[Fixed] External Hard Drive Not Detected in Disk Management on Windows 10/11

"I've had my new PC for some time now and have had files on my Hard Drive (an external hard disk). I shut down my PC to go to sleep, and when I woke up and turned it on, my external hard drive is no longer being displayed. I checked Disk Management, and it's not showing up there either. What steps should I take?"

                                                                                                                            - question from the Reddit forum Translation: - question from the Reddit forum

It must be frustrating and disappointing when you connect an external hard drive (HDD/SSD) to your PC, only for it not to appear in Disk Management. In such a situation, you are unable to access the data stored on it.

Disk Management is an integrated utility in Windows designed to assist with managing hard drives and external storage devices. Typically, if an external hard drive does not vanish from File Explorer, you should be able to locate it in Disk Management. However, if an HDD is not appearing in Disk Management, you might feel perplexed and unsure of how to address the issue.

Translation into English:

Don't worry, this post will reveal all possible reasons behind "external hard drive not showing up in Disk Management on Windows 10/11" and offer step-by-step guidance on fixing the issue with effective solutions.

A Quick Guide:

Translate into English

[Title] Why External Hard Drive Not Visible in Disk Management on Windows 10/11 [Subtitle] Troubleshooting Guide: When Your External HDD Doesn't Appear in Windows Disk Management [Section 1: Introduction] Are you facing the frustrating issue where your external hard drive is not showing up in Disk Management on Windows 10 or 11? It can be a major inconvenience, especially when you need to access important files or transfer data. This guide will walk you through possible reasons and effective solutions to fix this problem. [Section 2: Potential Reasons] 1. **Unplugged or Loose Connection**: A loose connection can prevent your external hard drive from being detected. 2. **Power Supply Issues**: Insufficient power might stop the drive from functioning properly. 3. **Drive Not Formatted**: The external drive may not have a compatible file system with your Windows version. 4. **Driver Issues**: Outdated or corrupted drivers can cause the drive to be invisible. 5. **Windows Settings**: Incorrect settings in File Explorer or Disk Management could hide the drive. 6. **Hardware Failure**: In some cases, the external hard drive itself may have hardware issues. [Section 3: Solutions] **Solution 1: Check Connections** - Ensure the USB cable is securely connected to both the computer and the external drive. - Try using a different USB port or cable. **Solution 2: Power Source** - Use a powered USB hub if the drive requires additional power. - Connect the drive directly to your computer's USB port instead of a USB extension cable. **Solution 3: Format the Drive** - Right-click on "This PC," select "Manage," then "Disk Management." - Locate the unallocated space and right-click, choose "New Simple Volume." - Follow the wizard to format the drive with a compatible file system (e.g., NTFS). **Solution 4: Update Drivers** - Press "Windows key + X" and select "Device Manager." - Expand "Disk Drives" and locate your external hard drive. - Right-click and choose "Update Driver Software." **Solution 5: Adjust Windows Settings** - Open "File Explorer" and click on "View" > "Options" > "Change folder and search options." - Go to the "View" tab and uncheck "Hide empty drives in the Computer folder." - In Disk Management, check if the drive is hidden; if so, right-click and choose "Offline" then "Online." **Solution 6: Hardware Troubleshooting** - Test the drive on another computer to rule out hardware issues. - If the issue persists, consider professional data recovery services or contacting the manufacturer for warranty support. [Conclusion] By following these troubleshooting steps, you should be able to resolve the issue of an undetected external hard drive in Windows 10 or 11's Disk Management. Remember to backup your data regularly to avoid potential data loss.

When your Windows 10 or 11 computer fails to detect the connected external hard drive in Disk Management, the issue might stem from the following reasons:

• The hard disk is manually hidden on Windows 10/11
• Unstable or poor connection caused by an incorrect USB port or cable
• The hard drive is corrupted or physically damaged
• Outdated hard drive driver
• Incorrect drive letter assignment

These reasons also apply to the "SSD not showing up in Disk Management" issue.

How to Fix External Hard Drive Not Appearing in Disk Management

We have identified five practical and effective solutions to address the issue of a hard drive or USB external hard drive not appearing in Windows 11 Disk Management. You can attempt these methods sequentially: 1. **Connect the Drive to a Different USB Port:** Sometimes, the problem might be with the USB port itself. Try connecting the external hard drive to another USB port on your computer to see if it is recognized. 2. **Check the Power Supply:** Ensure that the external hard drive is receiving adequate power, especially if it has its own power adapter. If not, plug it into a different power source or use a powered USB hub. 3. **Update or Reinstall Drivers:** Outdated or corrupted drivers can cause issues with external drives. Visit the manufacturer's website to download and install the latest drivers for your USB controller or USB hubs. 4. **Enable Hidden Devices:** Open Device Manager, expand "Disk Drives," and check if your hard drive is listed as a hidden device. If so, right-click and select "Unhide" or "Show Hidden Devices" to make it visible. 5. **Run Disk Management and Initialize the Drive:** Press `Windows + X` keys, choose "Disk Management," locate your external hard drive, and right-click it. Select "Initialize Disk" and choose an appropriate partition style (MBR or GPT) based on your system requirements. If none of these steps work, consider using data recovery software and seeking professional assistance to diagnose and resolve the issue.

Fix 1: Check the Connection

A poor connection between the external hard drive and the Windows computer can result in Disk Management failing to detect it. Therefore, the first step you should take is to inspect the connection, which involves: 1. Ensuring the cables are properly connected: Make sure that the USB cable connecting the external hard drive to your computer is securely plugged in on both ends. 2. Using a different USB port: Try connecting the external hard drive to another USB port on your computer to see if the issue lies with the port. 3. Checking for damaged ports or cables: Inspect the USB ports and cable for any visible signs of damage, such as bent pins or frayed wires. 4. Trying a different cable: If possible, replace the current USB cable with a known working one to rule out cable issues. 5. Restarting the computer: Sometimes, simply restarting your computer can resolve connectivity issues. 6. Enabling USB Legacy Support: In some cases, you might need to enable USB Legacy Support in your BIOS settings for better compatibility with older devices. 7. Updating drivers: Update the USB controller drivers and storage drivers on your Windows computer to ensure they are compatible with the external hard drive. By checking these aspects, you can often resolve connectivity issues and get your external hard drive recognized by Disk Management.

• Unplug the HDD and reconnect it
• Replace another connection cable
• Connect the hard drive to another USB or Type-C interface

Fix 2: Update Your Drivers

If the external hard drive is connected to the computer but still not showing up in Disk Management, it might be due to an outdated driver or existing errors. To resolve this issue, you should update your external hard drive drivers. Follow these steps to update the driver: 1. Press the Windows key + X on your keyboard and select "Device Manager" from the menu. 2. In the Device Manager window, expand the "Disk Drives" category by clicking on the arrow next to it. 3. Locate your external hard drive in the list. It might be labeled as "Generic USB HDD," "External HDD," or something similar. 4. Right-click on the external hard drive entry and choose "Update Driver Software." 5. In the pop-up window, select "Search automatically for updated driver software." 6. Wait for Windows to search for and download the latest driver updates. This process may take a few minutes. 7. Once the update is complete, restart your computer to apply the changes. 8. After restarting, check if the external hard drive is now recognized in Disk Management. If Windows fails to find an updated driver, you can also visit the manufacturer's website to manually download and install the latest driver for your external hard drive.

Enter "device manager" in the search bar on the taskbar, and select Device Manager to open.

Find the Disk drive category, and click the arrow next to it to expand it.

Locate the problematic external hard drive, right-click on it, and then select the "Update driver" option.

1. Restart your computer and apply all the changes once the update process is complete. 2. Verify if your external hard drive is visible in Disk Management.

Fix 3: Reinstall Drivers for Unrecognized External Hard Drive

If the driver update fails, it's possible that the external hard drive driver is corrupted or damaged. In this case, you'll need to reinstall the external HDD driver. Follow these steps: 1. **Uninstall the Existing Driver:** - Connect your external hard drive to your computer. - Press `Windows + X` on your keyboard and select "Device Manager" from the menu. - Locate "Disk Drives" in the list, expand it, and find your external hard drive. - Right-click on it and choose "Uninstall device." - Confirm the prompt to uninstall the driver. 2. **Restart Your Computer:** - After uninstalling the driver, restart your computer for the changes to take effect. 3. **Let Windows Automatically Install the Driver:** - Upon restarting, Windows will try to detect and install the latest driver for your external hard drive automatically. 4. **Manually Install the Driver:** - If Windows fails to install the driver, go to the manufacturer's website (like Western Digital, Seagate, etc.). - Download the latest driver software for your specific external hard drive model. - Follow the on-screen instructions to install the driver manually. 5. **Verify the Connection:** - Make sure your external hard drive is properly connected to your computer. Try using a different USB port if needed. 6. **Check the Drive in File Explorer:** - Once the driver is installed, open "File Explorer" to see if your external hard drive is recognized and appears in the list of drives. If the problem continues, there might be hardware issues with the external hard drive, or it could be a compatibility issue with your computer. In those cases, additional troubleshooting or professional help might be necessary.

1. Navigate to Device Manager. 2. Select Disk drives and locate your external hard drive. 3. Right-click on it and choose "Uninstall device." 4. In the "Uninstall device" window, click "Uninstall" to proceed.

Restart your computer and reinstall the hard drive driver. Check if the external hard drive is visible in Disk Management.

Fix 4: Check the Hard Drive in BIOS

Another viable solution to locate the external hard drive is by checking it within the BIOS. Follow the steps below to inspect the external hard drive in BIOS: 1. **Restart your computer**: First, turn off your computer and then restart it. As it boots up, press the key to enter BIOS. This key is usually displayed on the screen during startup (commonly F2, F10, F12, or Del, but it may vary depending on your system). 2. **Enter BIOS Setup**: Once you've pressed the correct key, you'll enter the BIOS setup menu. Here, you'll see various settings related to your computer's hardware. 3. **Find the Hard Drive section**: Navigate through the menus using the arrow keys on your keyboard. Look for sections like "Boot," "Storage," "SATA Configuration," or "Devices" where your hard drives might be listed. 4. **Check for the external hard drive**: In this section, search for your external hard drive. It may be listed under "Hard Disk Drives," "SATA Devices," or a similar category. The name might include the manufacturer or model of the drive. 5. **Verify connectivity**: If you find the external hard drive in the BIOS, ensure that it is recognized as a valid boot device or storage device. This will confirm that the computer is detecting the drive at a low-level hardware level. 6. **Exit BIOS**: After verifying the presence of the external hard drive, save any changes made (if necessary) and exit the BIOS. Your computer will restart, and you should now be able to access the external hard drive in your operating system. If the external hard drive does not appear in the BIOS, it could indicate a problem with the drive itself, the connection, or the USB controller. In this case, try different ports, use a different cable, or check the drive on another computer to troubleshoot further.

1. Restart your computer and press F2 or Del key to enter BIOS. 2. Navigate to the "Boot" section in BIOS.

1. Verify if your external hard drive is displayed in the list. 2. If the external hard drive appears in the boot options, attempt to reconnect it to your Windows 10/11 PC using a different cable or port. 3. If it does not appear, return to the main page of the BIOS settings and navigate to the "Storage" section. 4. Locate the external hard drive and ensure its detection status is set to "Enabled." 5. Save the changes, exit the BIOS, and then check if the hard drive is visible in Disk Management.

Fix 5: Utilize the Hardware and Devices Troubleshooter

Windows 10/11 comes with a built-in Troubleshooter that can assist in diagnosing hardware issues. You can utilize this tool to check for errors on your external hard drive.

1. Double-click the Control Panel icon on the desktop to launch it. 2. Enter "troubleshooter" in the search bar and select "Troubleshooting" to open it.

Select the "Hardware and Sound" option.

Find and click on the external hard drive, then follow the guided wizard to complete the process.

Conclusion

Here are the five solutions to resolve the "External hard drive not showing up in Disk Management on Windows 10/11" issue. If you are aware of the specific causes, you can attempt the relevant fixes. If not, try them sequentially.

Additionally, remember to back up the external hard drive before implementing any fixes to safeguard your data from potential risks. Todo Backup can be a useful tool for this purpose. It is a professional backup software that allows you to effortlessly back up external hard drives and other storage devices in Windows 11/10/8/7 with just a few clicks.

How to Backup Seagate External Hard Drive FAQs

1. Why doesn't my external hard drive appear in Disk Management?

As mentioned in the post, numerous factors can result in external hard drives not appearing in Disk Management. Some common reasons include loose connections, incompatible systems or hardware, outdated drivers, incorrect drive letters, and corrupted hard drives, among others.

2. How can I get Windows 10 to recognize my external hard drive?

To make your external hard drive recognizable by a Windows 10 computer, you can try these tips:

1. Reconnect the hard drive 2. Use a compatible interface and cable 3. Change the external drive letter 4. Update the external hard drive driver 5. Enable the external hard drive in BIOS 6. Run the hardware troubleshooter