Apple File System (APFS)
Article ID = 188Article Title = Apple File System (APFS)
Article Author(s) = Graham Needham (BH)
Article Created On = 30th August 2017
Article Last Updated = 10th March 2021
Article URL = https://www.macstrategy.com/article.php?188
Article Brief Description:
Infromation about the new Apple File System (APFS) introduced with iOS 10.3 and macOS 10.13 High Sierra
Apple File System (APFS)
Apple introduced a new, modern file system called "Apple File System" with iOS 10.3, macOS 10.13 High Sierra and it is available in the latest version of macOS. It was also rolled out for tvOS 11 and watchOS 4 in the autumn of 2017. This underlying feature of the OS is optimised specifically for Flash/SSD storage and includes features such as:- Strong encryption
- Copy-on-write metadata
- Space sharing
- Cloning for files and directories
- Snapshots
- Fast directory sizing
- Atomic safe-save primitives
- Improved file system fundamentals
How To Get The New Apple File System
Install one of the following operating systems on your Apple device:- Mac computer - macOS 10.13 or later
- iPhone/iPad/iPod touch - iOS 10.3 or later
- tvOS 11 or later
- watchOS 4 or later
Mac Computers - macOS 10.14.x Mojave or later
The startup/boot SSD, Fusion Drive or normal hard drive that you install macOS 10.14.x Mojave to will be converted to APFS.Mac Computers - macOS 10.13.x High Sierra
Installing macOS 10.13.x includes APFS. It all depends on what type of storage you have for your Startup Disk whether you get APFS automatically:- Internal SSD/Flash storage Startup Disk (came with the Mac from Apple) - will be automatically upgraded to APFS > you can't opt-out of the transition to APFS
- Internal SSD/Flash storage Startup Disk (that you upgraded yourself/third party upgrade) - will be automatically upgraded to APFS > you can't opt-out of the transition to APFS
- Internal SSD/Flash storage not Startup Disk will not be automatically upgraded to APFS
- Internal "Fusion Drive" Startup Disk (came with the Mac from Apple) - will not be automatically upgraded to APFS
- Internal hard disk drive (traditional HDD) Startup Disk - will not be automatically upgraded to APFS
- Internal hard disk drive (traditional HDD) not Startup Disk - will not be automatically upgraded to APFS
- External storage (SSD/Flash/USB) - will not be automatically upgraded to APFS
NOTE: Additional storage (internal or external) that is not your startup disk will not be automatically converted to APFS during the installation/upgrade but you can convert it yourself once High Sierra is installed if you want to - we don't recommend doing this yet.
APFS Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q. Can I use Apple File System with my existing hard disk drive?
A. Yes. APFS is optimised for Flash/SSD storage. It can also be used with traditional hard disk drives (HDD) and external, direct-attached storage but, generally, if it's not Flash/SSD storage we don't recommend using APFS.Q. Can I convert storage devices from HFS+ to APFS at a later date?
A. Yes. You can use Apple's "Disk Utility" application to do the conversion but note that you cannot convert a Time Machine drive to APFS. You can do the conversion in-place - you do not need to erase/reformat. However, please make sure you have a backup of your data before you do the conversion (just in case!).Q. Can I convert APFS storage back to HFS+?
A. Not in-place, non-destructively. The only way to convert back is to reformat the storage as HFS+ losing all data in the process.Q. Does APFS work with FileVault?
A. Yes.Q. Does APFS work with Boot Camp?
A. Boot Camp is supported unless the Boot Camp volume is greater than 3TB and resides on a Fusion Drive. Boot Camp doesn't support Read/Write to APFS-formatted Mac volumes.Q. Does APFS work with RAID?
A. Yes. Apple File System does not directly implement software RAID; however APFS-formatted volumes can be combined with an Apple RAID volume to support Striping (RAID 0), Mirroring (RAID 1), and Concatenation (JBOD). APFS-formatted volumes can also be used with direct-attached hardware RAID solutions.Q. I share APFS formatted volumes via Personal File Sharing/macOS Server. Can I still do this?
A. APFS formatted volumes can only be shared via the SMB or NFS protocols. They cannot be shared via the AFP protocol. Time Machine share points must be shared over SMB instead of AFP.Q. Does APFS work with Time Machine?
A. Yes and no:- A startup disk backing up to HFS+ formatted storage = YES
- A startup disk backing up to APFS formatted storage = YES but macOS 11 Big Sur or later is required
- A Time Machine share point on HFS+ formatted storage can be shared over AFP or SMB
- A Time Machine share point on APFS formatted storage must be shared over SMB and not AFP
Q. Can I connect a storage volume formatted with Apple File System (APFS) to a Mac running macOS 10.12 Sierra or earlier?
Q. Can I Target Mode connect Macs formatted with Apple File System (APFS) to a Mac running macOS 10.12 Sierra or earlier?
A. This will only work with the host Mac running macOS 10.12.6 or later. If your Mac is running macOS 10.12.5 or earlier it will not be able to see/use APFS formatted storage. In addition, this only works with unencrypted APFS volumes - encrypted APFS volumes are only readable with macOS 10.13 High Sierra.Q. If I am running a computer with a Startup Disk upgraded to APFS can I still use additional internal/external storage devices that are formatted as HFS+ e.g. external drives/storage, RAID boxes, USB sticks, Time Machine backup drives, etc?
A. Yes. Although a Time Machine backup drive must be formatted as HFS+ as you cannot backup to a Time Machine backup drive formatted as APFS.More Information
- Apple's Prepare for APFS in macOS High Sierra support document
- Apple's APFS developer documentation
- Apple's Developer pages have some additional FAQs
- Apple 2017 WWDC video: What's new in Apple File System (use Safari web browser)
- Apple 2016 WWDC video: Introducing Apple File System (use Safari web browser)
- Disk Utility Help
- File system formats available in Disk Utility
- What is APFS? - The Apple File System Explained (from Computer Clan YouTube channel)
- OSXDaily How to Skip Converting to APFS When Installing macOS High Sierra
- MacObserver An APFS FAQ: Partitions, Volumes, and AFPS Containers
Third Party Apps/Hardware Specifically NOT Compatible With APFS
- some older, individual Adobe Creative Cloud applications - upgrade to the latest version for best results
- Aura SSDs from OWC - known issue
- Alsoft DiskWarrior v5 - update to DiskWarrior v5.1 to be able to run the application + full support for APFS will be included with a future DiskWarrior update once Apple releases the final APFS format documentation
- Carbon Copy Cloner 4 - some issues, best to upgrade to version 5 or later
- Google Drive - upgrade to Backup And Sync v3.36 or later (for consumers) or Drive File Stream (for business users)
- Prosoft Drive Genius - update/upgrade to v5.2.1 or later
- SoftRAID 5.x - full support for APFS included with SoftRAID version 6 or later
- SuperDuper! - upgrade to v3.0 or later
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