Interact with CD/DVD burners: burn, eject, erase.
Syntax
drutil [-drive ...] command [command-options-and-arguments]
Key
Each command is listed below with its description and individual arguments. Drive selection arguments must appear at the beginning of the command.
-drive drive(s)
Specify a drive or drives, per the output of list, for those verbs that can operate
on one or more drives. See the Drive Selection Criterion section below.
help verb Display the usage information for the specified verb.
atip Display the Absolute Time in Pre-Groove (ATIP) for inserted CD-R/RW media.
bulkerase type
Start bulk erase mode, in which the drive will continually erase inserted -RW media, eject
it, and prompt for another disc until terminated.
Types of erase:
quick Performs a quick erase, doing the minimal amount of work to make the disc appear
blank. This operation typically takes only a minute or two.
full Performs a complete erase, erasing every block on the disk. This operation is slow
(on the order of 30 minutes) to complete.
burn options path
Burn a valid directory or image file to disc. The default is to burn the specified directory
to a new filesystem. The -audio option creates an audio CD (redbook) in which any valid
QuickTime audio file present in the path is converted to a track (in alphabetical order). If
a file is specified (valid image files only: .dmg, .iso, .cue/bin, and .toc) the contents of
the image file are burned. Pre-burn and post-burn options, and filesystem exclusions can be
specificed for enhanced functionality. Last option takes precedence. Invalid commands are
ignored.
path A valid path to a directory or file.
options Specify an arbitrary valid burn option(s): -test, -appendable, -erase, -mount,
-noverify, -nohfsplus, -noiso9660, -nojoliet, -noudf, -nofs, -audio, -speed,
-pregap. Or specify a default burn option: -notest, -noappendable, -noerase,
-allfs, -hfsplus, -iso9660, -joliet, -udf, -data, -eject, -verify.
cdtext
Read and display any CD-Text information reported by the drive. The drive must contain an
audio CD, and be capable of reading CD-Text.
discinfo [-xml]
Display detailed information about present media.
From the MMC command of the same name.
dumpiso device block [format]
Tool to inspect and interpret ISO-9660 and Joliet structures on the media.
device Disk node, e.g. /dev/disk1, /dev/disk1s1, /dev/rdisk1.
block Block number to dump (in decimal or 0x hex notation). Blocks are assumed to be
2048-byte blocks.
format How to interpret the block. If format is not specified, dumpiso will attempt to
guess. If present, this argument should be one of the following: None, Boot,
BootCat, PVD, SVD, VPD, VDST, MPath, LPath, Dir, HFSPlusVH.
dumpudf device block
Tool to inspect and interpret UDF structures on the media.
device Disk node, e.g. /dev/disk1, /dev/disk1s1, /dev/rdisk1.
block Block number to dump (in decimal or 0x hex notation). Blocks are assumed to be
2048-byte blocks.
eject Synonym for drutil tray eject.
erase type
Erase -RW media in the drive(s) and eject it.
Types of erase:
quick Perform a quick erase, doing the minimal amount of work to make the disc appear
blank. This operation typically takes only a minute or two.
full Perform a complete erase, erasing every block on the disk. This operation is slow
(on the order of 30 minutes) to complete.
filename name
Shows how the specified filename will be modified to comply with the naming rules of the
filesystems that DiscRecording generates.
getconfig type
Displays device feature and profile list.
Types of config information:
current Displays current features and profiles for a drive.
supported Displays all supported features and profiles for a drive.
info [-xml]
Display various pieces of information for each drive, including how it's connected to the
computer and a summary of capabilities.
list [-xml]
List all burning devices connected to the machine.
poll Display device and media notifications until terminated.
size options path
Estimates the size of a valid directory or image file (in blocks). The default is to estimate
the size of the specified path as a hybrid filesystem. The -audio option calculates the
contents of the directory as an audio CD (redbook) (for applicable files). If a file is
specified (valid image files only: .dmg, .iso, .cue/bin, and .toc) the contents of the image
file will be calculated. Filesystem exclusions can be specificed for enhanced functionality.
Calculated size will be compared against blank media that is found unless the -nodrive argument
is specified. Last option takes precedence. Invalid commands are ignored.
path A valid path to a directory or file.
options Specify an arbitrary valid burn option(s): -nodrive, -nohfsplus, -noiso9660,
-nojoliet, -noudf, -nofs, -audio, -pregap. Or specify a default burn option:
-allfs, -hfsplus, -iso9660, -joliet, -udf, -data.
status [-xml]
Display detailed media-specific information.
subchannel
Display information from the subchannels on CD media. This prints the MCN (media catalog
number) for the disc, and the ISRC (international standard recording code) for all tracks.
This command only works when CD media is present.
From the MMC command of the same name.
toc
Display the table of contents (TOC) of inserted media.
trackinfo [-xml]
Display detailed information about all tracks present on the media.
From the MMC command of the same name.
tray command
Perform a tray/media related command. Note that some drives do not have trays, and some
have trays but lack motorized eject or inject capability.
Tray commands:
open Opens a drive's tray, if no media is present and the drive has a tray capable of
motorized eject.
close Closes a drive's tray, if the drive has a tray capable of motorized inject.
eject Ejects media from the drive, if the drive has a tray capable of motorized eject. If
no media is present, this is equivalent to open. If media is present and can be
unmounted, it will be unmounted and then ejected. If media is present but cannot
be unmounted, the eject will fail.
version Display the operating system and DiscRecording framework version numbers.
OPTIONS
-xml
When specified (valid options only: discinfo, info, list, status, and trackinfo) the output
for the specified verb will be shown in xml format.
Drive Selection Criteria
Some functions of drutil operate on a specific drive. Since any number of drives might be available, and
they come and go at any time, the device selection arguments provide a method for selecting among
them.
The candidate list starts out as a list of all attached drives. One or more arguments of the form
-drive drive(s) can be specified. Each argument has the effect of narrowing the candidate list, depending
on what drive(s) is.
It can be:
- A positive decimal number, assumed to be a 1-based index into the candidate list. The candidate list is trimmed to just that device.
- One of the following keywords: internal, external, usb, firewire, atapi, scsi. The candidate list is trimmed to devices which match the specified location / bus. Case is ignored in this comparison.
- Any other string, assumed to be a vendor/product name. The candidate list is trimmed to devices whose vendor or product strings exactly match the argument. Case (but not white-space) is ignored in this comparison.
Multiple -drive arguments can be specified; each argument narrows the candidate list further. After all the -drive arguments have been processed, the candidate list is considered. If it contains exactly one item, that drive is used. If it contains zero items, drutil prints an error message and exits. If it contains more than one item, the selected function is executed on all drives remaining in the list.
drutil uses the DiscRecording framework to interact with attached burning devices.
Examples
Display help for the verb "status".
$ drutil help status
Display a list of attached devices.
$ drutil list
Display miscellaneous information for all attached devices.
$ drutil info
Display media-specific information for all attached devices.
$ drutil status
Burn the Documents directory to the internal drive without verifying, then eject the disc:
$ drutil -drive internal burn -noverify -eject -speed 24 ~/Documents
Create an XML file containing info about internal drives:
$ drutil -drive internal info -xml > driveInfo.xml
Close the tray of the first burning device seen, if possible.
$ drutil -drive 1 tray close
List drive specific information for all externally connected burning devices:
$ drutil -drive external info
Lists media specific information for media present in attached firewire burning devices:
$ drutil -drive firewire status
Open the tray of all burning devices whose vendor id is VENDOR, if possible:
$ drutil -drive VENDOR tray open
List supported features and profiles for attached devices whose product id is 'CD-RW CDW827ES'
$ drutil -drive 'CD-RW CDW827ES' getconfig supported
“Time is the fire in which we burn” ~ Gene Roddenberry
Related macOS commands:
diskutil - Disk utilities - Format, Verify, Repair