TransMac
Help
System Requirements: Any version of Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista or XP.
Features:
Apple File System (APFS) volume read support.
Open Mac APFS/HFS/HFS+ format disk drives, flash drives, CD/DVD/Blu-ray media, HD floppies, dmg, dmgpart, sparsebundle and sparseimage files.
Copy files to Mac HFS+ disks and dmg images.
Format as HFS+ for Mac.
Save and restore images of disks and flash drives.
Create, compress, expand and split dmg files.
Built in burner functionality to burn ISO and dmg files directly to CD/DVD/Blu-Ray.
Read Mac multisession and hybrid CDs.
View partition layout.
Quick Start Guide
WARNING: After formatting or attaching a Mac disk, Windows may display
a window offering to format it. DO NOT SELECT FORMAT OR DATA ON THE DRIVE WILL BE LOST!
Windows does this because it does not recognize Mac format disks. Just cancel
that window without formatting and run TransMac.
Click the drive in the left pane of the TransMac window. You can then browse
the drive and copy files from within TransMac.
Below are instructions for performing some common operations in TransMac.
Navigation Tips:
TransMac works like File Explorer. Select disks, disk images and folders
in the treeview pane on the left. Contents of the selected treeview item are
displayed in the listview pane on the right. Most operations can be performed
with the right-click context menus.
Treeview navigation:
- Right click on treeview items or in an open area to display a pop-up
menu of valid operations.
- Click or use up and down arrow keys to traverse the folder tree.
- If a drive has been added since TransMac was run, right-click in
an open area and select "Refresh Drive List".
- Check the partition info and size of a disk by right-clicking and
selecting "Properties".
- Check the size of a volume or container by right-clicking and selecting
"Properties".
Listview navigation:
- Right click on listview items or in an open area to display a pop-up
menu of valid operations.
- Press letter keys repeatedly to cycle through items starting with that
letter.
- Press Ctrl-A to select all items in a list box.
- Select a group of items by clicking on the first item, scrolling to the
last item, then holding down the "Shift" key while clicking on the last
item.
- Select non-consecutive individual items by holding the "Ctrl" key while
clicking on them.
Copying files from a Mac volume to the PC:
Select a drive in the treeview pane and click on a Mac volume.
Browse the Mac volume for the files to be copied.
Drag them from the listview pane to a File Explorer window or other drop
target. (An alternate way is to right-click the items in the listview pane
and select "Copy to")
NOTE: For copying large files it is best to use the "Copy to"
method instead of drag and drop since it does not copy to a temp folder first.
Copying files from the PC to a Mac volume:
Select a drive in the treeview pane and click on a Mac volume.
Browse to where files are to be copied.
Drag files from a File Explorer window or other drag source to the listview
pane. (An alternate way is to right-click an open area in the listview pane
and select "Copy here")
Creating a folder on a Mac volume:
Open a volume and browse to where the new folder is to be created.
Right-click an open area in the listview pane and select "New Folder".
(An alternate way is to press the
button)
Enter the name of the folder and press OK.
Deleting files/folders on a Mac volume:
Open a volume and browse until files/folders to be deleted are shown in
listview pane.
Right-click and select "Delete". (An alternate way is to press the
button)
CAUTION: Deleting a folder will delete all sub folders inside it as
well.
Renaming files on a Mac volume:
Open a volume and browse until files/folders to be renamed are shown in
listview pane.
Right-click and select "Rename". (An alternate way is to select the file/folder
then click the name in the listview)
Edit the name in place then press Enter or click outside the name. Press
escape (Esc) to cancel and revert to the original name.
Previewing files on a Mac volume:
Open a volume and browse for the file to preview in the listview.
Double-click the item to preview. (An alternate way is to right-click and
select "Open")
The file will be opened using the PC application associated with the file
type or extension.
To open a file in notepad, right-click and select "Open as Text".
To open with a different application, right-click and select "Open with".
You will be prompted to select an application.
NOTE: When opening a file from a Mac disk, TransMac copies it to a temporary
folder on the PC. Any changes to the file will NOT be written to the Mac disk.
Opening a disk image:
By default the TransMac installation program associates Mac disk image
files (.dmg and .sparseimage extensions) with TransMac so double-clicking
those files should open them in TransMac.
To explicitly open disk images with other extensions select "Open Disk
Image" from the file menu or right-click an open area of the treeview pane
and select "Open Disk Image".
The disk image file should now show up in the treeview pane. Clicking the
file should open it if it contains a valid Mac volume.
Creating a disk image:
Select "New Disk Image" from the file menu or right-click an open area
of the treeview pane and select "New Disk Image".
Enter the desired volume label.
Enter a volume size in megabytes.
Press OK and you will be prompted to browse for the destination folder
and file name.
Compressing an uncompressed .dmg disk image:
Right-click the dmg file in the treeview pane and select "Compress".
Enter the destination file name in the "Save As" dialog.
Expanding (convert to iso) a compressed .dmg disk image:
Right-click the dmg file in the treeview pane and select "Expand".
Enter the destination file name in the "Save As" dialog.
NOTE: Some types of dmg compression like bzip may take a long time to expand.
Splitting a compressed .dmg disk image:
Right-click the dmg file in the treeview pane and select "Split". Note:
Only compressed dmg files can be split.
Enter the number of segments.
You will be prompted for the destination file name. The first file has
a .dmg extension. The other files have the extension .NNN.dmgpart
where NNN is a sequence number (002, 003, 004,
etc.).
Formatting a disk for the Mac:
Right-click a drive in the treeview pane and select "Format Disk for Mac".
You may be prompted to restart TransMac as administrator.
Enter the desired volume label and press OK.
CAUTION: Make sure you want to format the disk. Any existing data on
the disk will be destroyed.
Restoring a disk with a disk image:
Right-click a drive in the treeview pane and select "Restore with Disk
Image".
Press the "..." button to browse for the disk image to be written. Valid
compressed dmg files will automatically be uncompressed as they are written.
CAUTION: Make sure you really want to over write the disk. Any existing
data on the disk will be destroyed.
NOTE: Restoring a large dmg file to a flash drive may take a long time.
Flash drive write times vary greatly but are usually much slower than reading.
Compressed dmg files will also add time. You may be able to save time by expanding
ahead of time (see Expanding Dmg above).
Saving an image of a disk:
Right-click a drive in the treeview pane and select "Save Image of Disk".
Select the location for the saved image file.
Burning a .dmg file to CD or DVD:
Select "Burn CD/DVD" from the "Tools" menu or right-click the .dmg image
in the treeview and select "Burn to CD/DVD".
Select the burn drive.
Press the "..." button to browse for the dmg file to be burned.
Click OK to start the burn process.
NOTE: Compressed dmg files will add time. You may be able to save time by expanding
ahead of time (see Expanding Dmg above).
Burning an ISO image to CD or DVD:
Since TransMac has an internal burning functionality, it can burn any ISO
or CD/DVD image file.
Select "Burn CD/DVD" from the "Tools" menu.
Select the burn drive.
Press the "..." button to browse for the ISO file to be burned.
Click OK to start the burn process.
Creating a Mac CD or DVD:
Follow the directions for "Creating a disk image" above. Be sure to select
dmg for the image type.
You can save burn time by creating a smaller volume, but it can not be
enlarged once it is created. The volume size should not be greater than the
capacity of the target media. A CD-R has a limit of about 650-700 MB. A DVD-R
has a limit around 4.7GB. To use the full capacity of the media select the
drive in the "Get size from CD media" box to read the size from inserted media.
Open the disk image and copy the files and folders you want on to be on
the CD.
Right-click the dmg in the treeview pane and select "Burn to CD/DVD". (An
alternate way is to select "Burn CD/DVD" from the "Tools" menu)
Select the burn drive.
Press the "..." button to browse for the dmg file to be burned.
Click OK to start the burn process.
NOTE: If TransMac's CD burning capabilities are not working with
your drive, try selecting Use alternate burning method in the Tools/Settings
menu under the DVD/CD Burning tab.
Erasing a rewritable CD or DVD:
Select "Erase CD/DVD" from the "Tools" menu.
Select the burn drive.
Click OK to start the erase process.
Settings
General Tab:
- Show hidden and system files - Displays files marked as
hidden which normally do not show up on a Mac.
- Preserve file dates - Restores original file dates after
copy.
- Convert Mac text file line end codes to PC format - Changes
CRLF to LF for 'Open as Text' right-click context menu.
- Copy files that have a resource fork in MacBinary format
- Encode resource forks for older Mac volumes. Recent versions of
Mac OS do not use resource forks.
- Allow long paths for Copy to PC - Recent versions of the
Windows OS support very long path names but programs that use older
APIs may not. This option allows longer paths for files copied from
Mac disks. Be aware that other programs may have problems dealing
with files copied using this option.
Disk Drives/Images Tab:
- Mac Volumes on Internal Drives - Select how to handle
internal fixed drives. Do not allow writing unless you are sure.
- Use alternate dmg compression method - Slower, smaller
compression method.
DVD/CD Burning Tab:
- Use alternate burning method - If selected uses secondary burning
method. Try this if you have problems burning CD/DVD. Note: If this option
is selected you must expand compressed dmg files before burning.
- Use slowest burn speed - Using a slower speed may create a more
reliable burn. If this option is not selected the default (fastest) speed
for the inserted media will be used.
- Verify - Use quick verify while burning. Note: Selecting this
may slow burn speed.
- Eject after burn - Automatically eject media after burn or erase.
Disk Images
Mac disk image files are just file systems written to a file instead of to a raw
disk. The Mac can mount them so they appear just like a disk drive. There are
several different types each with different options. Below are descriptions of
the types TransMac supports:
dmg: Files with a .dmg extension are commonly used to transfer
data or software installation packages. They can be compressed to save space
or uncompressed to allow writing.
dmgpart: Files with a .dmgpart extension are simply dmg files
that are split into segments for easy copying. The first file has a .dmg
extension. The other files have the extension .NNN.dmgpart where NNN
is a sequence number (002, 003, 004, etc.).
sparseimage: Files with a "sparseimage" extension leave out unused
blocks of the volume to save space. They start out small but grow as data
is added. Sparse image files are read/write. They have no internal compression,
but shrink well using external compression like zip.
Troubleshooting Guide
Symptom: Drag/drop copying from Mac to PC is slow or seems to copy twice.
Symptom: When copying from Mac to PC, the destination disk runs out of
space even if there is room.
Problem: Windows drag/drop interface copies files to a temporary
folder on the boot drive before moving to the destination disk.
Solution: Instead of drag and
drop, use the right-click context menu "Copy to". This will copy directly to the
destination disk.
Symptom: The message "No Mac HFS volumes found" appears when selecting
a Mac disk or dmg.
Problem: The disk is not Mac APFS, HFS+ or Standard HFS formatted.
Solution: TransMac can
only open Mac APFS, HFSX, HFS+ and (Old) Standard HFS format disks and
dmg files. Right-click the drive and select "Properties"
to see the partiton layout and type of volume.
Symptom: An error message appears while copying files.
Problem: Windows has a legacy file path size limit
of 255 characters.
Solution1: Rename folders
with smaller names or copy inner folders separately so they fit within path
limit.
Solution2: Select the "Allow
long paths for Copy to PC" checkbox in the Settings dialog. This setting
may cause problems with lagacy Windows programs that don't support long paths.
Problem: File is too large for the target
file system.
Solution: Make sure file is
less than 2GB for PC FAT16
file system and less than 4GB for PC
FAT32.
Problem: Disk has bad sectors.
Solution: Use a different
disk, reformat disk or fix disk by running a check for bad sectors on a Mac.
Symptom: Some listview context menu items (Copy Here, Delete, New Folder, etc.) are greyed out.
Problem: The disk is write protected or read only.
Solution: For hardware write
protect, turn protect switch off.
Solution: Dmg files are read-only when compressed. Expand the dmg to write to it.
Symptom: An error message appears when trying to write to a disk.
Problem: The disk is write protected or read only.
Solution: For hardware write
protect, turn protect switch off.
Problem: Disk has bad sectors.
Solution: Use a different
disk, reformat disk or fix disk by running a check for bad sectors on a Mac.
Symptom: An error message appears when formatting a disk.
Problem: The disk is write protected
Solution: For hardware write
protect, turn protect switch off.
Problem: Disk has bad sectors.
Solution: Use a different
disk, reformat disk or fix disk by running a check for bad sectors on a Mac.
Symptom: A file copied from a PC is not recognized on the Mac.
Problem: The Mac does not have an application installed
that can open the file type.
Solution: Some file
types are the same on both machines (jpg, gif, mp3, etc). Some files can
be opened with the same application on the opposite platform. For example
a file created on a Mac with Quark can usually be opened on a PC if it
has the PC version of Quark installed. For some files there is no application
that will open them on the other machine.
Symptom: A file copied from a Mac is not recognized on the PC.
Problem: The PC does not have an application installed
that can open the file type.
Solution: Some file
types are the same on both machines (jpg, gif, mp3, etc). Some files can
be opened with the same application on the opposite platform. For example
a file created on a Mac with Quark can usually be opened on a PC if it
has the PC version of Quark installed. For some files there is no application
that will open them on the other machine.
Symptom: Files are corrupt after copy.
Problem: The file system on the disk is corrupt.
Solution: Use a disk checking
utility (on a Mac), or reformat the disk (if there is no needed data on it).
Symptom: After restoring a dmg/iso image, the destination USB drive is not bootable or does not work properly.
Problem: TransMac save/restore are very simple raw transfer functions
that work like Unix dd. TransMac does not modify the disk image to make it bootable or change it
in any way (other than decompressing). You get an exact copy of the disk image onto the USB drive.
If the dmg/iso image is not bootable or is incompatible in some way with the destination machine, it will not work.
Symptom: Restoring a dmg file to flash drive is slow.
Problem: USB flash drives are optimized for reading. Writing may be very slow especially
for older drives. Compressed dmg files are expanded on the fly which will also add to restore time.
Solution1: Use a newer/faster flash drive.
Solution2: Use a recent version of TransMac. The buffer size
has been expanded in recent versions of TransMac for faster decompression.
Solution3: Expand the dmg file before restoring.
Symptom: After restore, flash drive capacity is too small.
Problem: Restoring will overwrite the partition map
with whatever is in the disk image. Windows may only format a partition but not the partition map.
Solution: To revert
back to the original size, the incorrect partition map must be overwritten.
In Windows use TransMac "Format Disk for Mac" operation and eject, then
re-insert the drive and Windows should prompt to format (if not prompted,
open Windows "Disk Management" window to format drive). An internet
search will reveal other ways to do this in Windows or other operating
systems.
Symptom: Get error message while or after burning disk image to DVD.
Problem: If image is a compressed dmg, it could be corrupt.
Solution: Try expanding dmg
to verify integrity.
Problem: DVD failed verification.
Solution1: Try selecting "Use
slowest burn speed" in Options/General Settings.
Solution2: Try different media
or drive.
TransMac Under Win10/8/7/Vista
Due to extra security (UAC) in Windows 10/8/7/Vista, users may not be able to
access disks without elevating privileges. TransMac will prompt to restart itself
when this is necessary or it can be done ahead of time as shown below.
To run TransMac once as administrator, right-click on the TransMac shortcut
or icon and select "Run as administrator".
To always run TransMac as administrator, right-click on the TransMac shortcut
or icon and select "Properties".
Then tick "Run this program as an administrator" under the "Compatibility"
tab
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