Windows 10: File History does not recognize external hard drive. Can not turn File History on

An apparent update to Windows 10 caused File History to turn itself off. When trying to restart it, File History keep getting message "no external hard drive detected". Widows 10 shows the external disk working with no problems. When i tried to download data to the external hard drive with out File History on I get a Download Failed message with an error code 0X81000019

I cleaned and reformatted the disk but File History still does not recognize it.

Help How can i back up my data in Windows 10. I didn't recognize it at the time but when I recently tried to restore a missing file from my backup drive all the data on the backup drive had the same update dates of early November 2019. Windows 10 File History was working OK prior to that time.

:)

 

File History is off and won't recognize my external drive

Hi,



Thank you for posting your query in Microsoft Community. Let me help you.

• 
  Have you made any changes in settings prior to the issue?
  
• 
  What is the status when you connect your external driver in your system?
  
• 
  Have you checked with a different external drive? What is the status?
  
• 
  Have you tried connecting the drive in a different USB port? What is the status?
  

I suggest you to disable your third party-software (If any) and check if it resolves the issue.

Important Note: Antivirus software can help protect your computer against viruses and other security threats. In most cases, you shouldn't disable your antivirus software. If you have to temporarily disable it to install
other software, you should re-enable it as soon as you're done. If you're connected to the Internet or a network while your antivirus software is disabled, your computer is vulnerable to attacks.

Check if it helps.



You can also try turning on file history by following the below procedure and check if it resolves the issue.

To enable file history on Windows 10, connect an external hard drive and follow the steps below:

• 
  Open Start menu and type
  File History
  
• 
  Click File History (control panel)
  
• 
  Tap or click Select a drive, and choose the network or external drive you want to use.
  
• 
  Turn on File History
  

Note: If the network drive you want isn’t in the list of available drives, tap or click Show all network locations. If the drive you want isn’t listed there either, open File History in Control Panel, tap or click Add
a network location, and follow the instructions on the screen.

Please reply with the details and updated status of the issue. We will be happy to assist you further.

 

How to stop File History on the old drive and start File History on a new drive?

I use the external drive
for File History and have a lot of information there. I want to restart the File History process on a new drive and place the previous File History drive off-site.

Please suggest the steps to stop File History on the old drive and start File History on a new drive.

 

Why is an external hard drive not acceptable for file history?

I beg to differ. I have two Windows 10 laptops with File History enabled. I back them up to an external USB connected hard drive which I don't always have connected. File History will indicate if your drive is "disconnected" and occasionally give you a
notification indicating that. But you can connect the drive at any time and then run File History. If you want continuous automatic backup, then yes the drive must be connected at all times. If you update a lot of documents, pictures, or other files daily,
then this would be the preferred method. But if you only update files occasionally, then you can connect the drive and update File History manually. BTW I second your comment about using a third-party backup software.

As far as the original poster, what error or message is File History giving you indicating that the drive is not acceptable?

JohnD

In the file history setup where the available drives are listed, my h back up drive was shown as not recognized. Later, when going to 'settings" it could be recognized? and allowed it to become the backup drive with it working properly?

Don't know what I did to cause change.

REM