Windows 10: New External Drive not visible in "This PC"

I clicked end task (WUDFHost.exe) in the admin account, but it didn't end the task. Still running.

I also tried this, per a suggestion I read on a Microsoft help forum:

In Disk Management, I right-clicked the drive and changed the setting from Quick Removal to Better Performance and rebooted. Supposedly, the eject option should become available when right-clicking the drive in This PC. The eject option did not show up.

I also uninstalled Avast to see if that would help. It didn't. I still get the "a program is still using" popup.

Nobody has yet commented on the default Quick Removal setting. Can it be trusted or not?

 

Was there only one WUDFHost.exe or more than one?
There is more than one on my computer.
Did you click the other WUDFHost.exe?
Did turning off the computer allow you to remove the drive?
There may be others that have seen this problem before that can opine.

 

I saw only one WUDFHost.exe.
How can know if I may remove the drive after shutting down the computer? Again, because of Quick Removal, just cutting power to the drive should be okay. But I can't find definitive confirmation anywhere.
After googling the "can't eject external drive" problem I believe it is a common problem.
Thank you for your efforts.

 

Run through this list of troubleshooting steps to see if one or more of the steps can fix the problem:
Windows will not allow me to safely remove my drive. It keeps reporting the drive is busy or in use
Turning off the computer is a safe way to remove the drive. The reason that it is infrequently done is that it often inconvenient to close any open work just to remove a drive.

 

My Recycle Bin does not have Global Tab. I do not see the Configure Drives Independently option.

In Media Player, I do not see Tools.

On the Mac, indexing tended to cause problems and thus I excluded external drives from being indexed. I do not see any option in the drive's Properties that even mentions indexing. I did not find an indexing setting in Administrative Tools, but I did turn off Windows Search. Still no way to eject the drive.

Anyway, by now I know that Quick Removal is not safe to use. I can no longer access the drive, because its file structure has become corrupted (per popup). *Sad

 

Please update the specs in the "My Computer" section:

System Specs - Fill in at Ten Forums:
System Specs - Fill in at Ten Forums Site Use Tutorials
In the left corner below in your post you find 'My System Specs'.
After clicking it you can find a link a little below that says 'Update your System Spec', click on this link to get to the page where you can fill in your system specs.
System Info - See Your System Specs - Windows 7 Help Forums


Include PSU. cooler, case, peripherals and anything attached to the computer by wired or wireless (mouse, keyboard, headset, printer, xbox, etc.)

 

I have this issue with my Externals with Avast installed, No way to exclude External drives that i see though, usually i just close all open progams, or eject via This PC area if available, right click on a flash drive or external, then hit eject, and 9 times out of 10 that works, Safe Removal displays drive in use message and cannot eject


I've had this problem for ages, Avast is installed on every system, i usually just wait til i shutdown for the night, or just wait and eventually it ejects fine

 

I can eject any USB peripheral other than the external drive without problems either in This PC by right-clicking on the device and choosing "eject.," or via the Safely Remove Hardware tray icon. I wish I knew whey I do not get a normal "eject" option when right-clicking on a drive. Even with Quick Removal changed to Better Performance, still no "eject" option.

I have filled in my computer's specs as good as I could.

I apologize for taking up everyone's time, but I do appreciate everyone's efforts.

 

An update: I formatted the drive again, and I also replaced the USB cable with a new one (because the old one was a bit short). The good news is that the Safely Remove Hardware tray icon now allows me to eject the drive. The bad news is that I don't know why it's now working. Any ideas?

 

Where you hooking your external drive to your computer using a usb hub?

From your specs.

Jack

 

No, I always plug external drives in a dedicated port on the computer.

I use the hub for digital camera, Kindle, headset, portable battery