Why doesn't Windows see the hard drive? Main causes and their elimination. What to do if the computer does not see the external hard drive
Many users have probably had this problem when the computer does not see HDD and doesn't want to work with him. Before we understand why this happens and try to find a solution, let's find out what it is and what it is used for.
A hard drive is a data storage device. Any information available on a computer is stored there. In addition, the operating system and all associated data are recorded on the hard drive.
Accordingly, if the system cannot detect this device, then all recorded data immediately becomes unavailable. Below we have collected the most common and common causes of problems when the computer does not see the hard drive, and effective ways their corrections. This article will help you take important steps to solve the problem and protect you from unnecessary and thoughtless actions. The following problems also apply to external drives.
Diagnostic measures
If the hard drive is not detected by the computer, then the first thing you need to do is find the cause of the problem. First you need to determine where the problem lies, in the system or the device itself. To do this, let's try connecting the drive to any other device.
If the hard drive is recognized, then the problem is in our Windows OS, but if not, then this device is faulty and needs to be repaired or replaced. In this case, further work should be entrusted to specialists.
However, if only the system part of the hard drive is faulty, then there are several ways in which you can independently restore its functionality.
Outgoing contacts
Perhaps the problem that the hard drive is no longer detected lies in the lack of contact. To fix this, you need to open the side cover of the PC case or the back cover of the laptop, find it and reconnect it.
If this does not work, try replacing the SATA cable with a new one. It is likely that the contacts on the signal cable have oxidized or that it does not fit well into the power connectors that the motherboard is equipped with.
Motherboard
If the motherboard does not see the hard drive, then the problem may be with the motherboard itself. You can check this in the following way:
Incorrect BIOS settings
The next factor that deserves our attention is the BIOS settings. Incorrect ones disrupt the operation of the OS as a whole.
System date
If the hard drive is no longer detected, then you need to look at the system date, the incorrectness of which indicates a settings failure. IN in this case to correct the situation you need:
After you restart your computer, it should start showing up, but if it's still not visible, move on to the next method.
Error loading
The problem may also be in the prescribed manner boot devices. Perhaps at the top of the list is a non-existent floppy disk or flash drive from which the PC is trying to boot. And in case of failure, the error “Disk boot failure” or other similar errors associated with “Hard drive”, “Hard disk” or “Boot” appears.
How to fix it:
Depending on the BIOS version, the appearance of the interface may vary. In this case, you need to look for similar options called “Boot Device”, “Boot Option”.
Lack of nutrition
If your hard drive is still detected, but periodically disappears and appears, then you should pay attention to the sounds it makes. sounds indicating a change in work cycles indicate malnutrition. That is, the hard drive does not have enough electricity to function properly.
There are three ways out of the situation:
Due to the fact that all devices and components must work for the computer to function properly, it is best to purchase a new power supply.
Device conflict
The next reason that a laptop or PC does not see the hard drive is a conflict of connected devices. As you know, two hard drives of both one and different brands may cause problems and conflicts in the system.
To solve this problem, you need to connect and configure each separately. This way they will not conflict and can work simultaneously.
Purpose of the letter
Let's say the hard drive is spinning, visible in the BIOS, but not detected by the operating system. That is, the OS cannot work with it. In this case, it is necessary to carry out manual configuration using the tools available in Windows.
To do this you should:
The method is demonstrated using Windows 7 as an example and is suitable for computers and laptops from any company, including HP, Samsung, Packard Bell, Acer and Asus. Only the operating system you have installed may have slight differences.
Invalid file system format
If the laptop or computer stops seeing the hard drive, and none of the above methods solved the problem, then it may be due to an incorrect file system format. As a result, the OS and disk “speak” different languages. This happens especially often when a PC switches from Windows XP to Windows 7 or 8.
You can correct the situation in the following ways.
Formatting
You need to format the HDD to NTFS. But this should only be done if the data stored on the drive is not important to you, since it will be deleted. A new version In this case, Windows will independently install the necessary HDD parameters.
After the process is complete, the disk should appear.
Third party programs
The second option for what to do if the computer does not find the hard drive is to change the file system using special programs. Among the huge number of them, one can highlight utilities Partition Manager And Acronis. They are the most convenient to use, and you can download them absolutely free from. sites.
They are recommended to be used if there are important files or documents on the netbook's hard drive and you do not want to lose them. We have already discussed several ways to restore partitions using Acronis in a similar article.
If you can't see the removable media
Quite often it happens that an external drive is simply not visible due to a banal mismatch of the USB protocol (1.1/2.0) or a poorly fitting connector. That's why this factor also requires attention and careful verification.
As for other reasons, you can find them in this article dedicated specifically.
Physical or logical fault
One of the main reasons why a hard drive is not detected by the system is its failure. It can be of two types, let's stop and look at each in more detail.
Some users, without the appropriate knowledge and experience in servicing hard drives, try to disassemble and revive it themselves. But at the same time they do not know that its assembly is carried out to the maximum extent possible. under sterile conditions and prevents fingerprints and dust from causing physical damage and thus malfunction. This is due to the fact that the gap between the head and the disk is so small that even a small speck of dust can scratch it and thereby damage it.
If none of the methods discussed above helped solve this problem, then in this situation it will not be possible to do without the help of qualified specialists. All that remains is to take it to a service center and wait for the diagnostic results.
More detailed instructions
Professional help
If you are unable to resolve the problems yourself,
then most likely the problem lies at a more technical level.
This could be: a failure of the motherboard, power supply,
hard drive, video cards, random access memory etc.
It is important to diagnose and repair the breakdown in time,
to prevent failure of other components.
Our specialist will help you with this.
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Using a hard drive is an integral part of the computer's operation, since the HDD contains almost all the operating information of the system. Accordingly, the problem in which the computer does not see the external hard drive or the internal one cannot be ignored.
There can be many reasons for such failures; some of them can be eliminated manually, while others cannot. In fact, you can solve the problem if it is related to an incorrect connection of the hard drive or a failure in the computer system. It is unlikely that you will be able to fix other types of problems that lie inside the disk case yourself.
Diagnosing a hard drive failure
First of all, you need to figure out at what level the problem is and find out its culprit. The best way to do this is to connect the hard drive to another device. If the computer no longer sees the hard drive on both devices, then it is most likely the problem. Usually it is difficult to do anything here and you will have to use a service center.
A little advice, it’s better not to skimp and buy a new HDD than to rehabilitate a broken disk (with the exception that you need information from the hard drive), since the solution will be temporary and expensive.
Go to it and you will see the HDD column and the name of the disk; if there is no such line, most likely the system will not recognize it.
Being a mechanical device, the hard drive vibrates slightly but noticeably. You can listen to see if there are any extraneous sounds and try to touch whether it works at all.
Incorrect device boot priority
Most common problem, is simply incorrect setting priority. That is, the system tries to boot another device first and, if there are no boot files there, moves on to the next one in line. If at some stage there is an error, then a situation arises when the computer does not see the hard drive, what to do is obviously to configure the BIOS.
To do this you should:
- At boot time, go to BIOS by pressing F2 or Del;
- Next, you need to click on the “Advanced BIOS feature” line;
- You will see the item “Hard disk boot priority”;
- Now in the “First boot device” option you need to set the value to “Hard Disk”;
- Restart your computer.
If the computer does not see the second hard drive, then you need to set the correct priority in the same BIOS window. There are also other reasons why 2 hard drives conflict; they will be discussed below.
Hard drive pins
Usually caused by previous cleaning system unit from dust. You just need to remove the contact, clean the connectors and reconnect. This should resolve the problem, but if the bus is broken or has any defects, try connecting a SATA cable from the drive to the hard drive. If it works, then you just need to purchase and replace the tire.
Also check that the disk is well secured to the case and that there are no additional vibrations. The HDD must be positioned horizontally, otherwise this may also cause a failure.
Insufficient power supply
The reason for this is the replacement of components with more powerful analogues. The hard drive simply does not receive enough power for its operation, because of this it can work sluggishly, there is often a buzzing inside or does not start at all.
An economical solution to the problem is to disconnect the unnecessary device, usually it is a CD drive. Of course, it is better to replace or repair the power supply.
Lack of drivers
If it does not see the hard drive on Windows computer Vista and lower, then the reason may lie precisely in the lack of pre-installed drivers for SATA 2. Only installing a newer operating system or, at least, Windows XP, but with SATA support, can help here.
This also includes the problem when the hard drive is detected, but the system boot files are simply damaged on it. In this case, Windows may simply not load or the computer will constantly restart. You can probably use safe mode log in and, thanks to a restore point, roll back to a working and stable version. Otherwise, you will still have to install the operating system again.
Device conflict
Typically the problem manifests itself as follows: of the 2 installed hard drives only 1 works. There can be two reasons for this: it occurs when installing several identical or similar hard drives, they are not recognized at the same time, or the devices use different operating systems.
With the first option, you just need to manually specify the letter of the partition in which the second disk will appear. You can do it like this:
- Go to “Control Panel” from “Start”;
- Next, in the “Administration” category, select “Computer Management”;
- In the menu on the left, click on “Disk Management”;
- Right-click on the HDD without the partition letter and install it.
Another option is when, for example, Windows XP is installed on one hard drive, and Windows 7 is installed on the other. Accordingly, the computer does not see the hard Windows disk 7, if the system is started from the first hard drive. It is also likely that the disk will be visible, but Explorer will freeze when switching to it or constant errors will appear. Naturally, the solution would be to bring the disks to common denominator or remove bootable Windows from one disk at all.
The problem is a faulty hard drive
Try using Victoria or any other program to check the disk for bad sectors. If there are any, or even more so there are a lot of them, then most likely you will have to replace the HDD soon.
If none of the solution options help, then most likely the disk is simply faulty. You won’t be able to do anything here yourself; you will have to either send it in for repairs or buy a new one. Of course, before you move on to radical measures like purchasing an HDD, you need to make sure that yours is faulty.
If you still have questions on the topic “Why doesn’t the computer see the hard drive? What should I do?”, then you can ask them in the comments.
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If you are using an operating room Windows system, then you probably had to install a second hard drive on your computer. And often in this situation, after you open my computer, you do not see the second hard drive. What if it was just working on another computer, but after connecting it here it’s simply not visible in Explorer. But don't panic right away. This is because it still needs to be configured.
Just in this article I will tell you what to do: the computer does not see the second hard drive, or, to be more precise, when the system does not see the second hard drive. This can be done using the built-in tools of your operating system. In principle, there is nothing complicated, be careful and have a little patience. Let's consider several options, for example, if you bought a second new hard drive or if you connected a previously used hard drive.
After these steps, your new local drive will be displayed in Explorer. If it doesn't help, see the next method.
The computer does not recognize the new hard drive
When connecting a second or new hard drive, it is sometimes necessary to configure the hard drive.
- Go to the disk management program by clicking on My computer right-click and select Management => Disk Management.
- When we hover over it, we find the disk on which it says Not initialized right-click on it and select Initialize.
- In the window Initializing the disk select the partition type, for the latest operating systems GUID Partition Table is suitable, but Master Boot Record, which is suitable for earlier Windows versions, will also work. That's why I choose Master Boot Record.
- After initialization is complete, next to your disk it will be written Not distributed so press RMB and select the item Create a simple volume.
- In the wizard that opens to create simple volumes, click Further indicate right size volumes and Further.
- In the next step you need Assign a drive letter, any free one.
- Next we select Format this volume as follows and indicate the type File system NTFS.
8. Click next and wait for the process to complete. After completion, we check the operation of the disk.
And you can also watch the video instructions on what to do if the computer does not see the second hard drive:
In principle, that's all. In this article, we figured out what we should do if the system does not see the hard drive. Well, or the hard drive is not displayed in Explorer. As always, this can also be done using the command line or Windows PowerShell. But I didn’t show this method, since it would be enough to use the disk management utility.
I hope the article was useful to you and helped you understand why the hard drive is not displayed in Explorer. And also write how you solved this problem and whether one of the methods helped you. Don't forget to share the article on in social networks and subscribe to updates.
Surely, many have encountered a situation where Windows 7 does not see the hard drive. Most people immediately think that the part has burned out or something like that. But, as practice shows, this is not always the case.
There are many reasons when the OS may not see the hard drive. Let's look at the most basic of them.
Operating system problems
Almost always, when Windows 7 does not see the second hard drive, the problem lies in the OS itself. Typically, to connect a new device, the system must detect and configure it. Almost always, new hard drives are connected and configured automatically. But, in rare cases, this does not work out.
It's not a problem. All this can be customized.
Go to the “Start” menu - “Administration” - “Computer Management”.
After this, the Computer Management program will open to you.
Here you will need to click on the “disk management” item on the left.
Look at the list of devices. If Windows 7 does not see the hard drive, then it is possible that these local partitions do not have letters specified. As you can see, the screenshot indicates that there are two sections: “C” and “D”.
If this does not happen, then right-click on this local section.
Click on "Change drive letter or drive path."
Here you can configure and change the path to your local disk the way you want.
Hard drive is not partitioned
It is also possible that your hard drive is new and is not partitioned. That is, it is not formatted and not divided.
Do all this and then you will be able to use this device.
Problems with contacts
Often, the problem is precisely in the contacts that connect devices inside the system unit. Each hard drive is connected by two “wires”. One is needed to power the device, and the second is needed to transmit data to motherboard.
This is what SATA cables look like.
They are needed to transfer data from the hard drive to the motherboard. But, in addition to data transfer, a power cable is also connected to the device.
In the Foto:
On the left is the power cable;
On the right is the SATA cable;
If the hard drive is turned upside down, it will look like this.
Older hard drive models use ATA connectors. Surely many have seen them.
The essence of this method is that you will need to pull out all the contacts and plug them in again. Perhaps there may be dust there. Therefore, take them out and blow them out. And then put them in their place.
Turn on your computer and watch. If this is the problem, then the hard drive will be detected by the system and will work as before.
Windows 7 does not see external hard drive
There are also situations when the OS does not see external hard drives. In such cases, you need to try to reconnect the device. It is also recommended to connect the hard drive to different connectors, and not just to the same one.
If all else fails, check the integrity of the USB cable and USB connector. It is possible that some of these are damaged and therefore data or power is not being transferred.
Hard drive burned out
In the worst case scenario, when all options have been tried, you should think that the hard drive may have failed. Maybe it burned out. Take it apart. Remove the board. Maybe something burned there. In this case, it must be taken for repair.
Good afternoon.
External hard disks(HDDs) are becoming more popular day by day, sometimes it seems that very soon they will be more popular than flash drives. And it’s not surprising, because modern models are some kind of box, the size of cellular telephone and contain 1-2 TB of information!
Many users are faced with the fact that the computer does not see the external hard drive. Most often, this happens immediately after purchasing a new device. Let's try to figure out in order what's going on here...
If the new external HDD is not visible
Here, new means the disk that you connected to your computer (laptop) for the first time.
1) First what are you doing - go to computer control .
To do this, go to control Panel , then in system and security settings -> administration -> computer control . See screenshots below.
2) Please note to the column on the left. It has a menu - disk management . Let's move on.
All drives (including external ones) connected to the system should be displayed in front of you. Very often, the computer does not see the connected external hard drive due to the incorrect drive letter assignment. That's what you need to change!
To do this, click on external drive right click and select " change drive letter... ". Next, assign the one that is not yet in your OS.
3) If the disk is new, and you connected it to your computer for the first time - it may not be formatted! Therefore, it will not appear in “my computer”.
If this is the case, then you will not be able to change the letter (you simply will not have such a menu). You just need to right click on the external drive and select " create a simple volume... «.
Attention! During this process, all data on the disk (HDD) will be deleted! Be careful.
4) Lack of drivers... (Update from 04/05/2015)
If the external hard drive is new and you don’t see it in “my computer” or “ disk management“, and it works on other devices (for example, a TV or another laptop sees and detects it) - then 99% of the problems are related to the Windows OS and drivers.
Despite the fact that modern Windows 7, 8 operating systems are quite “smart” and when a new device is detected, they automatically search for a driver for it - this does not always happen... The fact is that the Windows 7, 8 OS versions (including all kinds of assemblies from " there are a huge number of craftsmen), and various mistakes have not been canceled. Therefore, I don’t recommend excluding this option right away...
1. Check the USB port to see if it is working. For example, connect a phone or camera, even just a regular flash drive. If the device works, then the USB port has nothing to do with it...
2. Go to Device Manager (In Windows 7/8: Control Panel/System and Security/Device Manager) and look at two tabs: Other devices And disk devices.
Windows 7: Device Manager reports that there are no drivers for the “My Passport ULTRA WD” disk in the system.
The screenshot above shows that Windows does not have drivers for an external hard drive, so the computer does not see it. Typically, Windows 7, 8, when you connect a new device, automatically installs a driver for it. If this does not happen for you, you have three options:
a) Click the “Update hardware configuration” command in the device manager. This is usually followed by automatic installation drivers.
b) Search for drivers using special. programs: ;
c) Reinstall Windows (to install, select a “clean” licensed system, without any assemblies).
Windows 7 - Device Manager: drivers for the external HDD Samsung M3 Portable are installed correctly.
If you can't see your old external hard drive
Old here refers to a hard drive that previously worked on your computer and then stopped working.
1. First, go to the disk management menu (see above) and change the drive letter. This is definitely worth doing if you have created new partitions on your hard drive.
2. Secondly, check the external HDD for viruses. Many viruses disable the ability to see disks or block them ().
3. Go to Device Manager and see if the devices are detected correctly. There should be no yellow exclamation marks (or red ones) that indicate errors. It is also recommended to reinstall the drivers for the USB controller.
4. Sometimes reinstalling Windows OS helps. Anyway, first, check the functionality of the hard drive on another computer/laptop/netbook, and then try reinstalling.
It’s also useful to try cleaning your computer from unnecessary junk files and optimizing the registry and programs (here’s an article with all the utilities: use a couple...).
5. Try connecting the external HDD to a different USB port. It happened that for unknown reasons, after connecting to another port, the disk worked perfectly as if nothing had happened. I noticed this several times on Acer laptops.
6. Check the cords.
One time the external hard drive didn't work because the cord was damaged. I didn’t notice it from the very beginning and spent 5-10 minutes looking for the cause...
