The Invalid B-Tree Node Size is a kind of error that pops up on your Mac’s screen when the SSD suffers from some type of corruption. If that happens to you, you would be unable to access your files, your whole Mac could freeze, or worse, your macOS wouldn’t be able to boot properly. Therefore, in this article, we will show you three ways to restore your Mac from an invalid B-Tree Node Size error and demonstrate why this error occurs in the first place. Let’s dig in.
What is an Invalid B-Tree Node Size Error?
On a Mac, each file has a unique entry related to it in the index table that is structured in a B-Tree format. Whenever you try to access a file on your Mac, the computer tries to analyze (Also known as parse in computer terms) a specific B-Tree index table to find the exact file. So, if the Mac fails to locate the file in the B-Tree, you will see this error message on the screen: Invalid B-Tree Node Size
This leads to severe data inaccessibility on your Mac, and it might even suffer from corruption. Some common reasons for invalid B-Tree node size errors are:
- macOS malfunction
- Damage to catalog files
- Unexpected shutdowns
- Virus or malware attacks
- System file corruption
Invalid B-Tree Node Size is one of the errors that you, as a Mac user, might have to face multiple times. Consequently, if you don’t fix it quickly, that would lead to severe system complications and even data loss. In this section, we will show you three methods to restore a Mac computer from the Invalid B-Tree Node Size error.
1. Use First Aid in Recovery Mode on Mac to Fix Invalid B-Tree Node Size Error
Mac users boot into Recovery mode to troubleshoot multiple issues related to macOS. With it, you can reinstall your macOS, recover data using Time Machine, manage your SSD, and much more. This time, we will use this Recovery mode to access First Aid and restore the Invalid B-Tree Node Size. Here’s how you can do it:
- Restart your Mac and immediately press the “Command + R” keys. Keep holding them until you see the Apple logo.
- Once the “macOS Utilities” screen shows up, click on the “Disk Utility” option.
- Click on the “Continue” option.
- Now, choose the disk or volume you want to fix from the left sidebar.
- Click on the “First Aid” option from the top of the screen, and then click on the “Run” option to start the scanning process.
Once the scan is complete, you can go to “Show Details” to check if you have got satisfactory results. If the Invalid B-Tree Node Size error is still there, repeat the whole process once again. However, if you still get no results even after repeating this process twice, jump to the next method.
2. Run the FSCK Command after Booting into Single User Mode
The single-user mode lets users perform many tasks generally impossible to perform in the normal mode. This mode comes with a unique interface that allows you to access a UNIX command line. This allows you to run the FSCK command that scans and repairs the hard disk drive structure and fixes the Invalid B-Tree Node Size error on Mac. Do the following:
- Press and hold the “Command + S” keys while rebooting to boot into the Single User mode.
- Once the “Terminal” window shows up, type the “/sbin/fsck -fy” command and press the “Return” key.
- After the previous command completes its operation, type the “reboot” command and press the “Return” key again.
Now, your Mac will reboot into normal mode once again, and you can see the sign-in screen. The Invalid B-Tree Node Size error should be fixed as well.
3. Reformat SSD to Restore Mac from Invalid B-Tree Node Size Error
Usually, we reformat the SSD as the last resort if none of the other methods work. That is a radical but powerful way to solve any issue related to the drive, including the Invalid B-Tree Node Size error. However, this method also erases every single data stored in the SSD, so you should always back up your Mac’s data before going through this process. Here’s what you need to do to reformat your SSD and fix the Invalid B-Tree Node Size error:
- Navigate to Applications → Utilities → Disk Utility.
- In the left sidebar, click on your Mac’s SSD to select it.
- Next, click on the “Erase” option located at the top of the “Disk Utility” window.
- Once the new prompt pops up, select the “macOS Extended (Journaled)” option in the “Format.”
- Type the name of the SSD.
- Click the “Erase” button.
Once you complete these instructions, your SSD will go through the reformatting process. Once that is done, it will reboot and the Invalid B-Tree Node Size error will be fixed.
