Backblaze Error: The hard drive /Volumes/HDD 1/ is only backed up when it is called /Volumes/HDD/

I use Backblaze for years as a very reliable online backup service for my wife's Mac and my MacBook Pro. But for a few days now, I've been getting the following error message regularly in Backblaze:

WARNING: Backblaze is not able to back up one of your hard drives!
The hard drive /Volumes/HDD 1/ is only backed up when it is called /Volumes/HDD/
[close] [learn more]

If you now click on the “Learn more” button, you will end up at a general troubleshooting page that appears to list all possible causes for the message “WARNING: Backblaze is not able to back up one of your hard drives!” shows. Unfortunately, this site didn't help me much, so I continued searching for a solution to the problem via forums.

Guide: The solution to Backblaze error

If you just want to quickly know how to fix the problem, you can find the relevant instructions here.

Important: In my case, the affected medium is a hard drive, but it could also be a USB stick, an SSD or any other data medium. And you certainly don’t call the volume “HDD”. So you have to “translate” the instructions a little so that they fit your situation.

1. In the Finder, click “Go” and select “Go to Folder” at the bottom
2. Now enter /Volumes and press Return
3. Now you end up in the corresponding folder, in which the mount point “HDD 1” mentioned in the error message (surely it has a different name for you!) can be found
4. If you currently have the hard drive connected, eject it by right-clicking on the hard drive name and selecting “Eject”.
5. Now right-click on the hard drive name with “1” and select “Put in trash”.
6. You will now be asked for the admin password, which you must enter
7. Now plug the hard drive back in

After entering the password (if it was correct), the incorrect mountpoint with the one in the name disappears.

The cause: Hard drive was unexpectedly deactivated

As far as I understand it, the main cause of the above error is that the hard drive, which is externally connected to me for example, was unexpectedly disconnected from the Mac.

This sometimes happens to me if I don't eject the hard drive but disconnect the Apple Studio Display from the Mac. Then the hard drive that is plugged into the studio display also loses its connection to the Mac.

But since the hard drive wasn't properly unmounted before I disconnected it from the Mac, the mount point remains /Volumes/HDD/ still reserved. If you plug the hard drive back in, it will be under the mount point /Volumes/HDD 1/ logged in – even if the name of the hard drive has not changed and is still “HDD”.

Backblaze recognizes the volumes exactly at the mount point and no longer finds a hard drive under /Volumes/HDD/ and then throws out the error message because it finds a hard drive that seems to be very similar to the “old” one.

What is a mount point?

I once asked ChatGPT if he could simply explain the term “mountpoint” to me. This is what came out of it:

A mount point is a location in the macOS file system where the contents of another storage medium, such as a USB stick, are made visible. When you connect a USB stick, macOS creates a mount point so that you can access the files. Strictly speaking, it is the access point to the data on this storage medium.

I don't know about you, but I think I get it. I never go through the Volumes folder to get to a disk, but always through the sidebar in the Finder window. But I assume these are just shortcuts to the actual mount points.

Solution: delete old mount point

I tried a number of instructions, but in the end only one worked – several times now! – Success demonstrated. The hard drive is disconnected from the Mac and then the old mount point is deleted from the macOS.

Then you plug the hard drive back in and the Mac system mounts it under the old point /Volumes/HDD/. With that, Backblaze is happy again. And how to do this step by step is explained above.

By the way: The problem apparently also exists on Windows PCs, but unfortunately I can't provide instructions here. It's best to search for "Delete mountpoint Windows" in Google... then hopefully you'll find help.

Jen Kleinholz( Founder & Sir Apfelot )

Jens has been running the blog since 2012. He acts as Sir Apfelot for his readers and helps them with technical problems. In his spare time he rides electric unicycles, takes photos (preferably with the iPhone, of course), climbs around in the Hessian mountains or hikes with the family. His articles deal with Apple products, news from the world of drones or solutions to current bugs.