Manager.
3. 3. Choose the USB drive and boot from it.