Troubleshooting

The most common issues, ordered by frequency.

"Full Disk Access is required"

macOS hides important folders unless the app has Full Disk Access. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Full Disk Access, add Storage Studio if missing, and switch it on. Storage Studio picks the change up within a couple of seconds — no relaunch needed.

If it's already switched on and you're still being told it's missing, your Mac has most likely stopped honouring it. That happens because the permission is tied to the exact copy of the app it was granted to, so updating or repairing Storage Studio can quietly drop it. Switching Storage Studio off and then on again in that same list restores it.

Storage Studio says it's already running

Only one copy of Storage Studio runs at a time — two would mean two sets of background jobs working on the same files. If a second copy is started, it hands over to the one already running and brings its window forward instead of starting again. Use the menu-bar icon to reach it.

Something is still running after I quit

It shouldn't be. Quit and Restart both run the same shutdown, which also ends the helpers Storage Studio starts for transfers, backups and device connections — each is asked to finish tidily first, and anything still going after that is ended.

Two things are left alone on purpose: the helper that brings the app back after a restart, and the one installing an update — stopping that second one would leave you with a half-replaced app.

The background service is separate and keeps running by design; that's what does the routine tidying while Storage Studio is closed. Stop it yourself from Settings → Services if you want everything quiet.

My external drive doesn't show in the picker

Make sure it's mounted in Finder.
The drive must be formatted as APFS, HFS+, or ExFAT. NTFS-only

drives are read-only on macOS and can't be the destination side.

Open the Inspect window to confirm Storage Studio sees the drive

at the system level.

License didn't activate

Double-check the email address matches your Stripe receipt

exactly. Aliases like +plus don't match.

Confirm you copied the full 16-character License Code, with no

trailing space or quotes.

If you bought less than 60 seconds ago, your purchase may not have

finished processing yet. Try again in 30 seconds.

The activation server is at

storagestudio.us — make sure your firewall isn't blocking it.

The My Drive code didn't arrive, or doesn't work

Check your junk folder — the code usually arrives within a minute. Each code lasts 15 minutes and only works on the Mac that asked for it. If it expired, use Send a new code; if it says too many codes or too many wrong attempts, wait an hour. The code always goes to the email Storage Studio is registered to — check that inbox. If it says the address already has My Drive on a licence, activate that licence on this Mac instead.

Paste doesn't work in a text box

Copy, paste and select-all work in every text box, including the code fields. If one doesn't, update to the latest version. Boxes that ask you to type a word before something destructive refuse a paste on purpose.

Offline grace period expired

Storage Studio works offline for up to 14 days after one successful validation. Beyond that you'll see a "couldn't validate license" banner. Reconnect to the internet and click Validate now in the License pane.

Still stuck?

Email support@storagestudio.us with:

The version of Storage Studio (Preferences → About)
Your macOS version
What you tried
Any error message exactly as shown

We reply within one business day.