My new external hard drive appears in Finder, but none of the files show up in recent documents (today/yesterday/past week)

My new external hard drive appears in Finder, but none of the files stored on it show up in recent documents (today/yesterday/past week).

what format is the external drive? How is it connected?
The drive must be formatted Mac OS extended (journaled) - if it is try Back up your iPhoto library, Depress and hold the option (alt) and command keys and launch iPhoto - from the resulting first aid window repair permissions and if necessary rebuild your database
Note that multiple libraries is not necessary and is generally a bad idea.
LN

Similar Messages

Why won't my external hard drive appear in Finder?

I have an Iomega 320GB SPHDU external hard drive which I was using as my backup disk for Time Machine and also to store other files (documents, photos, etc.). I have been using for some time now and never had any problems, however this morning, I plugged the hard drive into my MacBook Pro, which is from early 2011 and on operating system OS X 10.9.4, using the USB ports and the hard drive did not appear in Finder. I checked to see if it had appeared in Disk Utility which it does, but Disk Utility is telling me that the hard drive needs repairing. When I try to repair the hard drive, I get the message 'Disk Utility can't repair this disk. Back up as many of your files as possible, reformat the disk, and restore your backed up files.' As I said I have never had any problems with it before, but this has just occurred this morning and I'm unsure why it has happened.

Because there's a problem with the disk's directory structure; these are often the result of improperly unplugging drives or forcing a computer to shut down. Proceed as instructed, or try using a more powerful utility such as DiskWarrior to repair it.
(111975)

External Hard Drive not in finder, but in Disk Utility, info gone? recover?

My external hard drive shows up in disk utility, but not in finder. Usually, in disk utility, there will be visible the model/make of the hard drive (such as 232.8 GB MDT MD25...etc), and then below that, there be the actual name of the hard drive that I gave it (such as Jack's External Hard Drive). In disk utility, it only has the first one (the MDT... name) and not the other.
How do I fix this situation? Is my hard drive dead? I don't think it is dead because I can hear it spinning and it shows up partially in disk utility. Oh and by the way, it doesn't give me the option of repairing the disk.
Thanks

Alright, so I bought an external hard drive enclosure. The screeching noise is gone. Disk Utility sees the same "232.9 GB MDT MD25..." stuff, but now also "sees" "ROCK" which is the name I named the hard drive. But the lettering in "ROCK" is gray, not black. Also, its not showing up in finder. When I start up the computer with the ROCK hard drive on, finder says something like, "The disk you have connected was not readable by this computer." I try to verify disk in Disk Utility but it says "Disk Utility Stopped Verifying ROCK because the following error was encountered: Filesystem verify or repair failed."
So buying the enclosure, helped, but it seems the hard drive is damaged or the information is corrupt or something.
What is the problem I am having? (Is it not mounting or is the data bad or whats going on?)
Is there something I can do right now that can make this all better?
My last resort will be to try data recovering software (last resort because it costs around $100).
Thanks for all your help so far everyone.

My external hard drive appears in bootcamp but not on my mac partition

This is intriguing. I own a macbook pro and run osx 10.6.8
I recently bought a new 1 tb hard drive and partitioned it. (300G for time machine and another for 700G for random things). It was working fine until I tried logging onto my bootcamp partition. I couldn't edit any files (due to the format of the drive), so I decided to relog back onto my mac parititon. Now the disk is grayed out in disk utility, under a different name and a different format type. I can read the files on my windows partition, but I cannot even access the drive on my mac partition. This drive is rather big, and I have no idea how I would even begin bcking it up... ( i don't have any other drives this large..)
Any ideas?
Thanks in advance!!

You wrote: "It's definitely formatted for windows...I have Disk Warrior, but it doesn't see my drive "DiskWarrior only works on disks in Mac OS formats, e.g. "Mac OS Extended" (aka HFS Plus or HFS+), "Mac OS Extended (Journaled)." It won't fix disks in MS-DOS/FAT32 format.
There are PC-specific disk utilities, akin to DiskWarrior for Mac, so if you have a PC as well, a PC disk utility might help repair the directory corruption if run from a PC.
External drives, whether they're formatted for PCs or Macs, can be subject to the same causes of directory corruption discussed in See my "Data corruption and loss: causes and avoidance" FAQ. Some of those causes have nothing to do with hardware failure and many are preventable.
Good luck!
Dr. Smoke
Author: Troubleshooting Mac® OS X
Note: The information provided in the link(s) above is freely available. However, because I own The X Lab™, a commercial Web site to which some of these links point, the Apple Discussions Terms of Use require I include the following disclosure statement with this post:
I may receive some form of compensation, financial or otherwise, from my recommendation or link.

I just purchased a Mac. I have 30-40gb if music on my external hard drive from my PC. Most of the files are .wma files. Is there a way to just plug up the external hard drive, convert, and upload files to itunes?

Hello,
I just received my Mac and I am trying to see if there is an easy way to convert all my music files from my external harddrive on my PC to iTunes. Most, if not all, the files are in .wma format. Does anyone know if I am able to connect my external harddrive, convert the files, and add them to iTunes?

If they don't contain DRM, use a program such as Switch. If they do, you can't.
(59769)

I move all photos to a new external hard drive. Now all folders have a question mark in them. How do I find ALL PHOTOS at one time instead of having to find each picture. I have about 30,000 photos. Using Mac. LR5

I have set up a new external hard drive and Im trying redirect LR to the new hard drive. I have over 30,000 photos and Im trying to see to see if there is a way to all photos located without having to go thru each folder at a time

http://www.computer-darkroom.com/lr2_find_folder/find-folder.htm
See Figure 4

I bought a new external hard drive for backups, but time machine won't do a full back up. I think it is remembering backing up onto previous external hard drives, which I don't own anymore. How do I do a new full backup?

I bought a new external hard drive for backups, but time machine won't do a full back up.
I think it is remembering backing up onto previous external hard drives, which I don't own anymore. How do I do a new full backup?
When I bought the new (used) iMac, I also bought an external hard drive for backups. It worked fine, but my husband stole it.
Then I bought a new external hard drive (Seagate) and it worked fine for three weeks, then died.
So I just got a new external hard drive, which was put together from an internal hard drive and a hard drive enclosure.
Time machine did the first backup today, and it should have taken 9 hours like it did on the previous first time full back up. Instead, it took 30 minutes. That can't be right. I want to start over and do a full backup to make sure everything gets onto my new external hard drive, but I can't figure out how to do that. Please help.

Triple-click anywhere in the line below to select it:
tmutil compare -E
Copy the selected text to the Clipboard (command-C).
Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:
☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.
Paste into the Terminal window (command-V).
The command will take at least a few minutes to run. Eventually some lines of output will appear below what you entered.
Each line that begins with a plus sign (“+”) represents a file that has been added to the source volume since the last snapshot was taken. These files have not been backed up yet.
Each line that begins with an exclamation point (“!”) represents a file that has changed on the source volume. These files have been backed up, but not in their present state.
Each line that begins with a minus sign (“-“) represents a file that has been removed from the source volume.
At the end of the output, you’ll get some lines like the following:
Added:
Removed:
Changed:
These lines show the total amount of data added, removed, or changed on the source(s) since the last snapshot.

I have moved all my songs onto a new external hard drive but it has wiped my iPod clean. Although when I connect my iPod it's starts teh process of sync'ing - so many songs in I get a pop up advising the siong could not be read or written to?

I have moved all my itunes onto a new external hard drive to free up space. It has wiped my ipod clean! I can still see the itunes on the new hard drive so I restored my iPod and tried to sync. Although when I connect my iPod it's in the process of syncing, so many songs in I get a pop up saying could not copy to my iPod as xyz song title could not be read or written. I click ok for this pop up to dissapear and then another pop up appears saying could not coyp to iPod because of unknown error.!!! Help I'm going crazy.

Did you go into iTunes to change the location of your media files? if not you will need to go into iTunes and click on preference and select the advance tab then click the iTunes Media folder location. Select the location of your on external hard drive.

How do I copy an iPhoto library, which is on an external hard drive, onto a new external hard drive?

I'm running out of space on my external hard drive, so I was advised to buy one with triple the amount of space. So, I need to copy my current iphoto library, which is on an external hard drive, onto a new external hard drive. I thought I could just drag and drop it in, but that doesn't seem to be working.

Make sure the external drive is formatted MacOS Extended (Journaled) and then drag the iPhoto Library to that drive using the Finder.
Then double click the library in its new location to open it in iPhoto. Test it thoroughly, if it is working, before deleting the original library on the internal drive.
To check the format of the drive, see (it says Aperture, but the same applies to iPhoto): Format external drives to Mac OS Extended before using with Aperture
iPhoto: Issues with FAT32-formatted drives

How do I transfer an existing Aperture library to a new external hard drive

I have a new external hard drive where I want to store my pictures to free up room on my iMac
How do I take an existing Aperture library and move it to the external hard drive so that Aperature can find and use it? Once it is moved can I delete the library from my iMac without causing problems with my new hard drive library?
thanks

Hello Barty,
is your library referenced or managed?
If your Aperture Library is managed, then you can simply copy it to your new external drive using the Finder. Make a backup of your old library and convince yourself that the backup is working.
If your library is referenced, then use Aperture to relocate your master image files to the external drive (select all images, then File -> Relocate Master), then copy your Library to the external drive using the Finder.
To point Aperture to the new library location, double click the new Aperture Library to open Aperture with it. Test it thoroughly, before you delete the original library.
You might consider only to relocate the master images to your external drive and to leave the then much smaller Aperure Library on your system drive. That way Aperture will work faster, and you will be able to browse and share your images, even when our external drive is not connected.
Regards
Léonie

Why do files on an external hard drive appear as alias when connected to Time Capsual's USB?

Situation:
I have an old MacBook Pro (2008) and all of its USB and CD ports have stopped working (only the Ethernet port works). As a workaround, I purchased a 2TB Time Capsule, connected it via Ethernet to the MacBook Pro, and set up a wireless network that my MacBook Air (2010), ipads/pods, can connect.
Attempting to Accomplish:
1. Provide a back-up for my Pro since I cannot connect via USB
2. Move photos off my Air (to free up space) and combine with my Pro's library
3. Share files, music, and photos between all my devices (stored on both my Pro, Time Capsule, and external Maxtor hard drive)
Problem:
My last Pro back-up was to a Maxtor external hard drive. Also, all my Air photos are on the same external hard drive. I connected this hardrive to the Time Capsule. When I accessed the Maxtor from the Pro (through my new airport network) I can see the file hirearchy, but when I drill down to my Air's iPhoto library (back-up, latest, user, x, photos) the files appear with the alias symbol on them. The message I get when clicking is something about them being no longer connected. HOWEVER, when I attach this Maxtor via direct USB to my Air, both the Air backups and the Pro back ups appear as real files (no alias icon) and can be opened and transferred. When my Pro's ports worked I frequently shared files this way with no alias icons.
Disclaimer: I'm mac-savy enough that the genius bar is adding no real value/help, but not nearly as technical as most people on this board. And I'm very un-technical with networking. So if you can point me in the right direction, please "speak" simply =)

Ok, confirmed. It is NTFS and according to the permissions I can only read it. The frustrating thing is that it says:
    - Capacity: 74.53 GB
    - Available: 50.35 GB
    - Used: 24.18 GB on disk
and yet at the bottom of the file list it shows "0 items"
Now the dilemma. The harddrive on my Windows laptop is very small (30GB) so I cannot copy all of my pictures to it. I could hook the old harddrive and the new harddrive up to it at the same time and move them from old to new, however...
The new harddrive is supposed to only be for the Mac so my intention was to format it that way. Because I am not sure if/how I am going to need it to resolve this issue, the box hasn't even been opened...so the first question is long term would it be better to have the new harddrive MAC or FAT32 formatted?
I have been assuming that Mac formatting was the preferred route so I am still brainstorming on ways to get the files straight from the old harddrive to the Mac. Could it just be a matter of the files being hidden on the old harddrive? How do I unhide them?

Got a new Macbook Pro today and I plugged in my WD external hard drive to backup with but it didn't allow me to backup.

Got a new Macbook Pro today and I plugged in my WD external hard drive to backup with but it didn't allow me to backup. The problem is that now my computer won't show the drive in finder. I can see it in Disk Utility and cannot access it. Help?

First
Finder>Preferences>Sidebar>Devices>External disk
but it didn't allow me to backup
did you get an error code or error dialog box?

Backing up iTunes Library to New External Hard Drive

I need to move the location of my itunes library as my external hard drive has become full.
I have been backing up my "computer" (i.e. internal hard drive) and the itunes library stored on the external hard drive with TM.
Once I move the library, I will be backing up the new music library. As I understand it, TM will treat this as a completely new backup. Once this is done, I would no longer need or want the older backup on TM -- what's the best way of deleting the older backup since it takes up an enormous amount of space -- i.e. it's 250 gigs -- and then the additional 250 gigs for the NEW music library backup.
Thanks

Helen Berman wrote:
I need to move the location of my itunes library as my external hard drive has become full.
I have been backing up my "computer" (i.e. internal hard drive) and the itunes library stored on the external hard drive with TM.
Once I move the library, I will be backing up the new music library. As I understand it, TM will treat this as a completely new backup. Once this is done, I would no longer need or want the older backup on TM -- what's the best way of deleting the older backup since it takes up an enormous amount of space -- i.e. it's 250 gigs -- and then the additional 250 gigs for the NEW music library backup.
Hello again, Helen!
First, see this: moving your iTunes Music folder
Are you moving the iTunes library from one external to a new, larger one? If so, give the new drive a different name than the old one, even if only slightly different (this is for you, not TM!)
Once the data is moved, eject and disconnect the old drive, and leave it alone for now.
Go into Time Machine and delete all backups of the old drive. You'll need the procedure in #E3 of the Time Machine - Troubleshooting *User Tip,* also at the top of this forum, to see them. Select the folder representing the old drive, click the "gear" icon in the Finder window's toolbar, select the +*Delete all backups of <folder name> option.+* You'll get a confirmation prompt, then one for your Admin password. Make a large pot of coffee, as that will take a while! If you exit from the TM display, you'll probably see a progress bar for the deletion.
Be sure the new drive isn't listed in the +Do not back up+ box in TM Preferences > Options. If it is, remove it. Then run a backup, and TM should back-up the new external in full, along with any changes to your internal. Make another pot of coffee!
Once that's done, be certain everything was backed-up properly: check sizes, and messages, and browse the backups.
If I were you, I'd keep that old one around, "just in case," until I really, really needed it for something else.

Got a new external hard drive. Transferred all files from old hard drive to new hard drive. Connected hard drive to macbook. How do I get all my files to be recognized by iTunes and my already made playlists??

Got a new external hard drive. Transferred all files from old hard drive to new hard drive. Connected hard drive to macbook. How do I get all my files to be recognized by iTunes and my already made playlists??

Trying to download photos from IPHONE, IPAD to IPHOTO in IMAC after installing new hard drive.
How did you import the photos to iPad and iPhone?
If the photos have been synced to the iPhone and iPad using iTunes, you cannot sync them back.
See this document: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4236
You can't reimport pictures synced from your computer to your device back to your computer. You can only import pictures in the Camera Roll or Saved Photos from your device to your computer. If you need to retrieve synced photos from your device:
If your photos are not in the Camera Roll on your devices, save them to the Camera Roll, share them to the Photo Stream, mail the photos, or, if you have iPhoto on the devices, use iTunes Photo Sharing.
http://help.apple.com/iphoto/iphone/2.0/?handbuch#blnkee26bc1
Save photos to your computer using iTunes
Connect your iOS device to your computer.
Tap a photo, album, event, web journal, or slideshow and tap Share> iTunes.
Tap Selected, or change the photos you want to save (if you are saving a slideshow skip to step 4):
Select different photos: Tap Choose Photos, tap one or more photos, and tap Next.
Select a range of photos: Tap Choose Photos, tap Range, tap the first and last photos in the range, and tap Next.
Select all the photos in an album or event: Tap All.
In iTunes, click the button for your device and click Apps at the top of the window.
Below File Sharing, select iPhoto (in Apps).
Select the Shared Photos folder under iPhoto Documents.
Click Save To and select the location on your computer where you want to save the items.
To view your photos, go to the Finder and look in the location you selected above.

I have been storing my Aperture and IMovie Libraries on an external hard drive that recently died. Fortunately I've been using Time Machine to back up to a 2nd external drive. How do I restore my libraries to a new external hard drive?

I have been storing my Aperture and IMovie Libraries on an external hard drive that recently died. Fortunately I've been using Time Machine to back up to a 2nd external drive. How do I restore my libraries to a new external hard drive?

This is a tricky one.
Open up Time Machine and go back to a date using the timeline on the right side of the window when you know the drive was working and was backing up as part of Time Machine backups.
Click on the name of your Mac under the Devices heading on the left side of the window in Time Machine, and if things are working correctly you will see Macintosh HD (or whatever you have named it) and the name of the external hard drive that was backing up in the past.
Right-Click on the name of the external hard drive and then click on "Restore (name of drive) to....." You may be asked for your adminstrator password at this point.
It might be easier to restore the drive contents to your desktop if you have room on your Mac, and then copy things over to the new external drive where you want to store the Aperture and iMovie Libraries.
Once the libraries have been moved over the new external hard drive, you will likely need to "point" Aperture and iMovie to the location of the libraries on the new external hard drive.

My new external hard drive appears in Finder, but none of the files show up in recent documents (today/yesterday/past week)

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