Can't Mount External Hard Drive on Mac? 6 Fixes to Try

The ability to easily move and store large amounts of data has made portable external hard drives ubiquitous in modern life. However, when an external hard drive fails to mount on a Mac, it can be frustrating and even alarming, considering the importance of the data we might have stored on it. When this occurs, immediate action must be taken to restore the integrity and accessibility of the data.

But, if you don't know how to fix the Mac not mounting external hard drive issue, we've got you covered. In this article, you'll learn about the reasons behind the problem and the best solutions to it. Let's get started!

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How to Mount an External Hard Drive on Your Mac in 6 Ways

Wondering how to fix the issue of your Mac not mounting an external hard drive? This section has the answers! Since hard drives are crucial for storing and transferring important data, it can be frustrating when you see that your drive won't mount on your Mac. However, with the solutions outlined below, you can resolve this problem:

Solution 1: Format the disk

The other possibility is that there's something wrong with your hard drive's data or structure, in which case you might need to reformat it. But before you do, keep in mind that formatting will erase all your data, so make sure to back up your information before you format the hard drive. However, since formatting a Mac disk deletes all data, make sure you have a backup. If you don't have one, data recovery software can help you retrieve deleted data and files.

To format a disk on Mac, follow these steps:

Step 1: Open the Finder, and then open Applications from within it.

Step 2: Find "Utilities" and click on it. Then, click on "Disk Utility" to proceed.

Step 3: Click “Continue,” then select your hard drive. In the top option, choose “Erase” to format your hard drive.

Click “Disk Utility,” and proceed.

Fix 2: Restart your Mac

It's possible that too many other processes are using resources, preventing macOS from accessing and reading your disk. Also, macOS might get stuck while trying to self-update when mounting the disk. To "unlock" your Mac, restart it and try not to use too many programs simultaneously.

To restart your Mac, follow these steps:

Step 1: Click the Apple icon in the top-left corner.

Step 2. Click “Restart” from the drop-down menu to restart your Mac.

Click “Recover” to start the process.

Solution 3: Restart the Finder

Another solution to fix the external hard drive not mounting issue on Mac is to restart the Finder. It's possible that your Finder got stuck at some point and is not displaying connected devices. To restart the Finder on your Mac, follow these steps:

The first step is to right-click on the Finder icon.

Step 2. Click “Relaunch” from the menu to restart the Finder on your Mac.

Click on “Restart”.

Fix 4: Use Disk Utility's First Aid feature

macOS comes with a disk management utility called Disk Utility. With Disk Utility on your Mac, you can control all your internal and external hard drives. One of the handy features of Disk Utility is the "First Aid" tool, which scans for drive issues and automatically repairs them, depending on their severity.

To use Disk Utility's First Aid feature to fix an issue where your Mac won't mount a disk, follow these steps:

Step 1: Open Finder and click on “Applications” on your Mac.

Step 2: In the Applications menu, find Utilities and click on it. Then, select Disk Utility.

Step 3. On the Disk Utility screen, find your hard drive and click on it. Click the “First Aid” tab at the top to repair any issues.

Fix 5: Force Mount External Hard Drive with Disk Utility

Another way to fix an external hard drive on Mac is by forcing Disk Utility to mount it. You can manually mount the external hard drive using Disk Utility with these steps:

Step 1: Open Finder, then go to Applications. On the Applications screen, select Utilities to proceed.

Step 2: Click “Disk Utility” and click “Continue” to proceed.

Step 3. Next, you must select the hard drive to mount and click “Mount” from the options above.

Fix 6: Mount the External Hard Drive via the Mac Terminal

The last way to install an external hard drive on a Mac is through the Terminal. While installing an external hard drive on the Mac Terminal is more complex, it solves many user issues with installing a hard drive. To open the Mac Terminal and install an external hard drive, follow these steps:

Step 1: Open Terminal on your Mac using Finder.

Step 2: Enter the command diskutil list in Terminal. This will list all hard drives connected to (mounted on) your Mac, as well as any unmounted ones.

Step 3: Find the drive ID of the hard drive you want to mount from the list, and type the command diskutil mount $DriveID to mount the external drive on your Mac.

Mount External Hard Drive on Mac via Terminal

How to Recover Data from a Formatted External Hard Drive on Mac

Want to know how to recover formatted hard drive on Mac? For this, you need a professional data recovery tool. However, with so many options available in the market, you cannot trust every tool with your data's safety. To help you, we have developed the best data recovery tool - tools Data Recovery Wizard for Mac, which can help you recover data from a formatted hard drive.

These are some of the factors that make disk utility necessary for file recovery and repair. After running the Disk Utility, you can use the Data Recovery Wizard and its features to help you recover your important files. Here's how.

Step 1: Search for the Lost Files

Connect the external hard drive to your Mac correctly. Launch the Disk Drill for Mac data recovery tool, select the external hard drive, and then click “Search for lost files” to find deleted or lost files on the external device.

Note: Before you recover data, it is recommended that you click “Disk Backup” from the left sidebar and create a backup of your external hard drive to prevent further data loss. After backing up the external hard drive, the software can recover data from the backup of the external hard drive, and you can then remove the external hard drive and use it again.

Step 2: Filter and locate the missing file

Once the scan is finished, all file types will be displayed on the left. Select the file type to look for the wanted files on your external device.

Step 3: Preview and Recover

Click on the file to preview it, then select the files you wish to recover and click the “Recover” button. You can save the data to both your local storage and cloud drive.

Why won't an external hard drive mount on a Mac?

Before trying any solutions, it's important to identify the root cause of the problem. If you know what's causing your external hard drive not to mount on your Mac, you can prevent the issue from happening again in the future. Some key causes might include:

• Sometimes, the file system structure of the drive might not be compatible with your Mac. For instance, disk types like exFAT, HFS+, and others are fully compatible with Macs. Make sure that the file format of your external hard drive is suitable for use with your computer.
• The cable, USB-C multi-adapters, Thunderbolt 3, or other connecting points might be dirty or loosely connected, causing the external hard drive to go unrecognized by your Mac. If the cables aren't securely attached, they might fail to connect the drive to your Mac.
• If your portable hard drive is infected with malware or was removed abruptly, this issue can occur. The file structure of the disk might become damaged or corrupted. In such cases, your Mac won't be able to mount the external hard drive.
• In very rare instances, the driver software of the storage device might be incompatible with the Mac operating system, resulting in the inability to mount the external hard drive on a Mac.

Theoretically, if your external hard drive becomes inaccessible after connecting it to your Mac using Disk Utility, there might be an issue with your device. Hence, the page linked below could be of assistance.

Solved: Recover Data from Unmounted External Hard Drive on Mac

When an external hard drive becomes unrecognizable or inaccessible, and you lose data on Mac, the main reason might be that the hard drive is unmounted.

Final Thoughts

Hard drives are complex storage devices that can give rise to numerous issues. However, it's essential to remember that everything is possible with the right guidance. Hence, we hope that the solutions provided in this article will help you resolve the problem of your Mac not mounting an external hard drive. Additionally, if you have accidentally formatted your drive and need data recovery, we highly recommend using the Data Recovery Wizard for Mac tool. It can recover various file types and boasts an intuitive user interface.

FAQs about External Hard Drives for Mac

After reading the guide on how to fix the mounted external hard drive issue on Mac, you might still have some questions. Hopefully, the following FAQ section can provide the answers:

How do I force-mount an internal drive on a Mac?

To force-mount an internal drive on a Mac, you'll need to use Disk Utility.

Step One: Open the Finder, and launch the application.

Step 2: Click “Utilities” and select “Disk Utility.”

Step 3: Select the internal hard drive, then click Mount in the top right.

2. What does “Ignore” mean on a Mac?

If you don't see your hard drive in Disk Utility on your Mac, it means that the disk isn't mounted by your Mac. This can lead to a variety of problems, from an inability to access your data to potential issues with your Mac itself.

What should I do if my SSD is not showing up on my Mac?

If your SSD not showing up on Mac, you need to resolve it by restarting the drive or the Finder. If that doesn't help, force mounting the SSD with Disk Utility or Terminal might do the trick. Another way to mount a Mac hard drive is to format it.

4. How do I fix a broken hard drive?

To recover from a damaged hard drive, you'll need a professional data recovery tool like tools's Data Recovery Wizard. This tool can effectively retrieve files from a damaged drive without causing further complications.