If the settings are configured correctly and the WD My Passport external drive is still not showing up on the desktop, please then do as follows and continue checking the issue. Check the cable and port. First, please check the ports on both the external drive case and the Mac.
Oct 26, 2020 • Filed to: Answer Hard Drive Problems • Proven solutions
While the external hard drive connected to the Windows computer or Mac, and the device did not show up. How to fix external hard drive not recognized? Don't worry, in this guide we will show you the best solution to fix the hard drive not recognized problem.
This problem will cause by some partition issues: the external hard drive partition got damaged, the file system got crashed, the drive errors in Windows computer, or the dead USB ports. You can try the hard drive on another computer or connect it with other USB ports. If it does not get working, you can follow the next solution to fix the external hard drive not recognized on Windows computer and Mac, and you can recover lost data from external hard drive What os does my mac support. with Recoverit Data Recovery.
The best external hard drives for Mac are not only useful for storing data but are an excellent way to transport files from one location to another. When you take into account price, ease of use, and portability, the Seagate Backup Plus Slim is the most reliable hard drive you can carry around with you at all times. If your drive shows up but is not mounted, select the mount option which should mount that disk. To verify, click on the Apple logo in your screen’s top left corner and select About This Mac. Select the Storage tab and see if your drive appears here. If not, return to Disk Utility and select your external drive from the left sidebar. Step 1: Go to Disk Utility. Step 2: Select the WD My Passport for Mac. Step 3: Click First Aid on the top of the Disk Utility window. Step 4: Click Done when the reparation finishes.
Part 1. How to Fix External Hard Drive Not Recognized on Windows
In windows, this problem can be because of partition issues, dead USB ports, driver windows conflicts, file systems, dead or outdated drivers. Here are the steps you can follow to fix this issue in case of USB flash or external hard drives:
Step 1You might be plugging in the USB cable in a dead USB port. Unplug your external hard drive and plugin it in some other USB ports. Now, see if it is present there in the My Computer window. If not, follow step 2.
Step 2Now, look for the external drive in the Disk Management Window. For this, click Start and then click Run or press windows key + r, press enter after typing diskmgmt.msc in the Run dialog. This will open the Disk Management Window. Now, look for the external disk in this window. In this window, you can find your drive even if it is not recognized because of no partition. Wd turbo driver mac. If you cannot find the drive in the Disk Management window then you can go for step four.
Step 3If it is not recognized by plugging in some other port or it is not visible in the Disk Management Window, then there might be some issue with the external drive. Check it on some other computers. Now, follow step 1 to step 3 in that computer in case the external drive is not recognized. If the problem exists with another computer also then something is wrong with the drive, otherwise follow step 5:
Step 4If it is working in some other systems but not in yours, Windows is having some problem with the drivers. To diagnose a driver problem, open the run dialog by pressing Windows + r and type 'devmgmt.msc'? Now press enter. Expand Disk Drives and look for a device having a yellow exclamation mark. This yellow exclamation mark indicates a problematic driver. Now, right-click on that device and read the error message after selecting properties. This issue can resolve in the following two ways:
Click on the update driver button for installing updated drivers.
Uninstall the driver and restart your computer. After restarting, the Windows will automatically reinstall and reconfigure the driver.
Now, plug in the external drive again or follow step 6 if the drive is still not recognized.
If your external hard drive has been recognized but your files can't be found anywhere, sometimes they are lost or deleted. Is there any way to get all back? 3 methods are recommended: Recycle bin, backup, and Recoverit Data Recovery. Recoverit is able to help you recover 1000+ types and formats of files in different scenarios. Free download it right now!
Step 5Problem in partitioning and formatting can also be a cause of this issue. Partitioning and file system issues can be fixed by using Windows Disk Management tools. To create a new partition, right-click inside the unallocated space and select New Simple Volume. You can create a new partition by following onscreen instructions. Sometimes, your drive is formatted with the ext4 file system of Linux, NTFS file system, HFS Plus file system, or FAT32 file system which is not recognized by your Windows. Reformatting of the drive can resolve this issue. For this, right-click on the partition, select format, and then select the file system. Here, it is important to know that all files in the drive will be deleted. Therefore, copy your files in some other systems before proceeding.
Video Tutorial on How to Fix External Hard Drive Not Showing Up
Part 2. How to Fix External Hard Drive Not Recognized on Mac
Like Windows, Mac also detects an external drive automatically. If it doesn't, follow these steps:
Step 1 First of all, look for the external hard drive in the finder window. For this, click on File and then click New Finder Window. Now, look for the drive below the remote disk.
Step 2 If the external drive is not there, make sure that the USB cable is properly plugged in the external hard drive and the port.
Step 3 Sometimes, the drive is connected but not mounted. To mount a drive, open Disk Utility and look for the drive in the list. If it is there, check below it. Now click on the mounting button to mount it. Open a Finder window to see if the drive is mounted or not.
Step 4 If you still cannot find it in the finder, it might not be getting enough power. Single USB ports can provide only 5 V. In that case, make use of USB cable having one USB connection for the external HD and two for Mac. This will supply the power required by the external hard drive.
These steps for fixing an external hard drive not recognized on Windows and Mac are suitable for external hard drives of all capacities and manufacturers. However, if still the issue is not resolved, you can avail of professional help.
Part 3. The Best External Hard Drive Data Recovery Software
While the external hard drive got damaged and did not detect on the computer, after you fix the problem, you should your data back. We will introduce the best external hard drive data recovery to help you retrieve data back. Recoverit Data Recovery Software is a powerful data recovery program, it can help you recover data from external hard drives easily and effectively.
Recoverit External Hard Drive Recovery Software
Recoverit Data Recovery is the best external hard drive recovery program, it can easily and effectively help you recover lost or accidentally deleted files from the hard disk drive, or another external storage device: USB drive, flash drive, SD card.
Steps on How to Recover Data from External Hard Drive
Download and install Recoverit Data Recovery on your computer. Launch Recoverit Data Recovery and follow the next steps to perform external hard drive data recovery on a Windows computer, if you are a Mac user, you can download Recoverit Data Recovery for Mac to go on.
Wd External Hard Drive Not Responding
Step 1. Connect your external hard drive to the computer, select it while the disk detected on the program.
Wd External Hard Drive Not Reading
Step 2. The external hard drive recovery software will start scanning the device to searching the lost files.
Wd External Hard Drive Not Recognized Mac
Step 3. In minutesï¼ all recovered files will display on the result. You can preview photos, videos, music, Word, Excel, PPT, and PDF. Select your files and click the 'Recover' button to restore.
When the external hard drive got damaged, you can try to fix it with the solution mentioned above. Also, get your data back with Recoverit Data Recovery in simple steps. Download and try it for now.