8 Ways to Overcome Unreadable External Hard Drive
Annoyed that the external hard drive can’t be read on your Laptop or Computer? Do not rush to slam it first, first check the USB cable and others. You can read more about how to solve it below.
Unlike flash drives which only have a capacity in the megabyte range, a larger hard drive capacity makes many people make it the main storage for important files. Unreadable hard disk is often an annoying moment that many people hate. So, here are some tips for overcoming an unreadable hard drive.
Here are 8 Ways to Overcome an Unreadable Hard Drive
Check the Cable and USB Port Used
The first easiest way to solve an unreadable external hard drive is replace USB cable that you use. It could be that the problem does not lie with your hard drive or laptop, but with the USB cable that is not working properly.
If your USB cable turns out fine, but the hard drive is still unreadable, try moving the USB cable to another port on the laptop.
Usually every laptop has a USB port of at least three points. You can try everything to make sure the problem is on the hard drive or laptop you are using.
Replace Hard Drive Case
If you have tried the steps above, but the external hard drive is not legible, you can try replacing the hard drive case with a new one. One of the reasons the hard drive is unreadable may be because the casing does not support the hard drive connection properly.
The hard drive case may be loose or have problems making it unreadable. You can get a new hard drive case through a trusted marketplace.
Also make sure you have installed the casing correctly before reconnecting the hard drive to the laptop.
Check Hard Drive Condition from Windows
After the technical matters above still have no effect on the external hard drive being unreadable, you can check the condition of the hard drive first through the Windows default application.
Previously make sure there are no other windows or programs running. Right click on Drive C then select properties and click tab tools.
After logging in, click the icon check to scan the hard disk. Windows will check whether there is a virus on the hard drive or something.
Try Reinstalling Driver
When the external hard drive is unreadable, you can try reinstalling the drivers on your laptop or PC.
This method is quite easy, just click the menu startthen select computer. Right click on the menu then select properties. After that select device manager and search USB Attached Mass Storage Device then right click to select updates.
Continue the process by clicking the browse button. Follow the whole process until the installation is complete.
After that, please restart your laptop so that the driver installation runs properly. If all the steps above have been completed, you can reconnect the hard drive with a USB cable.
Change Harddisk Letter Name
Usually, a hard drive that is already connected to a computer will appear with a letter name such as D, E or F.
However, there are some cases where the hard drive does not have a letter so it cannot be read. How to solve an unreadable external hard drive with this condition is not complicated.
First, open disk management. Right-click on the hard disk that does not have a letter. Then select change driver letter and path. After that you can choose to add a name or rename the hard drive letter.
Follow the next steps until the hard drive has a new letter name. After this process is complete, disconnect the USB hard drive from the laptop and then restart it. You will be able to use the hard drive again.
Recheck Hard Drive with CMD
do not rush to format if the external hard drive is not readable. There are other ways that you can try first instead of giving up important files stored there. You can use the CMD feature on windows to fix problems that occur on the hard drive.
Type Windows Power Shell in the search field under the start menu, then enter the code chkdsk /f / r/ cf: in the CMD field that appears then press enter.
Please wait until the scanning process is complete. This process may take a while depending on the size of the hard drive. After that, the hard drive will be read as usual.
Format Hard Disk with Disk Management Features
This one method you will probably do with a heavy heart. But, well, if the external hard drive is not read at all even if it’s been connected to another laptop, this method can help you get your hard drive back in use.
Type disk in the search field on the start menu. Select create and format hard disk partition to format.
You don’t have to format it, you can try cleaning and scanning to double-check whether there is a virus or malware that makes your hard drive unreadable. If it still doesn’t work, you can choose a format option.
Perform Low Level Format with HDDGuru Software
Another way to format an unreadable external hard drive so that it can be used is to use the HDDGuru software. Install the software first, then select an external hard drive. Click the continue icon to start the formatting process. You can wait until the formatting process is complete.
The low-level format process with this software will clean all data on the external hard drive. Same with other format processes.
Even so, the format method with this software is much more accurate and can remove malware or viruses that were on the previous hard drive. You can use the hard drive again as usual if you have done this low level format.
Read also : 10 Best External Hard Drives
Those are some ways that you can apply to overcome an unreadable external hard drive. You can check technical things first, such as the position of the USB port, the cable used or the hard drive casing that may be loose.
After that, check through the default Windows application or CMD. You can also reinstall the driver so that the hard drive can return to normal.
