IMAC won't recognize external hard drive anymore

I am running snow leopard on my IMAC with all the latest software updates. I've been using a LaCie Quadra external hard drive with time machine for backups for awhile with no problems. From the beginning is was plug in the hard drive and go, the mac recognized it. Now, suddenly, it won't. When I turn on the LaCie to back up, the icon no longer pops on the desktop. It is also not listed in the Time Machine preferences anymore. I tried to open the LaCie from Mac systems preferences and get a message with something like "64 bit cannot recognize 32 bit" I am asked to close and reopen system preferences, which would change to 32 bit. I tried that and it did not work,and a report was sent to Apple. Has anyone else been experiencing this? Thanks

jraguseo wrote:
Thanks. I don't disconnect the drive, only turn it off with it's own power switch. According to LaCie, this should not be a problem.
No, it's not a problem for the drive, but neither is leaving it (and Time Machine) on. Most externals will "spin down" after a few minutes of activity, but even if they don't, modern drives are built to run 24/7.
Time Machine was designed to do quick hourly backups of changes, and will protect you best that way. Just leave both Time Machine and the drive on; they'll be fine.

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Hi there,
My father has a 2009 iMac running Mac OS X 10.8.3. Recently, Time Machine stopped recognizing his external Maxtor OneTouch backup hard drive.
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If the drive has more than one interface (USB, FireWire, Thunderbolt, eSATA), try one of the other interfaces.
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Start up in Safe Mode and test.
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My iMac does not recognize external hard drive

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Please help.
Insightful

can be this reasons
01 , you have problem with connection ? check the port if you can find any problems physically .
02. if not try to change the cable and with connection ,
03. may be its good idea to check the hard drive with another mac ?(if you have )
Did you note any diference of sound from Hard Drive ? listen to it that carefully to note some unusual sound comes when the hard drive works.
check this link this might usefull: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjgOSxKy-FQ

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== ==
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http://eshop.macsales.com/tech_center/basictrob.cfm
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It sounds like your drive directory has been corrupted.
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Data Rescue may recover your files. You will need a drive of the same size to copy over your files.
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External hard drive spontaneously unmounted? Try these tips:
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Thanks in advance.

I have had the same problem with my MacBook since I upgraded to 10.7.3. Did what you suggested, here's what I got:
2012-03-11 13:56:38.074 defaults[6427:303]
The domain/default pair of (/Users/jean/Library/Preferences/com.apple.finder.plist, ShowExternalHardDrivesOnDesktop) does not exist
[Macintosh-3:~] jean%
My LaCie drive is plugged in and running.
I've also found that digital cameras only show as connected to the MacBook via Image Capture.
I did run Disk Utility and got this:
Verifying volume “LaCie Rugged”
Checking file systemInvalid content in journal
Journal need to be replayed but volume is read-only
Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
Checking extents overflow file.
Checking catalog file.
Invalid node structure
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Error: This disk needs to be repaired. Click Repair Disk.
Verify and Repair volume “LaCie Rugged”
Checking file systemInvalid content in journal
Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
Checking extents overflow file.
Checking catalog file.
Invalid node structure
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Message was edited by: Doctah

Macbook won't recognize external hard drive

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External drives don't show up on Desktop by default. First, connect the external drive, and then, open a Finder window. After that, you should see your external drive in the Finder's sidebar, under "Devices". If you want to show it on Desktop, open the Finder menu (on the menu bar) > Preferences > General, and tick "External drives"

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IMAC won't recognize external hard drive anymore

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