How to Clear All “Disk Not Ejected Properly” Notifications Automatically

The macOS operating system is designed to be intuitive and unobtrusive but can become quite the opposite when handling external storage devices. If you have a habit of disconnecting your external storage device without manually ejecting it first, or if the device is connected to your Mac via a USB hub that doesn’t provide enough power, you probably get bombarded with a stream of disk ejection notifications. Read on to learn how to clear all “disk not ejected properly” notifications in one go and prevent them from appearing again.

Why Do “Disk Not Ejected Properly” Notifications Appear?

“Disk Not Ejected Properly” notifications are macOS’s way of warning you that a storage device has been disconnected without being properly unmounted. This is a safeguard mechanism intended to prevent data corruption or loss. Typically, these messages pop up because users neglect to click the eject button in Finder before physically detaching the USB cable or removing the USB flash drive.

However, another less obvious cause for these notifications is the use of a USB hub, especially one that does not supply power independently. In such setups, when your Mac enters sleep mode, the storage devices connected via the hub lose power, essentially “ejecting” themselves. Upon waking your Mac, the drive attempts to reconnect, often resulting in the system generating a “Disk not ejected properly” notification due to the power interruption and subsequent delay in reconnection.

Regardless of the cause, having your workflow disrupted by these notifications can be irritating. Rest assured that there are ways for Mac users to clear all “disk not ejected” notifications.

Clear All “Disk Not Ejected Properly” Notifications in One Go

Clicking the close button on each “Disk Not Ejected Properly” notification can be tedious. Fortunately, there’s a quicker way to get rid of them. The solution lies in the Terminal application. You can use it to execute a command that will clear all notifications in one go.

Begin by opening Terminal, located within the Utilities subfolder of your Applications folder. In the Terminal app, enter the command killall NotificationCenter and hit Enter to close all notifications on your Mac.

If the command doesn’t work, try pkill NotificationCenter, which does pretty much the same thing but in a slightly differently manner.

Avoid Future “Disk Not Ejected Properly” Notifications

To avoid future “Disk Not Ejected Properly” notifications, always properly eject drives before disconnecting them physically. This is done simply by clicking the Eject button next to the drive’s name in Finder.

For those who often forget to eject their drives or find the process cumbersome, there is a handy solution: Ejectify. This third-party application is designed to automate the ejection and remounting of external disks, thus preventing the “Disk not ejected properly” notifications from appearing after your Mac wakes up from sleep.

Once Ejectify is installed on your Mac, it takes charge by automatically unmounting external disks as the system goes to sleep, then remounting them when the computer wakes up. You can build it yourself using Xcode from its GitHub-hosted source code for free, or grab a ready-made build for as little as a few dollars.

By using Terminal commands, or tools like Ejectify, you can clear all “disk not ejected properly” notifications and even prevent them from reappearing, allowing you to maintain your focus on productivity. For those moments when your Mac becomes unresponsive or certain apps freeze, our comprehensive guide to fix unresponsive apps and system freezes, provides practical solutions to keep your Mac running smoothly.

All images by David Morelo.

David Morelo - Staff Writer

David Morelo is a professional content writer in the technology niche, covering everything from consumer products to emerging technologies and their cross-industry application. His interest in technology started at an early age and has only grown stronger over the years.