External Storage No Recognized
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Thread: External Storage No Recognized

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2018
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    External Storage No Recognized

    I'm just about in tears. I have a 5 terabyte external drive when I keep all my very important back up files 24 hours ago it was working just fine! I downloaded no new programs and didn't even save any new files to it but for some reason my Windows 10 computer has stopped recognizing it. Or rather when I plug it in it says there's malfunction with the device hence I cannot access it.

    So I tried all six USB ports. Same result.

    I tried other external drives in other USB ports. They work fine.

    I tried the drive itself in another PC. It's working fine!

    So why won't my PC recognize it? It's can't be a dangerous file as nothing new was saved to it.

    I next tried running devmgmt.msc to try and update the USB port or get more details. But all it will say is that there's an error with the device.

    Please help, what can I do to get my 5 terabytes working on my PC as normal?

  2. #2
    Join Date
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    What is the exact make/model of the drive?

    Did you try deleting it from Device Manager and allowing the system to redetect it?

    Did you restart your system?

    Are there any error messages in Event Viewer?

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2018
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    86
    OK I've found some more information.

    I misspoke when I said the device was working on another Windows 10 PC. It has the same "error code 43."

    Some websites recommend uninstalling the driver and then scanning for new hardware, and then reinstalling,

    https://www.drivereasy.com/knowledge...evice-manager/

    Is this the best method or should I "delete" it from Device Manager? I do no see a delete option, only "update, disable, uninstall"

    FYI I did try updating but it just said my drivers were all the most recent.

  4. #4
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    Ok, that makes a difference.

    Uninstall is what I meant. Remove the device from Device Manager and then try redetecting it.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2018
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    Alright I may have over reacted. (as usual)

    I left the device unplugged from the PC and unplugged from any power for 10 minutes and when I plugged it back in and it started working as normal!

    Thanks for your help. For future reference if this does not work in the future what the next best method?

    Is there any reason this happens?

    I won't be back online until tomorrow about noon.

  6. #6
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    I'm not sure exactly why it happens. Like I said, uninstall it from Dev Manager and allow it to redetect.

    You never said what kind of drive it is, but make sure the USB cable is seated properly. If it's a "portable" 2.5" drive, make sure it is plugged directly into a USB port or on a powered USB hub.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2018
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    86
    It's a Seagate brand drive. 3.0

    It's not portable in that it requires an external power source.

    The first thing I did is check the cables to see if they'd been dislodged.

    I also read that an easy fix is to turn off the PC for a few minutes and then turn on instead of simple restarts like I'd tried.

    Thanks again for your help.

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