Permissions problem on brand new Sequoia iMac

Sue Daly wrote:

The files I'm using are ones I transferred from my external drive where I have everything backed up.

If your external drive is not Time Machine drive ... and it just has files you created on your old Mac ... then it sounds like the permissions on the files do not allow access or writing under your new user account on your new iMac.

In the Finder, select one of the troublesome files (an image, a document, etc.) and do GetInfo (CMD-I or File > Get Info). In the GetInfo window, scroll down to "Sharing and Permissions." If it does not say "You can read and write" ... and/or the entry for "Me" says "Read Only" or "No Access" then you have a permissions mismatch and that's why you cannot edit/save those files. The mismatch would occur for files created by the user account on your old Mac but now you are attempting to use them in your new user account on your new iMac. There IS a way to fix it, but first let's find out if that's what's going on.

Here is a screenshot of the Sharing & Permissions panel:

Sue Daly wrote:

I created a backup from my old computer using Time Machine on an external drive and have been dragging and dropping them from there onto my new machine. My aim was to do a few folders at a time and sort through them deleting some things as I go to make space as my new machine has less storage.

It's possible that the files you are copying from the TM backup drive with Finder are corrupted by that process. They may still be intact if recovered properly.

Time Machine's backup process involves more than simply making copies of the files on your Mac. The initial full backup is just that, more or less, but the incremental backups that it does are more involved and implement pointers and references to original copies as you edit your files and make changes that then get backed up to the TM drive.

This makes drag and drop copying of files from the TM drive to another drive problematic. Finder is not the prescribed way to recover files from the TM backup, and trying to do it like that is a good way to corrupt a TM backup set. The Time Machine application - not Finder - is the proper way to recover files and folders from the backup drive.

Restore items backed up with Time Machine on Mac - Apple Support

This is the Time Machine backup browser accessed via the Time Machine application or by clicking the TM menu bar icon and > Browse Time Machine Backups.

D.I Johnson wrote:

Meanwhile, our friend @MartinR has offered good guidance regarding the file permissions panel.

To Sue Daly (OP) -

Further to what I wrote earlier about the Permissions panel,

If you have a whole bunch of files whose permissions you need to change, you don't have to do them one at a time. You can put the files in a single folder and change their permissions all at once. Here's how ...

• Create a new folder (I suggest this for safety)
• Copy or move all the relevant files to that folder
• Do GetInfo on the folder
• Click the padlock icon and enter your password in order to unlock the Sharing & Permissions panel
• Change the permissions for "everyone" to "Read & Write"
• Click the little circle that has 3 dots inside. This opens an additional dialog
• Click "Apply to enclosed items"
• You will get another dialog box asking if you are sure you want to make this change.
• Double-check (look at) the folder name at the top of the GetInfo panel to make sure you are applying the changes to the correct folder. NOTE: you cannot undo the changes you are about to make ... if you need to cancel, now is the time to cancel
• Click OK if everything looks good. The permissions will be changed for the folder & everything it contains.

Here's a screenshot to help you visualize the process ...

Follow up -

You might try copying your files over directly from your old iMac rather than trying to copy them with Finder from the TM backup drive. Use another external drive or flash drive if necessary.

Sue Daly wrote:

My old iMac is dead so I can't copy files directly from it.

You said previously that you've pulled the drive from the old iMac and waiting for an enclosure. This is probably your best chance to recover files from that Mac. When you have that enclosure you should then be able to install the old drive, connect it to your new Mac and access the data, assuming that drive is healthy.

Transferring files from my Time Machine backup using Finder has resulted in my not being able to gain permission to any of my files, whether they are Word Documents, Avid Projects or Photoshop files. I am moving to a much smaller iMac so need to be able to transfer a few folders at a time and sort through them, deleting the files I no longer need or putting them on an external drive. I've tried using Time Machine to transfer a single folder or even a single file and the restore button is greyed out. (What is the point then of Time Machine??!)

When used properly, TM can be a life saver.

You made the mistake of buying a new computer with less internal storage than your old Mac. This is often problematic because one simply can't cram 10 lbs of stuff in a 5 lb box. Over years of using your old Mac you've collected lots of stuff.

Migration Assistant is pretty straightforward to use if you have the storage to move files and folders to.

I have also tried Migration Assistant but that only gives me the choice of transferring ALL of my files, not just a few at a time, and there isn't space on my new machine for all of my files. I feel like I'm going round and round in circles when this process should be such a simple one.

It is simple if you've planned ahead. As you've stated yourself, there isn't space on your new machine for all of your files and that has caused this problem.

Is there any way I can gain permission to the files I've been able to transfer so far? They are mostly photographs, raw files, that I need to browse through in either Bridge or Photoshop and delete the ones I don't need, but without permission I can't do this.

No, without the correct permissions you cannot access those files already transferred.

Be patient until you get your drive enclosure.

Meanwhile, our friend @MartinR has offered good guidance regarding the file permissions panel.

There are others here in the community who may see this thread and have further insight or guidance to offer.

Sue Daly wrote:

My old Mac died but I have taken the hard drive out and have ordered an enclosure for it so hopefully I can get something to work.

Did your old Mac have a Fusion Drive?

If so, then the Hard Drive is not enough to access those files since it also needs the SSD portion to work. In fact, trying to access the Hard Drive only portion of the Fusion Drive may result in splitting the Fusion Drive which may be a permanent condition making recovering those files difficult to impossible.

Which brings me to the next question.....what problem do you have with the "broken" iMac....exact symptoms? The most common hardware failure for iMacs is a failing Hard Drive, although with 2019 & 2020 iMacs Logic Board failures seem to be more common.

And I thought a clean install and transferring over my files would be simple!

Even if your old iMac did not have a Fusion Drive, just connecting that drive externally may still give you permissions issues if either your old computer or new computer has (or had) more than one user account.

Edit: Use the TM app to select a folder & transfer it to an external SSD with "Ignore Ownership" checked (Get Info on the external volume & you should see this option). Then transfer the items you want to the internal SSD leaving the rest to be stored on external media.

Sue Daly wrote:

Many thanks, but how will this help? Might it be better if I completely reset this system and start again?

Completely resetting your system and starting again would be the very last step in troubleshooting. And if you're thinking about that, then you best be having a backup of your stuff before you do it.

Taking steps to keep your operating system updated is one of the first steps in troubleshooting. The current version of Sequoia is 15.7.3. Yours (15.5) outdated. There may have been a fix provided if the problem you are having is Apple's shortfall.

Sequoia has been superseded by macOS 26 Tahoe, a major upgrade from Sequoia. I don't recommend upgrading to Tahoe yet, because it's only a few months old. Sequoia is pretty mature after more than a year. Others will disagree.

Are you telling us that you cannot open your files with these apps: Adobe Bridge, Photoshop, Avid MC and MS Word?

Are these current versions of those apps? Fresh downloads?

Exactly what happens when you try to open your files and docs?