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12 March 2024  John Weaver  Senior Program Developer
 

Summary
Experiencing issues with your external hard drive not showing up in File Explorer? You're not alone. This common problem can be frustrating, but there are practical solutions at your fingertips. In our comprehensive guide, we walk you through troubleshooting techniques to detect and resolve the issue, ensuring you regain access to your valuable data. We'll also provide you with actionable steps to safely recover your files and get your external hard drive back in working order. Let's solve this problem together and restore full functionality to your external storage device.



Table of contents

table iconI. The mobile hard disk is not displayed in My Computer , but it can be displayed in Disk Management
table iconII. The mobile hard disk is not displayed in My Computer/Disk Management, but it can be displayed in Device Manager
external hard drive not showing up in file explorer
If your computer’s Windows system fails to recognize the mobile hard disk, safely eject it and try another USB port. If the issue persists, swap out the data cable or use a different mobile hard disk to isolate the problem. Once you’ve ruled out USB port and cable issues, proceed to other troubleshooting methods.

I. The mobile hard disk is not displayed in My Computer , but it can be displayed in Disk Management

1. There is a problem with the drive letter of the mobile hard disk

If the mobile hard disk is not visible in “My Computer” after connecting it to the PC but appears in “Disk Management”, the issue may stem from a drive letter conflict. To fix this, change or reassign the drive letter through the following steps:
Step 1: Simultaneously press Windows key + X, choose “Disk Management” from the menu, right-click on the external hard drive, and select “Change Drive Letter and Paths.”
windows disk management right click start
change drive letter in disk management
Step 2: Click (Add), assign a drive letter to the hard disk, and then click (OK).
add volume letter
Step 3: Open My Computer or This PC on the desktop, and the previously missing hard drive should now be visible.
normal display hard disk

2. The mobile hard disk is used for the first time and has not been initialized

When your external hard drive appears as “Not Initialized” or shows as “Unallocated” in Disk Management, it won’t be visible in My Computer or File Explorer. To resolve this issue, you need to initialize the disk and create a new simple volume. Here’s how to do it:
Step 1: Press the Windows icon + X key at the same time, and select (Disk Management) in the menu.
Step 2: If the hard disk is displayed as “not initialized“, right click on the hard disk and select (initialize disk).
“Initialize Disk” will erase the original data in your mobile hard disk drive. If you have important data in it, please try to use Renee Undeleter to recover the data first!
how to initialize disk on windows
Step 3: Select the partition type MBRor GPT and click (OK).Click here See more information about MBR and GPT.
● The MBR (Master Boot Record) is limited to hard disks up to 2TB; any capacity beyond that remains unrecognized. Additionally, MBR can only create four primary partitions on a disk.
● The GUID Partition Table (GPT) overcomes the Master Boot Record (MBR) limitation of a 2TB hard disk size and allows users to create unlimited partitions on their storage device.
Step 4: After initialization, right-click the “unallocated” hard disk partition, select “New Simple Volume”, and adhere to the wizard’s prompts to designate the partition’s capacity, drive letter, and file system.
Please check: Features and differences of FAT32, exFAT and NTFS file systems.
add new simple volume to initialize disk in disk management
If a mobile hard disk partition disappears and becomes unallocated space, you should create a new partition using Disk Management to make it recognizable in “My Computer/File Explorer”. In the event that the vanished partition contained important data, it is advisable to utilize professional data recovery software to recover the lost information. Further instructions on the recovery process are provided below.

3. Use Renee Undeleter to restore mobile hard disk partition data

Renee Undeleter is a data recovery software designed to recover various data files. It is useful for restoring files that have been accidentally deleted, lost due to an emptied recycle bin, or lost after disk/formatting. The software includes four key features: file recovery, format recovery, partition recovery, and image creation, providing comprehensive solutions for all data loss scenarios.
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Step 1: Connect the mobile hard drive to your computer. Download, install, and launch Renee Undeleter. Choose the ‘Whole Disk Scan’ option from the main menu.
Note: Do not install on the disk that needs to restore data, so as not to cause data overwriting.
select whole disk scan to scan disk in renee undeleter
Data Recovery Function Overview:

  • Fast Partition Scan: Rapidly recovers files lost from accidental deletion or recycle bin clearance.
  • Whole Partition Scan: Restores files from inaccessible or formatted partitions efficiently.
  • Whole Disk Scan: Conducts a comprehensive scan to retrieve partition information and recover data from the entire disk.
  • Create Mirror: Allows creation of a partition mirror image to preserve the current state for backup purposes.
Step 2: Next, select the hard disk device that needs to recover data. After the selection is complete, click (Next).
select a disk to recover in renee undeleter
scanning the whole disk in renee undeleter
Step 3: Patiently wait for the scan to finish as it identifies all hard disk partitions. Once done, a prompt will surface enabling you to select a specific partition for scanning. In the absence of a selection, the scan will automatically default to all partitions, which may uncover additional files but will also extend the scan time.
recover partition on SD card with Renee Undeleter
Step 4: Preview files in the partition during the scanning process. Upon identifying all the essential files, select them and click Recover to save them to an alternative location on your computer.
preview before recovery
undeleter preview ppt

II. The mobile hard disk is not displayed in My Computer/Disk Management, but it can be displayed in Device Manager

If your computer indicates that the mobile hard disk is connected but it’s not visible in “My Computer” or Disk Management, consider these repair steps:

1. Uninstall the device and update the driver in the device manager

Step 1: Connect the mobile hard disk to the computer, right-click on the (Start) menu, and select (Device Manager).
Step 2: Locate the hard disk in Device Manager under “Disk Drives”. Right-click it and choose “Uninstall Device”.
Uninstall a program
Step 3: Click “Uninstall” in the pop-up window, wait for the process to complete, then safely eject the external hard drive by pressing ⏏, and finally reconnect it to your computer.
Device manager uninstall device prompt window
Step 4: Reopen Device Manager, right-click the hard disk device, choose Update Driver, select Search automatically for updated driver software, and follow the on-screen prompts to complete the update.
update driver disk

2. Delete the device in Devices and Printers

If none of the above methods can make the mobile hard disk display normally, you can also try this method. Proceed as follows:
Step 1: Right-click the USB icon in the taskbar and select Open Devices and Printers, or use the search box to locate Control Panel, then proceed to Hardware and Sound > Devices and Printers.
Open devices and printers
Step 2: Locate your mobile hard disk under Devices and Printers, right-click on it, select Delete Device, and then disconnect and reconnect the drive to check if it is recognized properly.
Tip: If there is no response after clicking (delete device) multiple times, the mobile hard disk may be faulty. You can try to remove the mobile hard disk directly and reconnect it. Afterwards, a prompt box that needs to scan and restore the mobile hard disk may pop up. Follow the prompts Scan and fix it. Removing the mobile hard disk directly may damage or lose the data, please operate with caution, if you have concerns about this, you can also shut down the computer and then remove the mobile hard disk.
Delete a device in Devices and Printers