HELP!! My External HDD won't show up

Hi all,
I've got a WD external My Book 750GB plugged into my MacBook Pro 13 inch via USB. The drive powers up but never shows on Mac nor on disk utility.
What should I do?
I have wedding photos from recently which need to be processed and given to clients!
Thanks,
Fred

Hi everyone,
I've got a similar problem, but with a different external HDD, doesn't seem to be too much off-topic though.
I have had a Buffalo 300GB USB external HDD (can't remember the exact model name, but here's a picture http://www.techfuels.com/attachments/storage/530d1203230298-external-hard-disk-b uffalo-300gb-drive-station-hd-hbu2-series-drive.jpg) for a few years now and have never had any problems. I've only got my first Mac about a week ago and when I plug the drive into my Mac it just doesn't show up, although the lights go on and the disk starts spinning. Disc Utility doesn't see it either.
Meanwhile, my home PC, my old Fujitsu Siemens Laptop and my mother's Sony laptop are all able to read it perfectly fine. BUT, and I think this is important, I have used this external drive about a year ago on my friend's Mac to get some stuff and it worked fine. I tried connecting it again to the same Mac a couple of weeks ago and it didn't see the drive (again, lights on, disk spinning)! Using different USB ports or restarting the system didn't help.
Conclusion:
-the hardrive isn't faulty, because works fine with three Windows computers
-the problem is not with my own Macbook Pro, since another Macbook has the same problem
-since it worked before it can't be that the HDD is intrinsically Mac-incompatible
Any suggestions?

Similar Messages

I installed the latest security update now my Lacie external drive won't show up in finder. Any Help?

I installed the latest security update now my Lacie external drive won't show up in finder. Any Help?

Does it show up in Disk Utility?
See mount section in 1st linked article.
Disk Unmount Using Terminal
Disk Utility – Force Mount Disk

External 500GB USB HDD won't show in my computer

I recently purchased the above named product, which was working fine until the other day when for some unknown reason, the drive no longer appeared on the My computer function.
I followed the troubleshooting guidance/FAQ and this has not resolved the issue. The computer is recognising that the hard drive is there, as it shows up on the list of USB/hardware devices and under removable storage in Computer Mgt (when you right click on my computer and select Manage) but I couldn't go through the troubleshoot/FAQ guidance as the drive isn't accessible.
I fear all my music (recently transferred to it) is lost forever.
Please someone tell me I'm wrong. Any ideas people?
Thanks

Hopefully its not a hardware problem.
Well. Did you try to connect this external HDD to another computer?
If not check this!
In an further step I would recommend to disconnecting the HDD from the notebook and to remove all the USB ports from the device manager.
After new reboot the OS should recognize the USB controllers again and should reinstall the USB drivers.
After this short procedure, try to connect the HDD to the notebook.
I wish you good luck

External HDD (Internal) Not Showing Up In Finder, But It Is Showing Up In Disk Utility

Before I start, I know that this question has technically been solved before, but not exactly in my case. Keep in mind that I'm a graphic designer, this is why I am so passionate about fixing this issue. So, here's the story. Yesterday, I sold my Mac mini (Late 2009). I had plans of buying the new MacBook Pro w/ Retina Display (15 inch), and that worked out perfectly. I bought the MacBook and sold my Mac mini. Prior to selling the Mac mini, I decided to format an old hard drive that I had, which was a 160GB hard drive. My plan was to sell the computer with the 160GB HDD, and keep my 750GB HDD. I know my fair share of computing and repair, so I replaced the hard drive myself, and reinstalled Mac OS X ML on the 160GB HDD. I installed the OS via external SATA to USB connection, and it booted up perfectly through that connection to my Mac mini. Then, when I took out the 160GB HDD, my computer booted to my priority internal drive, which was the 750 GB HDD, that I'm having problems with currently. It booted up perfectly, and all of my information was on it. So, at that point, seeing that everything was flawless, I extracted the 750GB HDD, from inside the computer and replaced it with the 160GB HDD, which I formatted, reinstalled ML on, and was planning on selling it with. The 160GB HDD booted perfectly and everything was working on the Mac mini, but then, I plugged in my 750GB HDD via USB connection, to see if my files and everything was still there, I got a message saying, "The disk you inserted is not readable by this computer" and it gave me three options underneath, which were: "Initialize...", "Ignore" and "Eject". I pressed on initialize, and tried to do everything that I possibly could, without formatting it, and all of the options like "Verify Disk" and "Repair Disk" were "grayed out", if you know what I mean. I tried plugging it into all 5 USB ports, but I got the same message. It was recognized in Disk Utility, but not in Finder. So, I sold the computer with the 160GB HDD that was working fine, but now I had another dilemma which was why my 750GB HDD, isn't showing up in Finder. I can hear the HDD spinning when I plug it in via USB. This Hard Drive has run Mac OS X Lion and Mountain Lion on it, I've never installed Windows on it. So, it was properly formatted for a Mac. Now, I went out and bought the MacBook Pro with Retina Display that I needed, and I tried doing the same thing, which was plugging it in via USB, and seeing if Finder would pick it up. Still, nothing. I ended up with the same message. Here are some reference screenshots, of what I'm getting exactly.
I've called Western Digital, and they told me to try booting up the 750GB HDD, in an older Macbook Pro, to see if it will boot, and recovery all of the files from there. The problem is, I don't know anybody with an older MBP. I called Best Buy and they said that they could take a look at it, but I would truly prefer by fixing this on my own, without having to pay them. That would be my LAST resort. I'm aware that I can't boot up the 750GB HDD in my new MBP w/ Retina because it can only carry SSD. So, I'm basically puzzled. If anybody could help me out, it'd be greatly appreciated. Like I said before, I'm a graphic designer, and I'm in desperate need of the files that were on my 750GB HDD. Thanks.

I describe how you fix it here
https://discussions.apple.com/message/21995208#21995208

Help - following external hdd crash

I have 6,250 tracks occupying 32gb in my iTunes, fully synchronised with myPod.
iTunes including the iTunes folder is stored on a 320gb Toshiba drive.
Whilst copying to the external drive the other night I got an error saying there was corrupt file.
Following this the the external drive was not accessible.
After a drive reformat and an iTunes repair, iTunes is back up and running ?
How can this be ? The external drive is empty yet the 6,250 tracks are still in iTunes.
iTunes show that the file is now stored on my pc hard drive instead of the external drive.
This cannot be as my pc hdd doesn't have enough space for 32gb ?
Can anyone help ?
Ipod 60gb video Windows XP Pro External Toshiba 320gb hdd

Thanks, come to think of it they did have an exclamation mark on them.
However..................I carried out a restore and managed to successfully put the 30gb itunes folder back on my external hdd.
I then did a backup of it using XP.
Both are approx 33gb the same as my iPod.
Unfortunately now I have twice as much on iTunes, 66gb eveything is duplicated.
None have an exclamation mark and all can be played.
How can I get iTunes back to one copy of each song ?
Ipod 60gb video Windows XP Pro

External HDD won't appear in Disk Utility

Hi all,
after a lot of time spent browsing forums to find a solution, I finally decided to post here:
I am running Maverick 10.9.5 on a Mid2010 MacBook Pro.
I have been using a 1Tb HGST Touro USB external HDD for a year and a half. There was an ExFAT and a HFS partition. I was using the latter for TimeMachine purposes.
While running a Time Machine back-up, I was browsing on the internet about pros and cons of upgrading to Yosemite. Several contributors indicated repairing permissions was a sound practice, whether or not you are going to upgrade. I did just that, which seemed to work ok ("permissions repaired" or something of the kind in the log).
When I came back to the Mac to check on the Time Machine Backup, two notifications had popped-up, saying "External hard drive ExFAT (or HFS) was not disconnected properly", or something similar. Since then, I was unable to access the data in the hard drive, in none of the partitions.
After rebooting, disconnecting, reconnecting the drive, nothing shows up on the desktop or in Finder. It does not show in Disk Utility, nor in System Profiler. The blue light on the top of the drive is on when connected, I cannot figure out if the disk is spinning though.
I tried on a Windows computer. It does not show in Explorer, but Device Manager shows a USB mass storage device called HGST. This is the best I could do.
A lot of data in there that I hope I did not lose!
I'll most likely be slow at understanding your expert replies, please be indulgent!
Anyone has an idea?
Thanks!

SebHz wrote:
Not sur how I can use the disk in another enclosure, it looks like this: http://www.hgst.com/support/external-drive-support/touro-mobile-technical-suppor t
If you do not see any small screws, then you should be able to pry the case apart. The question is where to start the process. If the data has value, the 'destroying' the enclosure may be a small price to pay. Replacement enclosures are not overly expensive. The SATA connection board in the enclosure may have failed which would require a new enclosure anyway.
Ciao.

Help connecting external HDD to AT300 tablet.

I want to know if and how it would be possible to connect an external HDD to a AT300 tablet. Both the tablet and the HDD have micro usb ports, but I can not locate a micro to micro cable online. Am I completly wrong about this even being possible? Any help would be great.
Thanks in advance.

For a flash drive, you use a thing callled a USB "OTG" ("On-the-Go" or "host mode") cable. If you search the forum you can find a previous post with some good hints how to find one of these.
Cannot say I've ever tried my AT305 with a hard disk--as opposed to a flash drive. I'd be concerned about current supply capability for some of the larger capsacity ones (many of which draw more than the USB is specified to provide and some hosts have more headroom above the spec than others). I'd also be concerned that some disk formats might not work with Android. I'm sure it's documented somewhere which ones do and which ones don't. But some research would be in order before betting this will work painlessly first time.

WD External HDD won't mount on iBook G4; no problem mounting on Macbook Pro

I've had a WD My Passport 320 GB drive for about 8 months using it as a Time Machine backup drive for my MacBook Pro. I put some files on there that I want to transfer to my wife's iBook G4 (12 inch, 1.33 GHz) but it simply won't mount. It sounds like the external hard drive performs one revolution and then clicks. It doesn't really start up. Can't locate in disk utility ever on the iBook.
I was wondering if maybe the iBook G4 didn't provide enough power through the USB ports since this is a portable external drive and hence relies on the computer for its power.
If anybody has any insight as to how I can fix this problem, it would be greatly appreciated.
We are looking to purchase a new hard drive for myself, and I was planning on giving the old one to my wife for her own use, but if it won't work, then I may have to re-think this one. Thanks.
Message was edited by: clarity23

If the port power is insufficient for the iBook to run an external hard disk drive,
you may have to connect the unit through a self-powered (AC adapter) USB
2.0 Hub. This would be able to supplement port power for external devices.
Also, depending on the uses, some drives have different results when used
with or in older Macs. And, as a side-note, what partitioning scheme was used
on that WD External HDD? This shouldn't be so important on a non-boot drive.
If the WD was partitioned in something other than HFS+ (or WIN-DOS) it may
have a hard time being seen by the iBook; though port power issues are likely.
The external drive likely pulls a bit more power than the computer ports allow.
With my iBook G4, when used on a desktop, it has its own powered USB setup
and keyboard, mouse, plus printer (or wireless Airport with printer, etc.)
A good tool to have on hand is a 4GB or larger USB flash drive for simple transfers.
Good luck & happy computing!

External HDD won't mount at boot. [Solved]

Edit:
I've noticed that this is an issue regarding my NTFS partition being on an external drive. Please check post #8 by me to get further details.
Hello guys, I'm having some problems getting my external NTFS HDD to mount automatically at boot. I have installed HAL and NTFS-3G, but I'm still getting problems. Mounting once the computer has finished booting is no problem using the simple mount command (sudo mount /media/pebble). I see no reason why this should be having problems mounting at boot with my fstab entry, but no errors occur when mounting manually.
Fstab entry:
/dev/sdc1 /media/pebble ntfs-3g fmask=022 1 0
rc.conf:
# /etc/rc.conf - Main Configuration for Arch Linux
# LOCALIZATION
# LOCALE: available languages can be listed with the 'locale -a' command
# HARDWARECLOCK: set to "UTC" or "localtime"
# USEDIRECTISA: use direct I/O requests instead of /dev/rtc for hwclock
# TIMEZONE: timezones are found in /usr/share/zoneinfo
# KEYMAP: keymaps are found in /usr/share/kbd/keymaps
# CONSOLEFONT: found in /usr/share/kbd/consolefonts (only needed for non-US)
# CONSOLEMAP: found in /usr/share/kbd/consoletrans
# USECOLOR: use ANSI color sequences in startup messages
LOCALE="en_US.utf8"
HARDWARECLOCK="localtime"
USEDIRECTISA="no"
TIMEZONE="America/Vancouver"
KEYMAP="us"
CONSOLEFONT=
CONSOLEMAP=
USECOLOR="yes"
# HARDWARE
# MOD_AUTOLOAD: Allow autoloading of modules at boot and when needed
# MOD_BLACKLIST: Prevent udev from loading these modules
# MODULES: Modules to load at boot-up. Prefix with a ! to blacklist.
# NOTE: Use of 'MOD_BLACKLIST' is deprecated. Please use ! in the MODULES array.
MOD_AUTOLOAD="yes"
#MOD_BLACKLIST=() #deprecated
MODULES=(fuse)
# Scan for LVM volume groups at startup, required if you use LVM
USELVM="no"
# NETWORKING
# HOSTNAME: Hostname of machine. Should also be put in /etc/hosts
HOSTNAME="r3-desktop-arch"
# Use 'ifconfig -a' or 'ls /sys/class/net/' to see all available interfaces.
# Interfaces to start at boot-up (in this order)
# Declare each interface then list in INTERFACES
# - prefix an entry in INTERFACES with a ! to disable it
# - no hyphens in your interface names - Bash doesn't like it
# DHCP: Set your interface to "dhcp" (eth0="dhcp")
# Wireless: See network profiles below
#Static IP example
#eth0="eth0 192.168.0.2 netmask 255.255.255.0 broadcast 192.168.0.255"
#eth0="dhcp"
eth0="eth0 192.168.0.23 netmask 255.255.255.0 broadcast 192.168.0.255"
INTERFACES=(eth0)
# Routes to start at boot-up (in this order)
# Declare each route then list in ROUTES
# - prefix an entry in ROUTES with a ! to disable it
gateway="default gw 192.168.0.1"
ROUTES=(gateway)
# Enable these network profiles at boot-up. These are only useful
# if you happen to need multiple network configurations (ie, laptop users)
# - set to 'menu' to present a menu during boot-up (dialog package required)
# - prefix an entry with a ! to disable it
# Network profiles are found in /etc/network.d
# This now requires the netcfg package
#NETWORKS=(main)
# DAEMONS
# Daemons to start at boot-up (in this order)
# - prefix a daemon with a ! to disable it
# - prefix a daemon with a @ to start it up in the background
DAEMONS=(syslog-ng network netfs crond dbus hal alsa)
Do I need to load HAL earlier? What am I doing wrong?
Last edited by ryeguy146 (2009-11-05 10:04:32)

I just noticed something, I don't think that this is an issue with the partition being NTFS, but rather with it being on an external hard drive (/dev/sdc). I say this because I just rebooted and noticed another NTFS partition that I have in my fstab is mounting (/dev/sda5). It's an internal HDD, and I didn't notice that it mounted up because I rarely use it. But there it is.
I suppose that I should define /dev/sdc. It is a Western Digital External HDD running off of a USB 2.0 cable. I don't know why this makes a difference, but it apparently does. Both entries in the fstab are identical for their respective devices and mount points.
Now that we have that figured out, I think that I'll change the title of the thread. So any ideas on how to solve this one?

Help with external hdd

I just got a mac mini(intel) 2.0 and i want to add an external hdd. i also want to load windows xp. is there a way to load windows on the external and if so what is the best drive to use.

Welcome to Apple Discussions!
You can load and run Windows from an external drive using Parallels Desktop (http://www.parallels.com/) or VMware Fusion (http://www.vmware.com/products/fusion/) - both of which are commercial products, both of which allow MacOS and Windows to be run at the same time. You cannot, however, run Windows using Apple's own BootCamp, which only allows the system to be booted into either MacOS or Windows, not both at the same time.
Almost any external hard drive will do - though for best performance a firewire drive would be a better choice than a USB device. Typically that would mean a drive with dual FW and USB, since FW alone is not a common feature.

USB external HDD won't access files properly on Satellite A100-033

I have a Toshiba Satellite laptop A100-033 ( PSAANE-03J02GEN), running Windows Vista Home Basic.
I have a Western Digital passport external hard drive, which has no separate power source, as it draws its power through the USB port.
Sometimes the drive works okay, but I often have huge problems in accessing files on the drive. Opening a folder can make Windows hang.
Opening a Word or audio file can make Word or the audio software crash. Copying files often fails and in the process may make Windows explorer stop working.
Recently I tried to copy a 33MB file from the external drive to my laptop, and while it did this it took over an hour. So all sorts of things can happen, none of them pleasant.
Problems can happen whether the external drive is the only peripheral plugged into a USB drive (apart from an external mouse, which I always use), or whether the external drive is one of a number of peripherals plugged into my laptop - either separately or via a USB hub (either powered or unpowered).
Does anyone know what is going on and how I can make my USB external drive usable? I have two other external drives (powered by their own power source) and these work perfectly.
Why, much of the time, does this drive limp along so badly as to be virtually unusable?

Hi
One thing is clear; the issue is definitely related to the external HDD and not to the notebook. It looks like that this issue happens always if the HD was connected.
Its really difficult to say what could be wrong with your external HDD
Maybe the HDD sectors are corrupt and therefore you cannot open the folders and some files stored on the HDD.
Did you try to format the HDD? Check this and try to save and reopen some files again.
In worst case the external HDD has a hardware malfunctions

External HDD won't mount

Hello,
I was working on my external hard disk drive called 'Reserve', when the elektricity on that hard drive went out. When I wanted to re-connect my external hard drive to my MacBook Pro it showed the following message:
In other words, it didn't recognize the external hard disk drive 'Reserve'. When I clicked 'Initialize...' I got into Disk Utily where it showed the HDD, but without the partition 'Reserve':
There are some important files on it that I don't want to lose.
I've already looked up some stuff online, but as I'm not a computer expert, I have no idea what there talking about. DiskXsX and stuff like that... No idea.
If anybody could help me...? Please explain in a clear way. For dummies.
Thank a lot in advance!

Data Recovery – Best
Data Recovery – Disk Drill
Data Recovery – Data Rescue
Data Recovery – File Salvage
Data Recovery – Stellar Phoenix
Data Recovery - uFlysoft
Data Recovery - Recovering Deleted Files
Data Recovery - Recovering Deleted Files (2)

External HDD won't mount to desktop from 1/2 of USB Ports

I have an external Iomega HDD and when it's plugged into my left USB port it works fine but when it's plugged into the right USB port it won't mount to the desktop and I can't access it. It doesn't show up in the system profiler or disk utility either.
However other usb devices (wireless mouse for example) work fine when plugged into that port. So I don't think it's the drive because it works in other ports and the port seems to be at least partially functional... But not with the drive.
Any ideas?

Is the drive bus-powered or does it have its own AC power adapter? Are you using a hub?

Help! External drive won't connect after Yosemite 10.10.2 update

I ran the Yosemite 10.10.2 update on my 2013 MacBook Air today, and now I cannot connect to my external Western Digital hard drive. At times, the drive won't connect or show up at all, but at other times, I get a warning that the computer cannot read or repair it. Help! It worked this morning and all of my photos are on there. I know other people have had similar issues, but I haven't found anything resembling a solution. (And yes, I have restarted everything, tried different cords, etc.) Does anyone have any suggestions?
Thank you!

Please read this whole message before doing anything.
This procedure is a diagnostic test. It’s unlikely to solve your problem. Don’t be disappointed when you find that nothing has changed after you complete it.
The purpose of the test is to determine whether the problem is caused by third-party software that loads automatically at startup or login, by a peripheral device, by a font conflict, or by corruption of the file system or of certain system caches.
Disconnect all wired peripherals except those needed for the test, and remove all aftermarket expansion cards, if applicable. Start up in safe mode and log in to the account with the problem. You must hold down the shift key twice: once when you turn on the computer, and again when you log in.
Note: If FileVault is enabled in OS X 10.9 or earlier, or if a firmware password is set, or if the startup volume is a software RAID, you can’t do this. Ask for further instructions.
Safe mode is much slower to start up and run than normal, with limited graphics performance, and some things won’t work at all, including sound output and Wi-Fi on certain models. The next normal startup may also be somewhat slow.
The login screen appears even if you usually login automatically. You must know your login password in order to log in. If you’ve forgotten the password, you will need to reset it before you begin.
Test while in safe mode. Same problem?
After testing, restart as usual (not in safe mode) and verify that you still have the problem. Post the results of the test.

External display won't show the mouse pointer (optical)

hi all,
13" display dimming my old eyes . decided to connect to 20" sony monitor. got the adapter > connected> display shows identical to laptop BUT no mouse pointer AND when the external monitor is displaying, the menubar is not longer existent on the powerbook (the trackpad does work on the laptop screen with external connected ) so I cannot get to the display preferences to set anything up to get the mouse pointer to show on the external monitor.
HELP and thanks
sue

ok folks, fiddled since I wrote this and managed to actually get it going ! so all set.
I'm up and running with the display. and all is dandy !
Message was edited by: Sue brown1

HELP!! My External HDD won't show up

Similar Messages

Maybe you are looking for