I can't find my USB external hard drive.
I have macbook pro with OSX 10.6.8 . I have been using a Seagate Free Agent GoFlex Desk 2TB usb Hard Drive as my Time machine backup drive. I had it connected to my airport base station and it was working. I had to move the Base Station to a different location and now the hard drive can't be found. I have even tried doing a direct connection to the Notebook USB drive. The light go on on the front of the drive but I can not find it in finder or time machine. Any suggestions will be helpful. Thanks.
I have a somewhat similar problem. I've been running my MacBook off an external USB drive. I haven't used it in a while but now I get the flashing question mark as well. Safe mode tells me to restart the laptop. PRAM (sic) reset doesn't work. The drive mounts without a problem on my Mac Pro.
Similar Messages
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Can I use a usb external hard drive larger than 2TB? I have tried to use a 3TB but it shows up as 800GB. Even tred to reformat in disk utility but only shows as 800 gb as well. It is a Seagate 3TB harddrive and enclosure. Nothing on the Seagate site about it other than it says Mac os through 10.6 is supported for larger than 2TB (might be old).
You might have better luck in the Snow Leopard community. I'll ask the hosts to relocate your post.
10.6 Snow Leopard -
Can no longer access USB external hard drive
Hi - I am running OS X 10.8.4 on my iMac (21.5-inch, Late 2009), and have been using a La Cie USB external hard drive for several years for my Time Machine backups without issues. All of a sudden yesterday, the external hard drive disappeared from Finder and my Desktop, and as a result, no more Time Machine backups I rebooted both the external hard drive and iMac several times and changed the USB cable but with no success. Disk Utility and Time Machine cannot see the external hard drive but it does appear under System Information => USB (see below). I connected it to my Windows 8 laptop. The Windows laptop can see the external hard drive under Disk Management as an uninitialized disk. But I will not allow me to initialize it and therefore cannot acces it.
Product ID: 0x0951
Vendor ID: 0x059f (LaCie)
Version: 0.00
Serial Number: 152D203380B6
Speed: Up to 480 Mb/sec
Manufacturer: LaCie
Location ID: 0x24300000 / 4
Current Available (mA): 500
Current Required (mA): 2
Any help to restore the external hard drive would be appreciated.
RonThank you for your quick response. Disk Utility does not see the hard drive. Windows 8 does see it under Device Manager and says that it is working propoerly but it will not allow me to initialize it. As indicated to Lin Davis, I'll buy a new external hard drive.
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Can I use a Usb external hard drive on my macbook pro?
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Yes. You have to prep it for your Mac. Currently it's setup for Windows.
Drive Partition and Format
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder.
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Apply button and wait until the process has completed.
4. Select the volume you just created (this is the sub-entry under the drive entry) from the left side list. Click on the Erase tab in the DU main window.
5. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Security button, check the button for Zero Data and click on OK to return to the Erase window.
6. Click on the Erase button. The format process can take up to several hours depending upon the drive size. -
Itunes new install on windows 7 can't find library on external hard drive
I just installed itunes on a new windows 7 computer - On my previous computer I had my itunes library on an external hard drive.
I can't get itunes to find most of my music.
I can't figure out why this has to be so hard - please help.iTunes: How to re-create your iTunes library and playlists
More useful info:
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Anyone know how I can be able to see my external hard drive? I've been using it before and was able to see it until I upgraded my OS to Mavericks....Now, I cannot find it in the finder but I can see it in the disk utility however, my mac does not allow me to do anything on it...I don't want to reformat coz I have important files in my hard drive...PLEASE HELP! Thanks...
Yup. Still not there...only my Mac HD came out...my WD external HD can be detected coz it's the one I'm using for time machine back-up but my Toshiba external HD is still not present/ mounted in finder and I still cannot choose it in disk utility even if it is listed there...
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IMac can't find my attached external hard drive for Time Machine. Any ideas?
I have a Seagate for Mac external hard drive I have been using for my Time Machine backups. Last week it was no longer backing up. I unplugged it, reattached but Time Machine doesn't seem to be able to find it.
Sounds like the external disk drive has died.
If you have access to another computer, try testing it there. If not, you might be able to get the Apple Store to test it for you. -
ITunes can't find music on external hard drive Help!
We moved my friend's iTunes music to an external hard drive. Everything was working fine until this week. Somehow the location of the music got changed back to her C drive. I redid the location but now every song has the exclamation mark. I would trash the music folder on the external drive and have her import the songs again from her DVD back ups but she has over 4,000 songs. Any other way to do this? I'm a Mac person so please explain the PC steps clearly. She is running Windows Vista.
Thanks for any help you can offer.Somehow the location of the music got changed back to her C drive.
Because iTunes was started with the external drive not plugged in or not online and ready.
I redid the location but now every song has the exclamation mark
Select all the songs in iTunes, right click - Get info. -
After I installed Lion, my MacBook Pro can no longer detect my external hard drives or my USB flash drives. What should I do?
And me -- My Mac at work running Snow Leopard reads the drive normally. My home Mac (on Lion) can't even find it....
Yet another Leo let-down..... -
Why can't I drag my files in finder to an external hard drive?
I'm trying to drag my files from finder to an external hard drive--I just get the universal "do not" symbol. How do I do this?
1.youd need a program like PARAGON to write to a NTFS drive from your Mac.
2. IF you can offload that data onto your PC or other computer, THEN format same in Mac OSX extended journaled, you can just drag and drop files to it.
3. To show the HD on desktop go to Finder > preferences > General > check on "external disks" and "hard disks"
4. The "EASY" option really is to get another HD for use with your Mac, unless of course you need specific files off that drive ON your Mac.
$70 for a good cheap quality 1TB external USB HD.
5. FAT32 and (better option>) EXFAT can read/write to BOTH Mac and PC (however time machine will not use either)
6. See mac format below, HFS+ i.e. "mac osx extended journaled"
FORMAT TYPES
FAT32 (File Allocation Table)
Read/Write FAT32 from both native Windows and native Mac OS X.
Maximum file size: 4GB.
Maximum volume size: 2TB
You can use this format if you share the drive between Mac OS X and Windows computers and have no files larger than 4GB.
NTFS (Windows NT File System)
Read/Write NTFS from native Windows.
Read only NTFS from native Mac OS X
To Read/Write/Format NTFS from Mac OS X, here are some alternatives:
For Mac OS X 10.4 or later (32 or 64-bit), install Paragon (approx $20) (Best Choice for Lion)
Native NTFS support can be enabled in Snow Leopard and Lion, but is not advisable, due to instability.
AirPort Extreme (802.11n) and Time Capsule do not support NTFS
Maximum file size: 16 TB
Maximum volume size: 256TB
You can use this format if you routinely share a drive with multiple Windows systems.
HFS+ ((((MAC FORMAT)))) (Hierarchical File System, a.k.a. Mac OS Extended (Journaled) Don't use case-sensitive)
Read/Write HFS+ from native Mac OS X
Required for Time Machine or Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper! backups of Mac internal hard drive.
To Read HFS+ (but not Write) from Windows, Install HFSExplorer
Maximum file size: 8EiB
Maximum volume size: 8EiB
You can use this format if you only use the drive with Mac OS X, or use it for backups of your Mac OS X internal drive, or if you only share it with one Windows PC (with MacDrive installed on the PC)
EXFAT (FAT64)
Supported in Mac OS X only in 10.6.5 or later.
Not all Windows versions support exFAT.
exFAT (Extended File Allocation Table)
AirPort Extreme (802.11n) and Time Capsule do not support exFAT
Maximum file size: 16 EiB
Maximum volume size: 64 ZiB
You can use this format if it is supported by all computers with which you intend to share the drive. See "disadvantages" for details. -
I need to back up my imac running Tiger (no time machine) so that we can upgrade OS. It is set up for multiple accounts. How do I capture all files in each account using newly purchased USB external hard drive? Thanks!
Backup Software Recommendations
Carbon Copy Cloner
Data Backup
Deja Vu
SuperDuper!
Synk Pro
Tri-Backup
Others may be found at VersionTracker or MacUpdate.
Visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQ on backup and restore. Also read How to Back Up and Restore Your Files.
Or you can simply use the Restore option of Disk Utility to clone the drive to the backup:
Clone using Restore Option of Disk Utility
Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
Select the destination volume from the left side list.
Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
Check the box labeled Erase destination.
Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Destination means the external backup drive. Source means the internal startup drive. -
HT1338 my mac pro doesn't see my usb external hard drive what can i do?
I'm having a problem with my mac pro not see my usb external hard drive. Can someone tell me something I can do to get the mac tosee the external drive?
Thank you in advance.
GeorgeOpen Disk Utility (Applications > Utilities) and check the sidebar. If it's in it, select it and format it unless you have files
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How do i repair or recover data from a corrupt USB external hard drive that does not show up on my Mac desktop or disk utility?
Last night i was using my external hard drive, for some reason the folder just closed and i couldn't find it on my desktop.
After googling solutions, i found it in the disk utilities, i clicked on the 'repair' button many times, but it said the 'error...' message.
So i ejected it to try again, now when i connect the USB external hard drive it doesn't show up on my desktop or disk utilities.
I really just want to either repair or recover the data on it because it literally has everything (documents, work files, photos etc) on it,
I downloaded an application to recover my files but it needs the USB to at least show up.recognise it which mine doesn't.
I know i should've backed it up on another USB, this definitely teaches me for next time to back up all my files.
Are the files lost forever or can i recover them by going to a shop or using a software?Thank you for responding.
This might sound stupid since i'm not really knowledgeable with Macs,
but since all my files were moved from my mac computer to the external hard drive,
is it possible to recover those files through my Mac - like recovering deleted files? -
Can I install onto an external hard drive + run off it?
Can I install onto an external hard drive + run off it?
If possible, will the system run at the *same* speed as the built in hard drive?
ALSO: Am I correct in saying that if I replace my current hard drive with an SSD one?
If so: that *****
Thanks
OmarOS X doesn't matter what disk you boot from, as long as it can be formatted properly in Disk Utility. You can boot from a USB stick drive if it's big enough.
Thunderbolt would be the fastest, the drive would be the limiting factor there. You can find Thunderbolt drives like these at stores like macsales.com. But USB 3 might also feel fast enough.
If you have boot systems installed on many drives connected to your Mac, the way you tell the Mac which one to use is to hold down the Option key at startup. This will present icons of all the connected drives you can boot from, then you just pick one and go. -
My HP Pavilian dv6910 stopped seeing my USB external hard drive
My HP Pavilion dv6910 stopped seeing my USB external hard drive. Up until 2 weeks ago I have never had a problem with the laptop reading and writing to my Seagate 500gb hard drive. I have 2 other computers that have no trouble working with the external drive. I thought maybe the circuit board in the external drive case was bad so I bought another one. Same thing. The Vista home premium software will not open the drive. Oddly enough, the drive is seen by the hardware manager and I can get volume information but Windows Explorer does not see it at all.
The laptop has 3 usb2 ports and I have tried them all with the same results. I have other usb devises that work just fine on all ports.
I thought maybe the driver got messed up so I did an auto search to replace and was told the current driver is ok.
I do have a program called Advanced System Care Pro that auto cleans the registry (as well as many other things) and it might have removed something it should not have but I am not sure.
I use the external drive for all my backups so I need to get this problem resolved as soon as possible. Can anyone help we with this?I meant reinstalling the operating system.
There's a repair disc, but it's generally to repair a corrupted boot protocols.
I had a look around and I can't find any place to download it either.
Just thought if something _ you could try doing a hard reset.
Shut down, remove the battery and adapter, hold the power button for 30 seconds.
Plug only the adapter back in and boot up.
Try you hard drive again _ give it a minute.
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