Windows 10: External hard drive not showing up on Win Explorer or Disk Management

Win 11 Pro Ver 24H2 OS Build 26100.4351. External hard drive shows up on device manager but no where else. Not disk management & no where else. Drivers updated, etc. Nothing. I do not need the info on the disk. Would like to reformat & regain use.

:)

 

Windows 11 File Explorer not showing external drive

If Windows 11 File Explorer is not showing an external drive that is connected to your device, there are a few steps you can take to troubleshoot the issue:

1. Check the connection: Make sure that the external drive is properly connected to your device. Try unplugging and replugging the drive, or connecting it to a different USB port.
   
2. Check Disk Management: Open Disk Management by pressing Windows key + X, then selecting Disk Management. Look for the external drive in the list of drives. If it appears but has no drive letter assigned, right-click on it and select "Change Drive Letter and Paths". Assign a drive letter to the external drive, and then check if it appears in File Explorer.
   
3. Update drivers: Make sure that your device's drivers are up to date, particularly the drivers for your USB ports. Use the Device Manager to check for any outdated or malfunctioning drivers, and update or reinstall them as needed.
   
4. Check power supply: If the external drive requires a separate power supply, make sure it is properly connected and functioning.
   
5. Test on another device: Try connecting the external drive to another device to see if it appears in File Explorer. This will help determine if the issue is with the drive itself or your device.
   

By following these steps, you may be able to resolve the issue of Windows 11 File Explorer not showing an external drive.

 

external hard drive showing up in device management but not disk management

Hi,

I recently tried to use a brand new Seagate 2TB External HD, but it is not showing up. It initially showed up, but after I tried reformatting it to exFAT32, it disappeared from the disk management list.

I then tried:

• refreshing the disk management list,
• inserting into a different USB port,
• re-starting my computer, and
• uninstalling the device from device manager/letting it refresh,

I still can't see it. There is no yellow error in the USB controller list.

I'm on Windows 10.

Intel i5-3317U @ 1.7GHz

Any suggestions? Thanks!

 

external hard drive

Hi Chrpee,

If you can't find external hard drive on Disk management than the next step is using the diskpart via command line, please follow the steps below:-

On the keyboard hit ((Windows logo key + R key)) than type ((CMD))

Now the windows command line will appear, the next steps is to type ((diskpart))

After that type ((list disk)) to show you the list of hard disks with partitions

If you found your external hard drive one of the list than you need to type ((select disk number)), note: the number is a disk number

Once you selected the hard disk or partitions than type ((clean))

than type ((create partition primary))

than type ((select partition 1))

than type ((active))

than type ((format fs=ntfs quick))

than type ((assign))

last type ((exit))

Check if the external hard drive appeared, if not please see the link below for more info and let me know if you need any assist

https://uk.pcmag.com/dvd-burners/120624/what-to...