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Disk Utility

For several years Apple's Disk Utility has remained largely unchanged. However in El Capitan, the Disk Utility has been completely overhauled. The underlying disk formats and partition map schemes it uses remain the same, but the processes of formatting a disk, partitioning a disk, restoring to a disk, and checking the health of a drive, as well as the user interface in general, are all different. The Disk Utility now has a cleaner and more organized look, consistent with other applications in OS X.

The most obvious difference from earlier versions of Disk Utility (aside from the general aesthetic) is what's missing. Apple has removed the RAID button and Restore button from the main interface, although the ability to restore a disk image to a target volume still remains (in hidden form). Disk Utility also now provides visual feedback on what type of data is present on a given drive.

Note: please check our drive formatting tips to get the details on how to use the new Disk Utility.

El Capitan DiskU interface
The Disk Utility in El Capitan has a brand new user interface. Enlarge
El Capitan DiskU partition
Apple's new disk partitioning controls in El Capitan. Enlarge




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