Windows 10: PC does not recognise external drive

I have an external drive with USB connection which is no longer recognised by my Windows 10 PC. When I switch it on there is the expected beep but it does not appear in File Explorer. Also it is no longer "powered down" after a period of non-use.


When I attach the drive to my laptop it works fine.


In Device Manager no problems are reported.


I have looked at some similar problems on the community boards and tried some solutions, but without success.


Can anyone suggest a solution please.

:)

 

External hard drive not recognised

Worked out what the problem was with my external drive notbeing recognised. I looked under Device Manager > USB Controllers and there itwas listed with an exclamation mark with the error saying that "the driverfor this device is in memory" or words to that effect. I right clicked thecorresponding Mass Storage device and uninstalled it and then unplugged theexternal drive. I rebooted my desktop and plugged the external drive in againand it reinstalled its driver again and I am now able to use the external driveagain.

 

External hard drive not recognised

Thanks for this. I've done what you suggested and been through all the steps mentioned in the article. The hard drive works fine on a Mac computer, and I've managed to copy the information on it. It must be a Surface issue so I'll try to get a chat line tomorrow.

 

External hard drive not recognised

Hi twynog,

The issue that you're experiencing with the external hard drive might be due to some missing Windows hardware or software updates. To help you in resolving this, you may follow the steps below:

Method 1: Uninstall and then reconnect the external hard drive - this method resolve issues where the currently loaded USB driver has become unstable or corrupt.

• Select Start, type Device Manager in the Search box.
• Select Device Manager from the returned list.
• Select Disk Drives from the list of hardware.
• Press and hold (or right-click) the USB external hard drive with the issue, and select Uninstall.
• After the hard drive is uninstalled, unplug the USB cable.
• Wait for 1 minute and then reconnect the USB cable. The driver should automatically load.
• Check for the USB drive in Windows Explorer.

If method 1 doesn't work the way it should, you may proceed to other steps provided in this
article.

Do get back to us if you need further assistance.

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