Macbook Pro will not recognise WD external hardrive

Hello,
My hard drive, which has all my time machine back ups on it, just stopped working. It was working fine last week when I last backed up, however when I plugged it in to my macbook pro today my computer would not recognise it. I am quite worried as my hard drive has all my files and photos on it.
I believe the model of my hard drive is a WD 1TB external hard drive, and it is a few years old. I have never had any problems to date.
When I tried to use disk utility though, it picked up the hard drive in there but said it needed to be repaired but would not repair it.
Can anyone tell me how I can fix this or what my next steps should be?

First see if another computer recognizes it. If not, it's possible the drive is still good and the circuit board in the drive housing has failed. That's relatively common. If that's what it is you need to get the actual drive out of the WD housing and into another external enclosure. Something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-2-5-Inch-Aluminum-Enclosure-EC-TB4P/dp/B005EIGUD4/ ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1392287507&sr=8-3&keywords=2.5+enclosure

Similar Messages

  • My macbook pro will not detect any external monitors

    My macbook pro will not detect any external monitors, worked 'once' when connect to a TV.
    Have read a lot of web comments, most not very usefull.

    Hi a,
    Check the setting in Sys Prefs > Displays.
    Try a different adapter and/or cable.

  • Macbook Pro will not recognize my external hard drive

    I just updated to a newer MacBook Pro.  I ran Time Machine on my old Macbook from a 2TB external USB hard drive.  When I hooked the hard drive to my new Mac, it wouldn't allow me to select it as the drive for Time Machine.  So I dismounted the hard drive and hooked it back to my old macbook to see if it still registered there (which it did).  Now when I try and hook the hard drive to my new macbook, it will not recognize it at all.  First question, why will it not recognize my new macbook, and second question, why does Time Machine not recognize the hard drive?  It has my old time machine files on it...hopefully I don't have to reformat it and lose all my backup??

    My hard drive is now connected.  But Time Machine will not let me select the hard drive as my back up drive. This hard drive was used on another Macbook, so Time Machine doesn't seem to recognize the hard drive on the new one.  Do I need to reformat the hard drive? I hate to do that because I have the previous backups on there.

  • MacBook Pro will not run my external monitor

    My External monitor will not come on with my MacBook Pro after I installed Mountain Lion. I get the wallpaper but that is all. Any ideas? I have been running the Mcbook Pro with the cover closed with the external monitor, with no problems up until I installed Mountain Lion.

    My hard drive is now connected.  But Time Machine will not let me select the hard drive as my back up drive. This hard drive was used on another Macbook, so Time Machine doesn't seem to recognize the hard drive on the new one.  Do I need to reformat the hard drive? I hate to do that because I have the previous backups on there.

  • Help! My Macbook Pro will not recognise my M-Audio Firewire 410 interface

    Hi
    I'm new here and fairly new to Macs having only recently bought a Macbook Pro.
    My plan is to use the Macbook primarily for music but I can't get my M-Audio Firewire 410 audio interface working.
    I have installed the latest Intel driver but when I plug the interface in, the Mac does not recognize it at all. I have tested the port/cables etc, and can successfully play music from an external firewire HDD chained through the Firewire 410.
    How is it possible that the Mac doesn't even know the interface is there (when I click on the M-Audio software icon I get this message "No M-Audio Firewire device was found connected to this Mac") yet I can play music chained through the device?
    I have tried both with, and without, the external power supply connected to the Firewire 410 and also tested it on my PC where it works as usual. And I've tried deleting and reinstalling the driver....(I thought this was PC only territory!)
    Any ideas? I really want to get back into music and my past (bad) experiences with PCs drove me to the Mac...
    Many thanks in advance
    Macbook Pro 2.16 Core 2 Duo   Mac OS X (10.4.8)  

    Try v1.8.2 instead of v1.7.2 of M-Audio's driver setup.

  • MacBook Pro will not shutdown with external HD Screen

    I have been working with the same configuration for over a year with no problems. I have an external 20" HD screen that I use with my MacBook Pro (cover of mbp is closed not dual screen use) and an external keyboard and mighty mouse. Ever since upgrading to Leopard, when I select Shutdown from the apple menu the computer goes through the shutdown process and the screen goes dark. When I go to unplug the monitor and keyboard the front light is pulsing on and off like it is in sleep mode and NOT shut down. I open the cover but nothing happens, I try to wake it up but it won't wake up. I can hear the fans running and even after 20 minutes in this mode the bottom feels hot so it is as if the processor is working.... I usually have to open the lid and hold the power button for 5-10 seconds to actually get it to shut down... Anyone else having this problem or know what it could be?

    I have exactly the same problem. Moreover when trying to wake up my Macbook Pro 15 inch (bought end October 2007) running Leopard 10.5.1 after use with an external screen, at work and at home, it wakes up but I often loose keyboard access, both internally and externaly, and both external and internal screens go black. Under these conditions the computer starts heating up and the fans start spinning. The only possible intervention left is to reboot the machine. This has already led to two hard disk crashes and a motherboard being replaced (all within two months), but the issue continues. Now, I noticed the following: when I boot the MacBook Pro by pressing the power switch while it is connected to an external keyboard and screen and I close the lid, it boots normally into one of the user accounts. When I now switch to another user account the external screen presents the additional window without the menu bar (mouse is active) as if the the primary window (with the menu bar) would be presented on the internal screen. However, when I open the lid the internal screen remains black. The new user account is active though since mail messages come in as normal with a beep. When I want to force the Macbook through a sleep and wakeup cycle to activate both screens they stay black and I loose all keyboard and mouse control and I have to reboot. After all this I am afraid to reboot and force a third disk crash. Has anybody experienced the same, or a similar, problem?

  • MacBook Pro will not work without external powersource

    Hello all,
    I have (and love) my MBP. I've never had issue with it until tonight. My battery is at 100% charged, but when I unhook the Magsafe power source, the MPB shuts off instantly - and will not spool up until it is plugged back in.
    Any ideas?

    Check your System Profiler (Apple menu > About this Mac > More Info, click on Power). Post the Battery Information and Charger stats here, please.
    Here are mine, for example (currently on battery, need to plug in soon):
    *Battery Information:*
    Battery Installed: Yes
    First low level warning: No
    Full Charge Capacity (mAh): 5825
    Remaining Capacity (mAh): 1211
    Amperage (mA): -1972
    Voltage (mV): 10404
    Cycle Count: 71
    *AC Charger Information:*
    Connected: No
    Charging: No

  • Macbook Pro will not boot on external Firewire drive. Mybook with 2 partitions containing 2 OSX images using CCC. Volumes will not display when booting but do display when the internal drive is running OSX using Startup utility.

    I've reset SMC and PRAM several times. Activiatng Terminal from Recovery HD displays the following:
    -bash-3.2# diskutil list
    /dev/disk0
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *250.1 GB   disk0
       1:                        EFI                         209.7 MB   disk0s1
       2:                  Apple_HFS Macintosh HD            249.2 GB   disk0s2
       3:                 Apple_Boot Recovery HD             650.0 MB   disk0s3
    /dev/disk1
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:     Apple_partition_scheme                        *1.3 GB     disk1
       1:        Apple_partition_map                         30.7 KB    disk1s1
       2:                  Apple_HFS Mac OS X Base System    1.3 GB     disk1s2
    /dev/disk2
       #:                       TYPE NAME                    SIZE       IDENTIFIER
       0:      GUID_partition_scheme                        *2.0 TB     disk2
       1:                        EFI                         209.7 MB   disk2s1
       2:                  Apple_HFS MyBook1                 999.8 GB   disk2s2
       3:                  Apple_HFS MyBook2                 767.2 GB   disk2s3
    Any comments are greatly appreciated.

    Applejack is just a command-line "front-end" for a number of different command-line tools you can use in single-user mode, and I'm not sure whether it's Lion-compatible.  You can always try booting into single-user mode and executing:
    /sbin/fsck -fy
    That's unlikely to solve your problems, though.  Since you can't boot from two different hard drives and your optical drive, that indicates there's a more serious hardware issue, or multiple hardware issues.

  • The MacBook Pro will not allow me to cut-and-paste to and from or to click-and-drag to the external drive. I can copy-and-paste, but then I must send the original to the trash, which doubles the time and effort. Is there any way to cut-and-paste?

    I have recently switched from a PC to a MacBook Pro.
    I have a large number of documents and photographs on a multiterrabite external drive, backed up on a second multiterrabite external drive.
    Both external drives are formatted for MacIntosh. This has been verified by agents at an Apple store and also at Best Buy in two different cities.
    This is the problem:
    The MacBook Pro will not allow me to cut-and-paste to and from or to click-and-drag to the external drive. I can copy-and-paste, but then I must send the original to the trash, which doubles the time and effort. Is there any way to cut-and-paste?
    Also, the MacBook Pro will not allow me to rename multiple documents or photographs. I can click-and-rename a single one, but this is impossibly time consuming. I can batch-rename in iPhoto, but when I transfer the photographs to the external drive, the rename does not transfer.
    I’m reduced to using my wife’s Toshiba to cut-and-past, rename, and transfer documents. It works perfectly. Is there any way to do this on the MacBook Pro?
    Thanks!
    Roderick Guerry
    [email protected]

    Roderick Guerry wrote:
    The MacBook Pro will not allow me to cut-and-paste to and from or to click-and-drag to the external drive. I can copy-and-paste, but then I must send the original to the trash, which doubles the time and effort. Is there any way to cut-and-paste?
    No, this is a philosophical difference between Apple and Microsoft. Apple believes that it's dangerous to cut a file in case the user never pastes it; in that case the file is lost. Microsoft seems to not have this problem (if I remember Windows correctly) because they don't delete the originating file if it's cut but never pasted.
    Even though Macs have a lot of keyboard shortcuts, philosophically Macs have traditionally been mouse-first. This applies to file copy operations. In your case, what a Mac user would do is open the source window, open the destination window (on your second drive), and then Command-drag the selected files from the source to destination window. This is because a normal drag would leave the originals behind, while adding the Command modifier key tells OS X that this is a Move, not a Copy, so don't leave the originals behind.
    (In addition there are different rules for drag-copying within the same volume or between different volumes. If you drag between two folders on the same volume, the files are moved. If you drag between different volumes, the files are copied unless you hold down Command to delete the copies on the source volume.)
    Roderick Guerry wrote:
    Also, the MacBook Pro will not allow me to rename multiple documents or photographs. I can click-and-rename a single one, but this is impossibly time consuming. I can batch-rename in iPhoto, but when I transfer the photographs to the external drive, the rename does not transfer.
    Two problems in this case. First, batch file renaming is not built into OS X unless you build something with Automator. However, there are many utilities that can do batch file renaming which you can find at macupdate.com or on the App Store. Since I work with media I often batch rename using one of the media managers I have lying around like Media Pro or Adobe Bridge (comes with Photoshop).
    iPhoto is a database front end designed to shield the file system from the consumer and let them concentrate on creativity and sharing. As such it is often a poor choice for managing files directly. When you "transferred the photographs" chances are you moved the originals, not the ones iPhoto edited which are stored in a hidden folder.
    Roderick Guerry wrote:
    I’m reduced to using my wife’s Toshiba to cut-and-past, rename, and transfer documents. It works perfectly. Is there any way to do this on the MacBook Pro?
    There will not be a way to do it exactly like Windows. As described above, there are ways to do it "the Mac way." If it is possible to remove judgment on which way is "better" you might find the Mac way to be acceptable, but of course sometimes we simply prefer what we're used to.

  • My macbook pro will not recognize my WD external hard drive 1tb

    My macbook pro will not recognize my WD 1 tb external hard drive that I have as my time machine backup. I worked just fine for a long time now The only way I can see it is through Disk utility. And when I try to repair the disk it say it cant be repaired, and i need to back up files and reformat. All my backups are on the hard drive. How do I back up the back if I cant get it recognized? Uggghhhhh I have several years of info on the hard drive .. PLEASE HELP!!!

    Hi cterry66,
    Welcome to the Apple Support Communities!
    I understand you would like to reset the user account password on your computer but do not know the original password. If you set up your Apple ID with that user account, you can use that Apple ID to reset your OS X user password. Please use the information provided in the attached article to complete the process. 
    OS X: Apple ID can be used to reset your user account password - Apple Support
    Cheers,
    Joe

  • My Macbook pro will not recognize external devices

    My MacBook Pro will not recongize external devices such as hard drives

    I know that is of no help, but I have the same problem with a Toshiba harddrive. My wifes Macbook Air recognizes it. No problem with the hd I guess. But my macbook pro won't show it in the Finder, About this mac or disk utility - even though it is running. I would also be glad to get a solution to this.

  • Mid 2010 Macbook Pro will not stay off or asleep

    Hi,
    I have a mid 2010 MacBook Pro will not stay turned off when I tell it to shut down.  It will shut down just fine, but a few seconds later it will boot up again.  This also happens when I try to close the lid (or just put it to sleep), it will work fine, screen/Apple logo on the back will turn off and the status LED will slowly pulse.  However a few seconds later, the LED stops pulsing and the Apple logo will illuminate.  If I open the lid I will be greeted with the log in page with zero delay (i.e. its been displaying for a while).
    This has become problematic because the computer always be running.  If I put it in my laptop bag the computer will get hot as ****. The only way to get it to really turn off is to let the battery die or remove the battery.  But this computer does not have the externally removable battery so that is not a trivial process.
    The symptoms exist in both Mac OS (Mountain Lion and Maveriks) and Windows 8/8.1.  This makes me believe its something in the hardware (or at least a setting in the hardware), not software (I know Apple doesn't care what Windows does, but it is exibiting identical behavior).
    I have reset the NVRAM and the SMC with no luck.  When I reset the SMC I didn't get a good indication that anything happened though, and was wondering if that is normal.  Resetting the NVRAM results in another restart, while its hard to tell if you actually reset the SMC.  I reset the SMC by turning the computer off, then holding the power button when it tries to restart (this usually gives me a few minutes where the computer will actually stay off), then pressing shift, control, option and power at the same time and releasing them at the same time.  This is how the Apple documentation said to do it.  They did not mention how long the must be held though so I presume that doesn't matter.
    Anyone experience this/have any ideas?
    Thanks,
    Jim

    Btmm error "can not coonnect to cloud server" Facetime and IMessage " Could not sign in, check your network connection and try again". Which I have again and again...

  • I am a windows user that has converted to Mac and loving it but when I updated to Lion my wireless internet dongle would not work anymore and the Macbook Pro does not recognise the device at all so I am unable to reinstall it again. Any ideas

    I am a windows user that has converted to Mac and loving it but when I updated to Lion my wireless internet dongle would not work anymore and the Macbook Pro does not recognise the device at all so I am unable to reinstall it again. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

    Go to Finder > Preferences then select the General tab
    Make sure External disks is selected.

  • How do I uninstall Yosemite please ? Since I upgraded my 2011 MacBook Pro will not boot up

    My 2011 MacBook Pro will not boot up following my upgrade to Yosemite. How do I uninstall or downgrade back to the previous version of OS please ?

    You can't downgrade or uninstall unless you first erase the drive. Try the following:
    Reinstalling OS X Without Erasing the Drive
    Boot to the Recovery HD: Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
    Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions: Upon startup select Disk Utility from the main menu. Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions as follows.
    When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list.  In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive.  If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the main menu.
    Reinstall OS X: Select Reinstall OS X and click on the Continue button.
    Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.
    Also see:
    Reinstall OS X Without Erasing the Drive
    Choose the version you have installed now:
    OS X Yosemite- Reinstall OS X
         Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet
                     if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

  • HT4718 I recently upgrade my OS and now my MacBook Pro will not boot up

    I recently upgrade my OS and now my MacBook Pro will not boot up

    Reinstall Lion, Mountain Lion, or Mavericks without erasing drive
    Boot to the Recovery HD:
    Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
    Repair
    When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list.  In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive.  If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported then click on the Repair Permissions button. When the process is completed, then quit DU and return to the main menu. Select Restart from the Apple menu.
    Reinstall Mountain Lion or Mavericks
    OS X Mavericks- Reinstall OS X
    OS X Mountain Lion- Reinstall OS X
         Note: You will need an active Internet connection. I suggest using Ethernet
                     if possible because it is three times faster than wireless.

Maybe you are looking for