External hard drive isn't indexing in spotlight

I have a 320gb Seagate external hard drive attached to my MacBook by usb. The drive works fine, but files on the drive don't show up in spotlight searches. Essentially, I can't search for files on this drive. I have tried adding it as private in the spotlight settings and then deleting it, but that didn't force it to be indexed.
According to disk utility, the drive is formatted as: +Mac OS Extended (Case-sensitive, Journaled)+
Does anyone know how to include this drive in spotlight searches or why it isn't thus far?
Thanks!

Select the icon of the drive you want to partition—not any of the volume icons below it—in the Disk Utility window. Select the Partition tab.
From the Partition Layout menu in the window, select One Partition.
From the Format menu, select Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
Click the Options button and select GUID Partition Table.
Click the Apply button and confirm when prompted.

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External Hard Drive unable to search with Spotlight

I have an external hard drive that is connected to a mac running 10.5.8, and is availble as a shared drive to all in the dept.
Until recently, we could perform Spotlight searches to find specific files, but that ability has ceased to work.
I have tried re-indexing (using the spotlight privacy dodge). I have rebooted the sytem, repaired permissions on the host computer, checked the hard drive with disk utility. All to no avail.
Please can someone suggest a possible solution to this problem.
The macs accessing the drive conatin a variety OS from 10.5 to 10.7, and none seem able to search for the files.
thanks

i tried this:
http://wdc.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/3865/session/L3RpbWUvMTMxMjQwOTU zMS9zaWQva25STDhFQWs%3D
then the message still popped up. So I did the following:
1. making sure the name i give my hard drive doesn't have space in it (it probably didn't matter but i was ready to do anything to make it work!)
2. empty my trash (the one on the computer, that is...)
3. make sure that any previous files from the drive isn't open
then it worked! i hope it works for you too.

External hard-drive disappeared after dragging into Spotlight

Dear users,
My external hard-drive under devices disappeared after I dragged it into Spotlight to reindex it to make it searchable.
There was a cloud puff animation when i dragged it from the devices icon on the left of folders to the spotlight privacy box window.
Please help. Thank you!

Hi there,
did you find out what the problem was or how to re-map the ext. HDD?
I have the same problem.
thank you.

External Hard Drive isn't being found in Time Machine. Cant back up my mac.

Just bought a samsung 500gb external hard drive because I need to backup my mac to do a full system reboot because it is completely messed up after downloading the new yosemite update.
But when I go to time machine it isn't offered as an option for a backup disk. I go to disk utility and I can't reformat the hard drive from MS-DOS (FAT) to Mac OS extended (Journaled). I try to change it and it reverts back straight away and I can't change the name of my hard drive. I don't understand what I have to do, i'm currently in safe boot because my laptop runs too slow in normal mode.
Any help would be great.

Select the icon of the drive you want to partition—not any of the volume icons below it—in the Disk Utility window. Select the Partition tab.
From the Partition Layout menu in the window, select One Partition.
From the Format menu, select Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
Click the Options button and select GUID Partition Table.
Click the Apply button and confirm when prompted.

How can Time Machine backup automatically when your external hard drive isn't connected?

Everywhere I search, it says that Time Machine will automatically backup every 24 hours and so on.
However, I was wondering - how can these automatic backups take place if you are backing up to an external hard drive which is not always connected?
Is this to say that if you do not connect your external hard drive for a day, no backups will be done that day?
Thank you

If the drive is not connected then TM pauses until the drive becomes available. Yes, if the drive isn't connected then there are no backups.
A whole lot about Time Machine for help with TM problems. Also you can select Mac Help from the Finder's Help menu and search for "time machine" to locate articles on how to use TM. See also Mac 101- Time Machine.

My external hard-drive isn't appearing on my laptop?

Both the laptop and hard-drive are new and had worked previously. I was using it as my external back-up and was working fine as my time machine. But now it isn't appearing at all on the computer anywhere. The hard-drive is still working, that is the light is on, it is making noise like it normally would, and when plugged into another mac it shows up fine, it's just my laptop? Can anyone help? Thanks!!

swryker
The point is that the HD is working with another computer,
That doesnt mean anything actually, seen that often, read the link above, ....
Your dead external hard drive is likely fine! Great hope for your 'faulty' external HD
People logically often think thats the case, but when a SATA card fails, it often, due to power faults will work on another notebook USB port and not on another.
last test, verify that another HD wont connect to your USB ports on your Air.
.......if it does, its a bad SATA card on the HD.

External hard drive isn't visible, won't mount

Hi,
I have a WD MyBook external hard drive that is not working correctly with any mac. It randomly stopped showing up on the desktop or in the finder. I don't move it around at all, so I have no idea what the origin of the problem is. I have tried plugging it into a black Macbook, white Macbook and Macbook Pro with the same results. It shows up in both the System Profiler and Disk Utilities. In the System Profiler, I can get information on the drive. The only thing I see of note is that there isn't a mount point. In disk utilities the hard drive is gray. When I click on it to repair it, I can only repair or verify the disk. When I do that, it tells me that the drive "appears to be okay". I try to mount it and it tells me it cannot be mounted and to try running first aid. I also can't eject it.
I'm at a loss at this point. Is there something else I can try?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions and sorry for the long post!

Had the exact same problem yesterday and wanted to share how I solved it. It first happened a couple months ago. Would not mount on my Mac Pro, but it did show up when I connected it to my laptop. I solved it by just shutting off the Mac Pro, unplugging it even, and unplugging everything from the My Book drive. I let it sit for 3 hours. Started the Mac Pro up, then put FW cord into My Book, then into Mac Pro, then connected the power cord for the My Book. That worked. For some reason.
But I tried that again when My Book Pro Edition disappeared yesterday (could see it grayed out in Disk Utility, but it would not mount) and nothing would bring it back. After looking through the Western Digital site, I figured it had something to do with the partition being bad. I thought I'd have to buy Stellar Phoenix data recovery software, which might have recovered my data. But first I went out and bought Disk Warrior. Disk Warrior fixed it! I'm back up and running.
My theory on why My Book Pro Edition had problems this second time. To save my on my electric bill I write this during the recession), every night after I shut down the Mac Pro, I also turn off the power strip. Cutting the cost of "vampire" electricity, as they say. Now I see I wasn't shutting down the My Book properly... you need to follow the Safe Shutdown instructions -- pressing Power Button once. Although I also have the My Book Studio connected which hasn't been affected by my turning off the power strip as it seem to shut off by itself when the Mac Pro is shut down. I think improperly shutting down the My Book Pro every night is likely the reason Disk Warrior diagnosed the problem as a "severely damaged directory."

External hard drive isn't shown on desktop anymore

Hello!
I've got a problem with my external hard drive... I'm using a *G4 iMac* and an *external hard drive* by "iomega".
Today my computer crashed down and I had to relaunch it without having a chance to eject the external hard drive before.
When I get to my desktop again the hard drive wasn't there anymore. I turned the hard drive off ( it was turned on while relaunching the computer) and on again but it didn't work.
The hard drive is shown in the hard drive utility but I can't neither repair nor check it because all the buttons are "greyed out". And when I try to eject it with the utility, it says "Hard drive can't be ejected - Try to switch off all running programs". But I have no access to the hard drive to do so!
I also tried to attach the hard drive to another computer (this time I turned the hard drive off before!) but there's the same problem!
I need the data on it!
Is there any possibility to solve my problem without losing my data???
Thanks a lot in advance!!!
elbin_24

oh, already solved!
After the thousandth relaunch of the hard drive it is working now and it is shown on my desktop as it should be!!!
I'm sorry for causing this trouble here in the forum! Excuse me, please!!!!
elbin_24

I used up my two downloads for my standard CS5 suite, my backed up program on my external hard drive isn't working. My serial number says it is invalid, what do I do?

I purchased the standard CS5 suite (photoshop, illustrator, in design, bridge) student package for my laptop (through a download process, not dvd, in which I had two downloads). I used my first one, that followed with my hard drive crashing. I used my second download, and then I had an accident with my laptop and had to purchase a new one. I backed up all of my programs onto an external hard drive and I just tried to re download adobe programs using that. When i enter my serial number it says it is invalid. What can I do? Live chat will not help me because I do not have the current CS6 or CC.

Double-check your serial number here: Find your serial number quickly
Serial numbers will sometimes become invalidated if they were hacked and made available on the internet.

HT2518 my external hard drive isn't showing up on my Mac desktop. Does the external hard drive need to be an apple one?

I have recently bought a Mac Book Pro and I am trying to transfer my files from my old PC to the new Mac. I have put my files onto an external hard drive but when I plug it into my Mac is doesnt show on the desktop?

Check the settings in the General tab of the Finder's preferences.
(66178)

External hard drive isn't reading on macbook or iMac?

I have tried both a macbook pro and an iMac and my hard drive will not even read. It is a hitachi hard drive. I went into disk utility and it shows my hard drive there, so I verified the disk and it said that it was okay. even tried to repair it and nothing happened, It said that my hard drive was fine.
I just can't lose the things that are on it, because I haven't backed them up in a while.
Thanks!

Is the drive mounted? Does Disk Utility show it as mounted? Can you mount it from Disk Utility?
Are you sure you have Finder set to show the drive on the Desktop (Finder->Preferences->General; Show these items on the Desktop)
Does it show up in the Finder sidebar assuming you have Finder->Preferences->Side Bar set to show external drives?

External Hard Drive Isn't showing up.

Today i was moving some files on and off my WD 1T harddrive for about an hour or so when it just stopped reading? I didn't move it at all while it was in use. The name of the hard drive in the side bar just turned a grey colour and froze. It would not eject so i had to pull the cord out. Iv tryed to put it in to 3 different computers (all macs) and still the same issue. All the lights still turn on when i plug it in and i can hear it start up but its just not being picked up on the computer (not showing up in disc utility either). if someone could please help me it would be greatly appreciated. cheers
Louis

Check the settings in the General tab of the Finder's preferences.
(66178)

My external hard drive isn't being recognized

I have an extrenal drive I used to back up my dvds for faster viewing and the drive is going out I think. It will disconnect midway through movies, when uploading or downloading to/from it it will sometimes just disconnect itself. about 75-80% of the time its plugged in it wont show up. I can't attempt to transfer more than about 3 gigs of information or else if ejects itself, and it won't even show up in disk utility.
How can I get this crazy drive to be recognized so I can keep working on transfering the data back off it before it dies completely

OK, so are there any volumes listed for that disk in Disk Utility? And how does it not allow you to repair the disk? Is the option grayed out? Try clicking on the disk AND the volume and comparing the options for each.
For example:
149.1 GB FUJITSU MHW2160BHPL Media
|- Macintosh HD
|- disk0s3
186.3 GB Prolific PL3507 Combo Device *(On this disk…)*
|- Time Machine *(…here is my Time Machine volume.)*
|- Windows Extra
Message was edited by: Sidney San Martín

Do I need to partition my external hard drive for a bootable backup

Hi - First, I apologize for asking a question that's already been discussed so much. I did try to read everything I could, but I remain confused. Here is my precise situation:
I have an iMac, and I purchased a year's worth of Carbonite's online backup and breathed a sigh of relief. Then I read some people have problems with Carbonite, and the best advice was to buy an external hard drive, which I did. It just arrived, I plugged it in, and Time Machine backed up my computer on it...so I breathed another sigh of relief.
Then I read that my wonderful new 2T external hard drive isn't good enough, that I should partition it so as to have one backup, and one "bootable backup." Is this really necessary? And what is the difference between a backup, and a bootable backup? If it is necessary, how do I do it? Is it a problem that I've already used it to create a backup on Time Machine?
I use my computer for things like email, Facebook, pictures, eBay, stuff like that. I have no unusual needs. My computer is an iMac OS X 10.6.8.
Thank you in advance for any help you can offer!

I prefer a clone/bootable backup ovver Time Machine myself.
For TM you need a running OS, then time to restore, with a clone you can boot from that & keep working while doing the other when time is better. And you can test a clone before you need it.
Get carbon copy cloner to make an exact copy of your old HD to the New one...
http://www.bombich.com/software/ccc.html
Or SuperDuper...
http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/
You would need to Partition your drive though.
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

I want to put my iTunes library on an external hard drive but leave my favourite songs on the computer to access without the external hard drive and when using iMovie. Is there a way to do this?

I have filled my hard drive, half with music, half with photos. I want to take my music off, and put it onto an external hard drive. However, I would still like to have access to favourite songs and playlists when the external hard drive isn't plugged in. I would also like to access this music to use with iMovie. Is there a way to do this?

You will have to engage a split library which means you will have to start answering questions on this forum because you will need to learn a lot about how iTunes works in order not that have a big mess at the end of it all. It also won't be easy when the time comes to relocate it all to different drives.
You can go to advanced preferences and turn off organize media and copy to items to media folder when adding items to library. Next read about how to selectively consolidate items to the external drive.
Sept. 2010, Consolidate selected content - https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2589812 and April 2014, https://discussions.apple.com/message/25414357
"...selected the new tracks directly in iTunes, Control-clicked on the selection, and saw that now you can consolidate selected items." - http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20090919000326840
Remember that when you start iTunes without the external drive turned on iTunes will present you with a bunch of broken links. If you have automatic downloads enabled with iCloud you may have to turn that off to prevent iTunes from repopulating your drive trying to deal with those "missing" tracks.
If you add tracks in bunches to iTunes and want them to go to different media folders you will need to either add them by holding down the option key while dragging if the desired media folder is not the one set in preferences, or by changing the media folder in preferences. Changing media folder preferences only applies to new files added, not old ones.
Okay, I am going to stop typing because you might just reply to me, "Oh, okay, forget it," and I don't need the exercise.
What are the iTunes library files? - http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1660
More on iTunes library files and what they do - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ITunes#Media_management
What are all those iTunes files? - http://www.macworld.com/article/139974/2009/04/itunes_files.html
Where are my iTunes files located? - http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1391

External hard drive isn't indexing in spotlight

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