My external hard drive doesn't show up in finder, is it dead?

My external hard drive doesn't show up in finder.Time machine can't find it. Does this mean my external hard drive is dead?
I borrowed a friends and switched mine with hers. My acted the same way in her macbook. I switched the cords on the external drives, no change.
Also, Is there a way to retrieve the information from my sick external hard drive? Thanks for your help.

If the Disk Utility sees it, you might be able to repair it or recover the data on it with a product such as DiskWarrior or Data Rescue.
If the Disk Utility doesn't see it, contact professional support.
(64290)

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External hard drive doesn't show up in finder or migration assistant

Hello all,
I'm new to this forum and pardon me if this question isn't posted in the right category.
I recently broke my old macbook pro to the point it was inoperable. I extracted the hard drive which appeared to be in good shape, put it in an external enclosure & plugged it into my new macbook pro via usb and it's not showing up in finder, disc utility or migration assistant. I'd like to import my old music, pictures & documents if possible. I'm curious why it isn't showing up and how I can make migration assistant work?
Hope everyone had a good Christmas and a happy new year!
Thanks,
Andrew

Disk Utility – Force Mount Disk
See mount section.
Disk Unmount Using Terminal

External Hard Drive does not show up in Finder in Tiger

I've attached a Western Digital Mybook to my Time Capsule.
I can access it through Finder on my MacBook. I can access it through My Network Places on the two windows PCs we have (they run XP Professional). I cannot, however, access it on my iBook G4 running Tiger (OS X 10.4.11). I can connect to the TC, but the external hard drive doesn't show up.
This is bad, because I want to use the external as a shared drive for iTunes, etc. Has anyone else had this problem? More importantly, does anyone know of any fixes?

zone-5 wrote:
I have same problem after installing OS 10.5.8. Disk utility sees the hard drive, the computer does not. Disk utility says invalid node structure. Volume check failed. Filesystem verify or repair failed.
That means the directory is corrupt. If you have a heavy-duty 3rd-party disk repair app, such as +Disk Warrior,+ it may be able to fix it. Otherwise, your only option is to erase and reformat the disk. They're not cheap -- Disk Warrior is about $100. And for Leopard, you need version 4.1.1 or 4.2.
I have not been able to figure out how to start a new topic here, but did find this discussion, which fits me fairly close.
Just above the list of topics, on the left, is a +Post New Topic+ option.

External Hard Drive does not show up in Finder

My external hard drive is not showing up in Finder.
It shows up in Disc Utility, but I do not have access to it. I have tried the following:
command-shift c, nothing happens
confirmed in Preferences/General that external hard drive was checked
tried another cable
tried another port on the back of the external drive
tried to connect through the USB port
re-started, etc.

zone-5 wrote:
I have same problem after installing OS 10.5.8. Disk utility sees the hard drive, the computer does not. Disk utility says invalid node structure. Volume check failed. Filesystem verify or repair failed.
That means the directory is corrupt. If you have a heavy-duty 3rd-party disk repair app, such as +Disk Warrior,+ it may be able to fix it. Otherwise, your only option is to erase and reformat the disk. They're not cheap -- Disk Warrior is about $100. And for Leopard, you need version 4.1.1 or 4.2.
I have not been able to figure out how to start a new topic here, but did find this discussion, which fits me fairly close.
Just above the list of topics, on the left, is a +Post New Topic+ option.

HELP! External hard drive won't show up in finder!

Last night, I was updating my macbook (from August 2008, still runs on leopard) and it needed to restart. I forgot to eject my LaCie Porsche 1tb external hard drive first and, when it rebooted, I got the error of death (aka "disk was not ejected..."). When connected to the USB port, the drive lights up, I can hear it spinning, but it won't show up in finder and I can't see it in Disk Utility to repair it (after the first error of death, the computer wouldn't even acknowledge that I had the drive plugged in). I've tried plugging it into the different USB ports and even on a different macbook, but no luck in getting the computer to recognize it long enough to use Disk Utility or DiskWarrior. Any tips on how I can get my macbook to read the drive again?

If the external hard drive is not showing up in Disk Utility when connected to two or more different computers, then the problem is with the hard drive, it is broken. Get a new one.

External Hard Drive doesn't show up

hi.
i'm having an issue with my external hard drive. this morning i went to plug it in since that's where i store all of my music, and for some odd reason it didn't work. i have a feeling it's because the night before i unplugged it without ejecting it. my mistake, i know, but now the drive is all messed up. earlier i was able to view the volumes on it in disk utility, and before deciding to erased anything i plugged it into my sister's dell where i transfered everything on the drive. now, when i plug it in my macbook it only shows up in disk utility without the volumes, it doesn't show up on the dell anymore, and when i go to erase everything it tells me "operation timed out".
i'm at a loss of what to do. i tried restarting the macbook, unplugged the cables... nothing seems to work. i would really like to get the thing back to factory settings if that's possible. so if anyone can offer help, it would be most appreciated. the external drive is a 500GB Maxtor OneTouch

Try this:
Extended Hard Drive Preparation
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder. If you need to reformat your startup volume, then you must boot from your OS X Installer Disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger or Leopard.)
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. SMART info will not be reported on external drives. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
3. Set the number of partitions from the drop down menu (use 1 partition unless you wish to make more.) Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID (only required for Intel Macs) then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition 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 Options 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.
If you plan to use this drive on both your Mac and a PC, then format the drive MS-DOS rather than Mac OS Extended.

External hard drive doesn't show up in /dev. [SOLVED]

After a long period of not taking backups, I plugged in my external hard drive today, but I can't mount it because I can't find it in dev (it used to show up as /dev/sdb, but now my only /dev/sd* is /dev/sda, which is my internal drive). The drive still shows up in dmesg and in lsusb. I've attached the dmesg lines and the lsusb -v entry, in which you can see that the drive is indeed recognized as a mass storage device.
I'm not sure if it's relevant, but lsusb -v pauses for a couple of seconds before outputting the final line.
Any ideas?
Dmesg output:
[160782.137424] usb 1-5.3: new high speed USB device number 7 using ehci_hcd
lsusb -v output:
Bus 001 Device 008: ID 059b:0370 Iomega Corp.
Device Descriptor:
bLength 18
bDescriptorType 1
bcdUSB 2.00
bDeviceClass 0 (Defined at Interface level)
bDeviceSubClass 0
bDeviceProtocol 0
bMaxPacketSize0 64
idVendor 0x059b Iomega Corp.
idProduct 0x0370
bcdDevice 0.00
iManufacturer 10 lomega
iProduct 11 exernal hd
iSerial 5 1590925965FF
bNumConfigurations 1
Configuration Descriptor:
bLength 9
bDescriptorType 2
wTotalLength 32
bNumInterfaces 1
bConfigurationValue 1
iConfiguration 4 USB Mass Storage
bmAttributes 0xc0
Self Powered
MaxPower 2mA
Interface Descriptor:
bLength 9
bDescriptorType 4
bInterfaceNumber 0
bAlternateSetting 0
bNumEndpoints 2
bInterfaceClass 8 Mass Storage
bInterfaceSubClass 6 SCSI
bInterfaceProtocol 80 Bulk (Zip)
iInterface 6 MSC Bulk-Only Transfer
Endpoint Descriptor:
bLength 7
bDescriptorType 5
bEndpointAddress 0x81 EP 1 IN
bmAttributes 2
Transfer Type Bulk
Synch Type None
Usage Type Data
wMaxPacketSize 0x0200 1x 512 bytes
bInterval 0
Endpoint Descriptor:
bLength 7
bDescriptorType 5
bEndpointAddress 0x02 EP 2 OUT
bmAttributes 2
Transfer Type Bulk
Synch Type None
Usage Type Data
wMaxPacketSize 0x0200 1x 512 bytes
bInterval 0
Device Qualifier (for other device speed):
bLength 10
bDescriptorType 6
bcdUSB 2.00
bDeviceClass 0 (Defined at Interface level)
bDeviceSubClass 0
bDeviceProtocol 0
bMaxPacketSize0 64
bNumConfigurations 1
Device Status: 0x0001
Self Powered
Edit: fixed code tags
Last edited by jneem (2011-11-19 23:36:18)

So, you're talking about a specific drive.
then try testdisk. it's available in extra.
also you may try to use another cable.
Unfortunatly my system doesn't see any usb drives. But when I boot in stock kernel, everything is OK
PS a few months ago I have bricked my external hdd by inserting it in win7 by mistake. Billy's OS didnt recognised my ext3 partition, and destroed it without any prompt. B****! I still cant forgive it

External Hard drive doesn't show in the event library?

Would anyone know why my external HD mounts to my computer, yet does not show up in my event library window?
Thanks for any help.
Evan

johng67 wrote:
Hi Everyone,
FCPX won't list two of my 6 external hard drives in the Event Library, including my all-important video hard drive (a 2TB drive I use for my videos). There is absolutely nothing wrong with any of my drives. They work in Finder and in every app I have, and Disk Utility says that they are perfectly fine. These two drives show up as "Cameras" in FCPX for some reason. All the other drives show up fine in FCPX, even the drive I use for my Time Machine Backups. The two missing drives are formatted exactly the same as the drives that do show up (Mac Journalled) and they all connect through USB -- there is literally no difference between the drives, so there shouldn't be a problem for FCPX but there is.
Does anyone know why two drives don't appear in the Event Viewer (or appear as "Cameras") while 4 other drives appear perfectly well???
These drives either have names like "Video" or folders inside that are usually in camera drives, like "DCIM".
If you rename the drives or folders that are causing it, FCP X will see them as drives. No need to erase or reformat anything, just figure out what names to change: e.g., renaming a drive "Video" to "johng67 Video" may be all it takes.
Remember that for example an SD card from a camera that you plug in to your mac sd slot appears to the application just as a volume; if you copy it entirely to a pen drive or a large hard drive they would all appear the same.
FCP X has to apply some heuristics to try and figure out if it should treat it as a hard drive or a "camera". No such heuristics can be 100% accurate - that's why they're heuristics.
Message was edited by: Luis Sequeira1

External hard drive doesn't show up on Mac Mini

Working with pre-installed Snow Leopard on a Mac Mini.
External firewire hard drive does not show up on desktop or in sidebar. Also tried the same hard drive connected with USB. Tried another USB drive -- nothing.
What can I try?

If those have a pre-existing format that works with those earlier machines, they may not show as bootable drives....they need to be set up with a GUID map as mentioned. But they should still show up in Disk Utility at least...
If they worked on those other computers, then you should try the Apple article listed above to see if all that is needed is to get the FW ports to cooperate.
If no joy there, try resetting some of the basic hardware involved (PRAM~NVRAM). See this Apple KB for details, etc.:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1379
If still no joy, walk it in to the nearest Apple Store for a quick hands on.
Good luck in any case.

WD 320gb external hard drive doesn't show up on mac

I just bought a 320gb Western Digital external hard drive. When I plug it into my mac (OS X 10.4.11), nothing shows up on the desktop. I also don't see it anywhere on "Finder". When I plug it into my family's PC it works correctly and I can find the hard drive and put files on it. Any suggestions for being able to access the hard drive from my mac?
Thanks.

Prep the drive for the Mac:
Extended Hard Drive Preparation
1. Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder. If you need to reformat your startup volume, then you must boot from your OS X Installer Disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger or Leopard.)
2. After DU loads select your hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. SMART info will not be reported on external drives. Otherwise, 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. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID (for Intel Macs) or APM (for PPC Macs) then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition 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 Options 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.

Need help: External Hard Drive doesn't show up

i havent use my external hard drive in 3 months. Before when i connect the usb, the hard drive shows up in the finder and i can transfer files and ext, but now it doesnt show up in the finder at all. I've check the disk utility and the EHDrive appears there, i've tried to click the verify and repair but it doesnt mount in the finder. I've also tried opening the HDrive in my player and it does open..
so please help me with regard to this ..

How is the drive connected to the computer? USB, Firewire......
Do you have another computer to see if the hard drive will mount there?
Restart the computer holding down the command - option/alt - P - R keys before the gray screen appears. Continue to hold until you hear the startup chime for the second time.
Reset NVRAM/PRAM
Disconnect the drive from the computer, shut it down for about 1 minute, connect it to the computer and turn it back on. While, doing that, restart the computer.
Try using another cable to connect the drive to the computer.

What do i do when external optical drive doesn't show up in finder? how can i import software, music, etc. when the drive isn't recognized/mounted/whatever?

the internal optical drive on my early 2006 20"imac has mechanical problems ejecting discs. i've gone thru all the recommended steps to eject discs, and have luckily been able to eject the last 3 discs but only after spending 30-60 minutes going thru all of the steps over and over, and today just trying "eject disc" in itunes since i had itunes open. i don't want to put another disc in - the drive clearly has problems with the mechanical eject mechanism, and from what i've read that's not unique to my computer.
i bought an external optical drive: lite on, clamshell design to avoid problems with the eject mechanism; i contacted the mfr who said it's mac compatible.
the drive plays dvds, which is all i've tried so far, but doesn't show up in finder. so i don't know how to use it to load software, or music, or anything besides watch dvds.
is there something i can do to get the drive recognized/mounted/whatever? i would prefer to not spend the $220 which was quoted to me by an authorized mac repair company, even tho i think that's probably a reasonable cost given the delicacy of the operation as shown on ifixit.com.
thanks!

I have an external LaCie burner and it will not show up on my Mac unless I insert a CD or DVD - in that case, the media will show up (I have these settings in the Pref Pane):
If you want to burn files or music to blank media, you can use Finder or Disk Utility for files, but should use an iTunes playlist/iTunes for music and a movie burn app for videos/movies (such as iDVD, Roxio Toast, Burn, etc).
If you simply want to drag files over as a backup, an external hard drive is a much better solution than a burner.

My external hard drive doesn't show anymore

Hello Everyone,
I hope you can help me. Today I wanted to put new data on my WD hard drive, I have it for almost a year and always worked fine (it's just USB, no power necessary). But my External HD was almost full so I deleted the "time machine" back-ups. Now, my Macbook Pro or iMac doesn't show my WD in Finder. I can find it in Disk Utility but only for a few seconds. Can someone please help me by giving some tips or own experiences? Thanks!

If you want LR to show the full path of a directory tree as it is on an actual drive, you are going to have to fool it into showing it to you.
a) Place a COPY of a photo, ANY photo, in the directory/folder that you want to show as the root of your folder tree in LR.
b) Using "Import Photos from disk" import ONLY the photo that you placed in the 'root' folder, by DOUBLE-CLICKING on it so that only it is imported.
c) After the import, your folder structure should now look the way that you want it to in LR, matching the actual drive structure from the root upwards.
d) Using LR, delete the photo that you used as a placeholder. The LR Folder structure should remain intact.

My external hard drive doesn't show up on my desktop screen

I have a 1TB external drive that connects by USB. I use it as a Time Machine and for other storage. It worked fine until a few weeks ago. Now, when I connect it, the drive starts spinning, but it doesn't show up on the desktop screen or in Disk Utility.
Other USB drives and devices work fine when plugged into either of my USB ports. Also, this particular 1TB drive works fine with my older MacBook. It's just that this particular external drive and this particular MacBook Pro don't seem to be working together.
Thoughts?

Does it show up in disk utility
remove and reconnect the USB connector on the drive end., check Finder > prefences > general ....is hard disks checked?
Have you used this HD on that Mac before?
Does this HD show in another machine/ Mac?
Work the process of elmination. Report back.

External hard drive doesn't show after upgrade to Yosemite

I upgraded to Yosemite and now my WD 1TB external HD doesn't show up on my MacBook Pro 2.9 GHz. It shows in the system information under 'About This Mac', but I can't access it. So I can't use Time Machine to do any back-ups, and I can't back up the files on the external drive before reformatting it. Anyone know how to fix this? From other web communities, this seems to be an Apple problem and NOT a hardware issue.

If it shows in Disk Utility, use the Restore tab to copy the files to another location. Note the warning about reformatting the destination.

My external hard drive doesn't show up in finder, is it dead?

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