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Apart from what it displays directly, Disk Utility on Mac OS X (10.6, if it matters) keeps a log, visible through Window → Show Log (or ⌘L). This is probably a file on disk, right? Where is this file? I'd like to look at it if e.g. Disk Utility stops responding.

(I also don't know where the rest of the system logs are (probably /var/log, but I never know which files to look in), but that's probably another question.)

2 Answers 2

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It's in ~/Library/Logs/DiskUtility.log

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    it appears this is no longer the case for macOS Sierra.
    – MmmHmm
    Jul 13, 2017 at 14:22
  • TUFU (The Usual Fuck Up). Didn't work for me either in High Sierra
    – Snowcrash
    Mar 9, 2023 at 18:06
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For anyone on Mojave, it seems there's no longer a .log file to tail.

Instead, open up Console.app and click on your computer name under Devices in the left sidebar.

Then, you can search for "disk utility" in the top search bar. After pressing enter, click on the drop down next to Any (in the search bar) and click Process. That'll show you active log items from the Disk Utility process.

Screenshot of the Console app on macOS, showing where to click to filter search result types

For me, a drive First Aid was in progress and the Disk Utility window was beachballing. This allowed me to see that Disk Utility was actually still doing work (and I should be patient).

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  • Didn't work for me (High Sierra)
    – Snowcrash
    Mar 9, 2023 at 18:07
  • I just tried these steps again (on Ventura 13.2.1) and I can see Disk Utility logs just fine, as long as Disk Utility is actually running. What issue did you have with it @Snowcrash? Mar 21, 2023 at 17:15

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