Solve WD Hard Drive Not Showing Up in Disk Utility with 4 Ways

If your WD hard drive is not showing up in Disk Utility after connecting to Mac, don't worry! In this article, we'll show you effective ways to fix the issue of WD hard drive not showing in Disk Utility.

Before you fix the error, we have effective ways to recover stored data from a WD hard drive not showing up on Mac. Keep reading!

Recover Data from WD Hard Drive

Are you worried about the data on WD hard drive not showing up on Mac? Under such circumstances, you need to use professional Mac data recovery software to retrieve the saved data from WD hard drive. Data Recovery Wizard for Mac is a professional tool that can recover lost data from accidental deletion, Empty Trash, or other data loss events.

This powerful Mac data recovery software can help resolve the issue of WD external hard drive not showing up on Mac and restore files from it even without Time Machine backup.

Follow the below-given steps to retrieve stored files from WD hard drive not showing in Disk Utility:

Step 1: Search for the Missing File

Connect the external hard drive to your Mac correctly. Launch the Data Recovery Wizard for Mac tool, and select the external hard drive. Then, click “Search Lost Files” to look for lost or deleted files on the external device.

Note: Before you proceed with data recovery, it's 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. You can then remove the external hard drive and use it again.

Step 2: Filter and locate the missing files

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

Step 3: Preview and recover

Click on the file to preview it, select the files you want to restore, and hit the “Restore” button. You can save your data to both local and cloud storage drives.

After saving the lost files to a secure location, we'll proceed with the possible fixes for the WD hard drive not showing up in Disk Utility issue.

If you're using a WD My Passport, WD Easystore, WD My Book, or other product, try the following solutions to identify and resolve the error:

• WD Passport Not Showing Up on Mac
• WD Easystore Not Mounting on Mac

Here are the first four methods to fix a WD hard drive not showing up on Mac:

Fix 1: Check the Finder view settings

First, make sure your drive isn't hidden. macOS allows users to change which devices show up in Finder and on the desktop. So, if you're expecting to see your drive in those areas but it only appears in Disk Utility, this might be why. To make the drive show up in Finder and on the desktop, do the following:

Step 1: Click on “Finder” in the Apple menu bar, then click “Preferences.” In the “General” tab, check “External disks.”

Step 2: Make sure that under "Location," the "Sidebar" option is set to "External Drive."

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Fix 2: Enable “Show All Devices” in Disk Utility

If your new WD external hard drive isn't showing up on your Mac, now might be the time to get it formatted and installed. Formatting is essential for making your external device compatible with your operating system.

This is one of the primary reasons why a WD hard drive might not show up on a Mac. To mount a WD external hard drive, you need to enable “Show All Devices” in Disk Utility. Here's how:

Step 1. Launch Disk Utility.

Step 2: Click the View icon in the upper-left corner of the Control Panel, and select Show hidden devices.

Step 3: Select your WD external hard drive from the list and click “Mount.”

Now, the program will immediately mount the disk on Mac and prepare it for further use.

Solution 3: Use WD Drive Utilities to Diagnose an Unrecognized WD Hard Drive

WD Drive Utilities for Mac is one of the leading professional tools for WD hard drives that run disk diagnostics, such as resolving issues with decreased disk performance, bad sectors, and potential hard drive failure. If your WD HDD isn't working properly on your Mac due to other parameter errors, you need to proceed with the following steps:

Step 1: Install the “WD Drive Utilities” program on your MacBook and run it.

Step 2: Connect the unrecognized WD drive to your Mac.

Step 3. Click on “Diagnosis” and select “Run Quick Drive Test” to run a comprehensive check of the WD drive.

Fix 4: Solve unrecognized WD hard drive issue with formatting

If WD Drive Utilities fails to fix the unrecognized WD hard drive, its file system might be severely corrupted. In this case, you need to reformat or erase the WD hard drive. But before that, it's necessary to recover lost data from the unrecognized WD hard drive with data recovery software like Data Recovery Wizard for Mac to prevent data loss.

Please follow these steps to format the WD hard drive in Disk Utility:

Step 1: Launch Disk Utility and select your WD drive from the list of external disks.

Click “Erase” from the top menu, choose your new file format, then click “Erase” again to confirm the reformat.

Not sure which format is better for macOS? Read this article to find out.

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Why isn't my WD hard drive showing up in Disk Utility?

Western Digital (WD) hard drives are some of the most prominent external drives for Mac, with several advanced options and features to enhance your experience. Like any other drive, WD disks can lag due to corruption or connectivity issues. Moreover, several factors might cause an external hard drive to become unrecognizable on a Mac.

Here are the main reasons why a WD hard drive might not show up in Disk Utility on a Mac:

• A damaged USB cable.
• A faulty USB port.
• A corrupted file system on the external hard drive.
• A malfunctioning USB adapter.
• Incorrect formatting of the external hard drive.
• The need for software or hardware updates, such as drivers for the external drive.

For this reason, you might plug an external hard drive into your Mac, only to find that it doesn't show up. This means your Mac isn't reading the external hard drive.

Conclusions

The first step in resolving the issue of WD hard drive not detected on Mac should be data recovery, especially if your Mac is unable to recognize your USB flash drive, SD card, or any other external storage device.

Data recovery tools, such as Data Recovery Wizard Pro for Mac, can help you retrieve information from an unknown hard drive. You can then fix the problem in various ways without losing any data.

FAQs on WD Hard Drive Not Showing Up in Disk Utility

Here are some common questions to help you get started on the topic:

1. Why can't Disk Utility find my external hard drive?

If you chose Show All Devices in Disk Utility and still don't see your external drive, the drive might be physically damaged. If so, you'll need to replace the damaged drive.

2. How do I fix my WD external hard drive not showing up on Mac issue?

To fix the issue where your WD external hard drive isn't showing up on your Mac, you can use the “First Aid” feature to repair the damaged WD drive. Follow these steps:

Step 1. Open Disk Utility.

Step 2. Select your WD external hard drive from the list of options displayed.

Step 3: Click on “First Aid” and select “Run” to begin the diagnostics.