Windows 10: advice on backing up data to an external source please

Sorry but this is a very simple question.

I have put in a memory stick into the USB port and it yells me that there are previous files on the stick but on the screen it says drive E is disconnected and all I want to do is to back up my present data, can anyone please tell me what I'm doing wrong.

Thanks

Carol

:)

 

Need Advice on Everything!

Take a step back

What is your budget ?
What are you going to use it for?

TPU members will probly overload you with suggestions

 

External drive

You've mentioned that you were able to try some of the troubleshooting steps that was provided by a Microsoft online agent, we'd like to know if you were able to roll back the said driver as well. If not, kindly follow the steps listed below and check if
it helps to resolve the issue:

• Press Windows Key + X then select Device Manager from the list.
  
• Locate the external driver and right-click to open the Properties option.
  
• Go to the Driver tab and click the Roll Back Driver button. Click
  OK.

Note: The Roll Back Driver button is only available if a previous version of the driver was installed. If the current driver for the device is the only one that was ever installed on this computer, then the Roll Back Driver button is not enabled.

Let us know how it goes after performing the suggested steps.

 

File back up to bitlockered external drive

Thanks John.

By trial and error the solution is,

• Set the file back up to the desired external USB drive, Back up using file history.
• Run backup to completion.
• Dismount, (Remove) the drive used.
• Remount (Plug in) the drive used for the file back up (Steps 1&2) and encrypt using Bitlocker.

Note you can only encrypt drives using some versions of Windows (Pro for eg not Home)

• Once the external drive has been encrypted dismount.
• Remount the drive, go to the file back up option, Open, Settings, Backup,
  Back up using file history.
• The drive should now still be visible and has been encrypted.
• Accessing the drive will be dependant on how it was set up in Bitlocker,
  Open with this PC, password, pin code etc.
• Repeat file back up as in the first two steps.

Hope this helps someone else.