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I am aware that the USB drive can be damaged if you disconnect it without ejecting it first, but is it possible to damage the computer itself?

I've disconnected my USB drive from my Macbook Pro Retina and the OS gave me a warning about an incorrectly unplugged USB drive. Can this damage the computer?

Kara
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Onion
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    This site is for programming questions, not general computer use or support. You might have better luck on either [apple.se] or [su] for this type of question; read the help center guidelines on all sites before posting a question there to make sure you've selected the most appropriate site. Good luck. – Ken White Dec 02 '14 at 21:50
  • Thanks for the clarification. Is it possible to move this question to SuperUser? Sorry for posting in the wrong site. – Onion Dec 02 '14 at 21:51

2 Answers2

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You won't damage the computer unless you remove the drive violently enough to cause physical damage to the USB connector -- that said, you might cause problems with the file structure on the USB drive, which might cause the drive to become read-only or even cause loss of data, and some operating systems (in my experience, older version of Windows, but I have little experience with Mac OS) may become confused and be unable to remount the same USB volume until you restart the computer.

Zeiss Ikon
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I have done that countless times and I have never noticed any damage, but I have used PCs only, no MACs.

JLee
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