External hard drive doesn't appear in /dev/sd*

My 7 month old external hard drive (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a … 6822136471) doesn't seem to work anymore. It doesn't appear in /dev/sd* nor 'sudo lsusb'. It used to work fine. I've tried multiple usb ports, multiple computers, and multiple OS (linux and windows). Any ideas what I could try next? Are there any tools to diagnose the problem further?
My last resort options are
1) take the drive apart and plug it into a desktop computer (probably invalidates warranty)
2) pay for data recovery (it's a personal hard drive. i'm not sure if this is overkill or expensive)
Any advice?

Using a data recovery service might get a little expensive, it all depends on how important the data is and how much it will cost you to generate it again or replace it.
If the recovery job is simple as in just taking the disk out of the enclosure and copying the data to another disk then I guess it might not be too expensive. Some data recovery companies do provide a (free?) quote on how much it will cost you and others even state how much the more common data recovery tasks cost. If the data recovery company has an agreement with the disk manufacturer then the warranty will not be void and you can claim it and get a new disk.
If you plan to do it yourself be ready to make a full disk image and then copy your data out of the image (look into ddrescue and sparse disk images, works wonder if the disk is not too full), you don't know the cause of the controller failure and it might be that the hard disk is not in good shape too and will only live long enough to reliably extract all the data or do a full disk image a couple of times.

Similar Messages

HT3275 When I press "select backup location" in the Time Machine section of System Preferences, my external hard drive doesn't appear as an option. How do I change this?

When I press "select backup location" in the Time Machine section of System Preferences, my external hard drive doesn't appear as an option. How do I change this? My external hard drive is a FreeAgent GoFlex Drive.

Hi, what Format is the external Drive?
They usually come PC Formatted for Fat32/MSdos, or NTFS... is there anything on it now?
How to format your disks...
http://www.kenstone.net/fcp_homepage/partitioning_tiger.html
(To Install OSX on an IntelMac the Drive it needs the GUID Partitioning scheme mentioned at the bottom.)
Thanks to Pondini, Formatting, Partitioning, Verifying, and Repairing Disks...
http://Pondini.org/OSX/DU.html

My external hard drive doesn't appear in disk utility

I've been using a western digital my book (500gb) external hard drive connected to my Airport Extreme for TIme Machine Backups. For no apparent reason, it stopped backing up a few days ago. I've plugged the drive directly into my MBP, and it doesn't appear in system profiler or disk utility. Any ideas how to get the MBP to mount the drive?

matthewfromlincoln wrote:
I've been using a western digital my book (500gb) external hard drive connected to my Airport Extreme for TIme Machine Backups.
I hate to have to tell you this, but backing-up that way is unreliable, and not supported by Apple. See Using Time Machine with an Airport Extreme Air Disk.
But, as ds store says, the disk is likely dead.

External Hard Drive Doesn't Appear and Makes a Beeping Sound

I have a Mobile XXS external hard drive from Freecom (approx 460 GB) that works fine on my father's G3 iBook, but when I plug it into my G4 Aluminum Powerbook (OS 10.5) it runs, but doesn't appear on the desktop. It also makes a continuous beeping sound. I want to back up all my music projects. As far as I know the USB ports work because I'm able to use my iPod. This isn't an Apple product but the Freecom website doesn't have a very active forum. I was wondering if anyone had any experience with something like this. I appreciate any help.

It sounds like a USB-only hard drive, and the Powerbook G4 is notorious for not providing enough power for many external USB drives.
The usual suggestions are:
-Try a double (Y-style) USB cable to draw power from two ports for the drive
-Add a mains power adapter to the drive, if possible
-Try using the drive through a powered USB hub
Firewire drives don't seem to suffer from this problem.

External Hard Drive Doesn't Appear on Desktop / Won't Mount

I have an external hard drive that is used as a server for 3 computers . . . it is hidden from the Desktop.
The "home" computer is running 10.8.5, and the others (which also have the hard drive hidden) run 10.9.5 & 10.10.1.
I can access the drive by going to Go > Recent Folders, and also from aliases to the drive I already have on my Desktop.
The drive shows up on Disk Utility, and was fine when I verified the disk.
I also reset the SMC and PRAM, with no affect on the hidden folder.
The Thunderbolt connectors and Firewire 800 converters all seem to be in working order.
I've seen some fixes out there for the same problem with users running OS X 10.9.3. They've used a Terminal command to reveal the hidden files. Am not sure if the code for 10.9.3 will work for my 10.8.5.
Someone, please help!

upgrade to latest system, that computer will accept, then try again

External Hard Drive doesn't appear in Airport Utility

When the USB is plugged directly in the Mac, I can see and access it. But when I connect the external hard drive to the Extreme, I can't see it. The Airport Extreme says a disk needs repair, but I'm not sure how to repair it.

Insure that the disk is formatted correctly to work with the AirPort Extreme in Mac OS Extended (Journaled). If the drive is currently formatted in a Windows format of NTFS or exFAT, the AirPort Extreme cannot read these formats.
In addition, it is often necessary to use a powered USB hub with a drive at the AirPort Extreme....even if your drive has its own power supply....because the port on the AirPort Extreme is under powered.
If your drive is already formatted in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) and you have also tried a powered USB hub, I am out of ideas.
You might want to take the AirPort Extreme to an Apple store or Apple servicer....if you have one in your area....to let them check the USB port on the AirPort Extreme for proper operation.

WD external hard drive doesn't appear on my Desktop or in Finder

Hi,
I have a Western Digital hard drive connected to my iMac (Intel). When I first intstalled it, it worked fine. Then it began to intermittently exit my desktop, generating the message This Device Was Not Properly Disconnected. If I restarted my computer it would usually return. However now I can't get it to appear on my Desktop at all.
I ran a WD Smartware check of the hard drive which indicated that it is fine. It powers on, the small white light is on, and I can hear and see that it is on. I also tried different data and power cables and ran Disk Utility, which said the WD drive was fine. The hard drive is connected directly to the computer, and to the wall socket, no buses, etc. I tried to download some pictures from my camera and got the error message Camera Window Does Not Recognize Hard Drive. Finally I tried connecting it to my laptop. The hard drive appears perfectly on the laptop and all my info, photos, backups etc, are there.
According to the WD website, if these are the results of the various trials, the problem is with a driver within my Mac OS. The WD drive doesn't have a driver of its own, it uses one that is built into the Mac OS, which WD says must have become corrupted.
I have no idea how to correct this! Does anyone have an idea?? WD says they don't know, only Apple will know.
I have two other older WD hard drives connected to my Mac as well and they work fine. They are different models though.
Thanks for any help!

Well now the two other WD hard drives are beginning to act the same way...

External Hard Drive doesn't appear!

Hey guys,
Wondered if you could help me out with this problem.
I have a Maxtor One Touch III drive and when I plug it in it doesn't appear on the screen. I go to disk utility and can't find it there either.
However, when I plug it into other computers - mac, p.c. etc it shows up.
Initially it did work for me but then mysteriously this problem surfaced..
I've called Seagate/Maxtor and still no luck...
Any idea of what I can try?
Duane Gibson

One option is to connect it through a powered USB hub. The additional power the drive will get from the hub may make all the difference.

I have a MacBook Pro, 10.10.2 Yosemite. My external hard drive no longer appears on my screen or in Time Machine

I have a MacBook Pro, 10.10.2 Yosemite. My external hard drive no longer appears on my screen or in Time Machine. I have gone into Disc Utility to repair disc, and get the message: Error: Partition map check failed because no slices were found. I was trying to follow Melophage's instructions by going into "Terminal" and entering "diskutil list; diskutil cs list; mount" and "diskutil info disk2." Then I entered the command "sudo got show disk1."   I am sure I have made the problem worse. Can you give me some help? Thank you. blelambert
Last login: Wed Mar 11 19:23:03 on ttys000
~ belambert$ diskutil list
/dev/disk0
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *251.0 GB   disk0
   1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk0s1
   2:          Apple_CoreStorage                         250.1 GB   disk0s2
   3:                 Apple_Boot Recovery HD             650.0 MB   disk0s3
/dev/disk1
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:                  Apple_HFS Macintosh HD           *249.8 GB   disk1
                                 Logical Volume on disk0s2
                                 7A998EAE-68FB-4BAC-BF40-7A31D2806B2C
                                 Unlocked Encrypted
/dev/disk2
   #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
   0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *2.0 TB     disk2
   1:         Microsoft Reserved                         134.2 MB   disk2s1
~ belambert$ diskutil cs list
CoreStorage logical volume groups (1 found)
|
+-- Logical Volume Group 883A56F4-5559-4872-A8DA-960F99655B63
    =========================================================
    Name:         Macintosh HD
Status:       Online
    Size:         250140434432 B (250.1 GB)
    Free Space:   8921088 B (8.9 MB)
    |
    +-< Physical Volume 7EDAFA20-FF9A-45FB-BA44-6526BB46C381
    |   ----------------------------------------------------
    |   Index:    0
    |   Disk:     disk0s2
    |   Status:   Online
    |   Size:     250140434432 B (250.1 GB)
    |
    +-> Logical Volume Family B47B0B40-CBF2-4D02-BFEF-182061AC6F8E
        Encryption Status:       Unlocked
        Encryption Type:         AES-XTS
        Conversion Status:       Complete
        Conversion Direction:    -none-
        Has Encrypted Extents:   Yes
        Fully Secure:            Yes
        Passphrase Required:     Yes
        |
        +-> Logical Volume 7A998EAE-68FB-4BAC-BF40-7A31D2806B2C
            Disk:                  disk1
            Status:                Online
            Size (Total):          249779191808 B (249.8 GB)
            Conversion Progress:   -none-
            Revertible:            Yes (unlock and decryption required)
            LV Name:               Macintosh HD
            Volume Name:           Macintosh HD
            Content Hint:          Apple_HFS
~ belambert$ mount
/dev/disk1 on / (hfs, local, journaled)
devfs on /dev (devfs, local, nobrowse)
map -hosts on /net (autofs, nosuid, automounted, nobrowse)
map auto_home on /home (autofs, automounted, nobrowse)
localhost:/vB3z604U-dvSpES6320fHq on /Volumes/MobileBackups (mtmfs, nosuid, read-only, nobrowse)
~ belambert$ diskutil info disk2
   Device Identifier:        disk2
   Device Node:              /dev/disk2
   Part of Whole:            disk2
   Device / Media Name:      WD My Book 111A Media
File System:              None
   Content (IOContent):      GUID_partition_scheme
   OS Can Be Installed:      No
   Media Type:               Generic
   Protocol:                 USB
   SMART Status:             Not Supported
   Total Size:               2.0 TB (2000365289472 Bytes) (exactly 3906963456 512-Byte-Units)
   Volume Free Space:        Not applicable (no file system)
   Device Block Size:        512 Bytes
   Read-Only Media:          No
   Read-Only Volume:         Not applicable (no file system)
   Ejectable:                Yes
File System:              None
   Content (IOContent):      GUID_partition_scheme
   OS Can Be Installed:      No
   Media Type:               Generic
   Protocol:                 USB
   SMART Status:             Not Supported
   Total Size:               2.0 TB (2000365289472 Bytes) (exactly 3906963456 512-Byte-Units)
   Volume Free Space:        Not applicable (no file system)
   Device Block Size:        512 Bytes
   Read-Only Media:          No
   Read-Only Volume:         Not applicable (no file system)
   Ejectable:                Yes
belambert ttys000                   Wed Mar 11 17:34 - 17:39 (00:05)
belambert ttys000                   Wed Mar 11 17:33 - 17:34 (00:00)
wtmp begins Sun Mar 8 14:40
~ belambert$ ~ belambert$ diskutil list
-bash: :~: command not found
~ belambert$ /dev/disk0
-bash: /dev/disk0: Permission denied
:~ belambert$    #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
~ belambert$    0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *251.0 GB   disk0
-bash: 0:: command not found
:~ belambert$    1:                        EFI EFI                     209.7 MB   disk0s1
-bash: 1:: command not found
~ belambert$    2:          Apple_CoreStorage                         250.1 GB   disk0s2
-bash: 2:: command not found
~ belambert$    3:                 Apple_Boot Recovery HD             650.0 MB   disk0s3
-bash: /dev/disk1: Permission denied
~ belambert$    #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
~ belambert$    0:                  Apple_HFS Macintosh HD           *249.8 GB   disk1
-bash: 0:: command not found
~ belambert$                                  Logical Volume on disk0s2
-bash: Logical: command not found
~ belambert$                                  7A998EAE-68FB-4BAC-BF40-7A31D2806B2C
-bash: 7A998EAE-68FB-4BAC-BF40-7A31D2806B2C: command not found
~ belambert$                                  Unlocked Encrypted
-bash: Unlocked: command not found
:~ belambert$ /dev/disk2
-bash: /dev/disk2: Permission denied
~ belambert$    #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
:~ belambert$    0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *2.0 TB     disk2
-bash: 0:: command not found
~ belambert$    1:         Microsoft Reserved                         134.2 MB   disk2s1
-bash: 1:: command not found
~ belambert$ ~ belambert$ diskutil cs list
-bash: ~: command not found
~ belambert$ CoreStorage logical volume groups (1 found)
-bash: syntax error near unexpected token `('
~ belambert$ |
-bash: syntax error near unexpected token `|'
~ belambert$ +-- Logical Volume Group 883A56F4-5559-4872-A8DA-960F99655B63
-bash: +--: command not found
~ belambert$     =========================================================
-bash: =========================================================: command not found
~ belambert$     Name:         Macintosh HD
-bash: Name:: command not found
~ belambert$
-bash: 3:: command not found
~ belambert$ /dev/disk1
   Whole:                    Yes
   Internal:                 No
   OS 9 Drivers:             No
   Low Level Format:         Not supported
:~ belambert$ Last login: Wed Mar 11 19:23:03 on ttys000
~ belambert$ diskutil list
   Whole:                    Yes
   Internal:                 No
   OS 9 Drivers:             No
   Low Level Format:         Not supported
~ belambert$ Last login: Wed Mar 11 19:23:03 on ttys000
~ belambert$ diskutil list
   Volume Name:              Not applicable (no file system)
   Mounted:                  Not applicable (no file system)

racergirl,
have you tried resetting your MacBook Pro’s System Management Controller, to see if that makes a difference with the heat?

External Hard Drive Doesn't Mount on Desktop through FireWire 400

I have an external hard drive that mounts on the desktop when connecting to my iMac via USB, but it fails to appear on the desktop when connecting via FireWire 400. It was glitchy in Tiger as well, and had problems since installing Leopard. I was able to get it to work once, after using Leopard Cache Cleaner (a 3rd party program), disconnecting the hard drive, and unplugging the iMac. I moved my computer this week, and had to unplug it and when I powered it back up, the hard drive doesn't appear on the desktop again through FireWire 400 (still works fine with USB). It also doesn't appear in Disk Utility through FireWire.
What good are FireWire if they fail to recognize a hard drive so often?!

upgrade to latest system, that computer will accept, then try again

My external hard drive doesn't show up in finder, is it dead?

My external hard drive doesn't show up in finder.Time machine can't find it. Does this mean my external hard drive is dead?
I borrowed a friends and switched mine with hers. My acted the same way in her macbook. I switched the cords on the external drives, no change.
Also, Is there a way to retrieve the information from my sick external hard drive? Thanks for your help.

If the Disk Utility sees it, you might be able to repair it or recover the data on it with a product such as DiskWarrior or Data Rescue.
If the Disk Utility doesn't see it, contact professional support.
(64290)

LR 5 my external hard drive no longer appears as a hard drive but as a folder under "Volumes"

I am running LR 5 on a MacBook pro and my external hard drive no longer appears as a hard drive but as a folder under "Volumes". will this affect my ability to search and store in this external hard drive? How can I get it back to normal?

I just started having the same problem, oddly enough with a LaCie 500GB D2 Quadra external. Had it connected via FW800 then suddenly it won't appear in the Finder.
It shows up as an "Unknown Device" in the System Profiler under the FireWire Bus.
I do need the data on it so which solution is easier?
Replace the housing? Or am I better off calling LaCie and using the warrenty?
Thanks,
Shannon

Two external hard drive are not appearing on the desktop anymore on my 2008 24" iMac. One is a Lacie d2 Quadra and the other is a G Drive. Both are 1 Tb

Two external hard drive are not appearing on the desktop anymore on my 2008 24" iMac. One is a Lacie d2 Quadra and the other is a G Drive. Both are 1 Tb

Are they daisy chained? Have you tried them one at a time? Have you tried a different FireWire cable? Do they show up in either system profiler or Disk Utility? Have you reset the SMC? http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964

External hard drive doesn't show up in /dev. [SOLVED]

After a long period of not taking backups, I plugged in my external hard drive today, but I can't mount it because I can't find it in dev (it used to show up as /dev/sdb, but now my only /dev/sd* is /dev/sda, which is my internal drive). The drive still shows up in dmesg and in lsusb. I've attached the dmesg lines and the lsusb -v entry, in which you can see that the drive is indeed recognized as a mass storage device.
I'm not sure if it's relevant, but lsusb -v pauses for a couple of seconds before outputting the final line.
Any ideas?
Dmesg output:
[160782.137424] usb 1-5.3: new high speed USB device number 7 using ehci_hcd
lsusb -v output:
Bus 001 Device 008: ID 059b:0370 Iomega Corp.
Device Descriptor:
bLength 18
bDescriptorType 1
bcdUSB 2.00
bDeviceClass 0 (Defined at Interface level)
bDeviceSubClass 0
bDeviceProtocol 0
bMaxPacketSize0 64
idVendor 0x059b Iomega Corp.
idProduct 0x0370
bcdDevice 0.00
iManufacturer 10 lomega
iProduct 11 exernal hd
iSerial 5 1590925965FF
bNumConfigurations 1
Configuration Descriptor:
bLength 9
bDescriptorType 2
wTotalLength 32
bNumInterfaces 1
bConfigurationValue 1
iConfiguration 4 USB Mass Storage
bmAttributes 0xc0
Self Powered
MaxPower 2mA
Interface Descriptor:
bLength 9
bDescriptorType 4
bInterfaceNumber 0
bAlternateSetting 0
bNumEndpoints 2
bInterfaceClass 8 Mass Storage
bInterfaceSubClass 6 SCSI
bInterfaceProtocol 80 Bulk (Zip)
iInterface 6 MSC Bulk-Only Transfer
Endpoint Descriptor:
bLength 7
bDescriptorType 5
bEndpointAddress 0x81 EP 1 IN
bmAttributes 2
Transfer Type Bulk
Synch Type None
Usage Type Data
wMaxPacketSize 0x0200 1x 512 bytes
bInterval 0
Endpoint Descriptor:
bLength 7
bDescriptorType 5
bEndpointAddress 0x02 EP 2 OUT
bmAttributes 2
Transfer Type Bulk
Synch Type None
Usage Type Data
wMaxPacketSize 0x0200 1x 512 bytes
bInterval 0
Device Qualifier (for other device speed):
bLength 10
bDescriptorType 6
bcdUSB 2.00
bDeviceClass 0 (Defined at Interface level)
bDeviceSubClass 0
bDeviceProtocol 0
bMaxPacketSize0 64
bNumConfigurations 1
Device Status: 0x0001
Self Powered
Edit: fixed code tags
Last edited by jneem (2011-11-19 23:36:18)

So, you're talking about a specific drive.
then try testdisk. it's available in extra.
also you may try to use another cable.
Unfortunatly my system doesn't see any usb drives. But when I boot in stock kernel, everything is OK
PS a few months ago I have bricked my external hdd by inserting it in win7 by mistake. Billy's OS didnt recognised my ext3 partition, and destroed it without any prompt. B****! I still cant forgive it

External Hard Drive doesn't mount, not showing in Disk Utility

I have had this Western Digital external hard drive for a few months now and until this evening it worked fine. It won't show up on my Macbook Pro and it is not present in the Disk Utility section. The light on the external hard drive is on so it doesn't appear to be a power issue. I have another of the same exact hard drive and it works fine. I tried switching USB cables and even power supplies and I can't get it to work. Does anyone know how to recover the files or is the hard drive toast?

Something's wrong inside the case; it's either a problem which is preventing the computer from properly connecting to the drive or the drive itself is dead.
Data recovery from a failed drive can only be done by a professional service, which can charge hundreds or thousands of dollars.
(93717)

External hard drive doesn't appear in /dev/sd*

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for