Why is my external hard drive not showing up on my computer?
Unrecognized external drives can result from port issues, driver problems, or file system errors.
If your external hard drive isn’t showing up, it could be due to port or driver issues, or possibly file system errors. Begin by testing it on a different USB port or even another computer to see if the problem is with the port. Check your computer’s Disk Management (Windows) or Disk Utility (Mac) to see if the drive appears; if so, it might need to be assigned a drive letter. Corrupted drivers can prevent the system from recognizing external drives; reinstalling or updating the USB drivers can help. Additionally, a corrupted file system on the drive itself can prevent it from appearing. Running a repair tool like 'chkdsk' on Windows or First Aid on Mac can help identify and correct file system errors. Persistent issues might mean the drive needs formatting, though this would erase data, so data recovery software may be necessary before doing so.
