Fix a Drive That Won’t Show Up in Windows

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If your external hard drive is not showing up when connected to your computer, this can happen for a variety of reasons. Sometimes, it’s a matter of minor corruption, which can be resolved with a quick scan. Even Chkdsk, which is built into Windows, can occasionally resolve those issues.

In other cases, the drive might need to be formatted before it can be recognized again. This results in data loss – though if a quick format is used, and the right precautions are taken (such as disconnecting the drive immediately after the format is complete), there is usually a high chance of recovering that data.

In more severe cases, a disk might not be recognized due to physical damage. If the disk’s controller gets damaged, this is usually not fixable without expert assistance. And if the disk plates themselves are damaged, that disk can be written off.

Recovery is sometimes possible in specialized facilities, but chances are low and the cost is typically prohibitively high for ordinary consumers.

Before you begin to learn how to repair a hard disk that is not detected, you need to find out what could have caused this issue. This issue may be due to a host of factors. Some of this may consist of:

  • Making use of the incorrect system file
  • An issue with your driver on windows
  • Damaged USB outlets
  • Damaged Hard-Drives

Fix #1: Ensure the Drive comes on

You would be surprised how easy it is to miss this obvious step. Plug in the hard drive and see if it powers on. If it does not, then there could be a problem with the Hard-Drive cable.

Try using another cord or plugging it into another system. If it comes on, then your cable is the issue. If it still doesn’t show up, move to the subsequent step.

Fix #2: Use Disk Management To Check The Drive

Connect your hard-drive to your Windows PC. Then open the Disk Management. You can do this using:

Hit Windows Key + X button. Then select disk management from the list.

With this tool, you will be able to see all the drives attached to your computer. You will be able to review sizes, see the partitions, alongside other statistics about the disk.

You would also be able to view your hard-drive in the included in the Disk Management window. Even if you are unable to find it in this Window because it has no partitions, you should be able to see it a Removable.

If the drive comes up here, you would then be able to create another Volume and Assign a Drive Letter. Here, you will be able to format it correctly or create a partition. This will ensure you will be able to get into the hard-drive using your Windows PC.

If your computer still won’t recognize the external hard drive, you need to move to the next step. You will have to find out the reason why your hard-drive is not showing up. There is a prospect that you have concerns with your driver, hardware or that your drive is bad.

Fix #3: Use an Alternative Windows PC

Try connecting the hard-drive to another USB port on your PC. If it comes up, your issue may be a bad USB port.

If you the hard-drive does not still come up on Disk Management after doing all of these, you can use another computer if you have one close to you. If this does not still work, move to the next step.

Fix #4: Use Chkdsk

Chkdsk – short for CheckDisk – is a command line utility built into Windows that can help troubleshoot issues with your drives. While it often gets ignored by experts, it can occasionally help you fix an external drive that’s not getting recognized.

  1. Open Start, type in Command Prompt, and click on Run as Administrator

2. Type chkdsk /f X: , where X: is the letter of the drive that’s not getting recognized.

3. Wait until the operation is finished (the last line should read “Total duration: XX seconds”).

Fix #5: Reinstall Drivers

Sometimes the issue could be caused by corruption in the disk’s drivers, especially if it uses custom drivers from the manufacturer. To fix any potential driver issues, follow these steps:

Open Start, type in Device Manager, and launch Device Manager from the search results.

Find your drive in the following screen. It should be under Disk Drives.

Right-click the drive and select 

  1. Go to the Driver tab.
  2. Click Update Driver.

Click Search Automatically for Drivers and wait for the process to finish.

  1. If this didn’t fix your issue, go back to the screen from step 5, and select Uninstall Device.
  2. Once the disk’s drivers have been uninstalled, disconnect and reconnect it to your computer.

If the device is recognized, this should trigger a fresh installation of drivers.

Fix #6: Troubleshoot Devices and Hardware

The hardware troubleshooter is a tool that comes in Windows 7 devices and above. If the flash drive is not showing up, you can utilize this tool in finding out if the device has errors.

To use it you need to: Hit Windows key + R.

Type in msdt.exe -id DeviceDiagnostic and hit Enter

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Click Next to initiate the hardware and devices troubleshooter.

You apply the fix right away or later.

Fix #7: Format the Hard Drive

This may be your next option if all else fails and windows doesn’t recognize your external hard drive. There is a possibility it is partitioned in a file system windows is unable to recognize.

If the hard-drive is in a format different from FAT32 or NTFS, your Windows PC would not be unable to recognize the hard-drive. If you need to format a particular partition using the Disk Management Utility, launch it, right-click and pick Format

Also Read : How to recover Data from corrupted External Hard Disk.

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