External hard drive not showing in windows 10

External hard drives have become an essential part of digital life. Whether you’re backing up crucial data, transferring files between systems, or expanding your storage, they offer flexibility and convenience. However, sometimes, Windows 10 fails to detect or display an external hard drive. This problem can cause anxiety, especially if the drive contains important documents, photos, or work files.

What Does “Not Showing” Mean?

When we say an external hard drive is “not showing,” it could mean different things depending on the user’s perspective and where the failure occurs. Here are a few possibilities:

The drive does not show up in File Explorer

The drive is not visible in Disk Management

The drive is not listed in Device Manager

The drive is completely unresponsive (no lights, no sound)

Each scenario has different root causes and solutions. We’ll address all of them in this guide.

Common Causes Why an External Hard Drive Doesn’t Show Up

Before we dive into solutions, let’s understand the typical reasons why an external hard drive might not appear in Windows 10:

Faulty or incompatible USB cable or port

Power supply issues

File system corruption

Drive not initialized or unallocated

Missing or outdated drivers

Drive letter conflict

Hidden or disabled device in Windows

Incompatible file system (e.g., from Mac)

Virus or malware interference

Hardware failure (logical or physical)

Let’s address these causes with detailed, step-by-step solutions.

Preliminary Checks: Start Here

Step 1: Try Another USB Port or Computer

Sometimes, the issue is with the USB port rather than the drive.

Plug the drive into another USB port, preferably one on the back panel of a desktop PC.

Try the external drive on a different computer to determine if the problem lies with the drive or the original computer.

Use a different USB cable if you suspect the current one may be faulty.

Step 2: Listen and Observe

Pay attention to:

Spinning or beeping sounds – indicates the drive is receiving power

LED lights blinking – signifies activity

Total silence – might mean power issues or a dead drive

If there’s no power at all, the problem could be the cable, port, or power adapter (especially with larger desktop external drives).

Solution 1: Check Disk Management

If the external drive doesn’t appear in File Explorer, it might still be detected by the system but not initialized or assigned a letter.

How to Open Disk Management:

Press Windows + X

Select Disk Management

Look for a disk labeled as:

Unallocated

Not Initialized

RAW

What To Do Based on Status:

A. Unallocated:

Right-click on the unallocated space

Select New Simple Volume

Follow the wizard to assign a letter and format it (choose NTFS or exFAT)

Note: This will erase all data on the drive.

B. Not Initialized:

Right-click the drive

Choose Initialize Disk

Select MBR or GPT depending on your system configuration

C. RAW File System:

The drive might be corrupted.

Try to recover data using software like Recuva or EaseUS before formatting.

Solution 2: Assign a Drive Letter

If a drive is recognized but not visible in File Explorer, it may be missing a drive letter.

Assign a Letter:

Open Disk Management

Right-click the drive > Change Drive Letter and Paths

Click Add or Change

Choose a new, unused letter and click OK

This should make the drive visible in File Explorer.

Solution 3: Update or Reinstall Drivers

Outdated or corrupted drivers can cause Windows 10 to not recognize the external drive.

Steps to Update Drivers:

Right-click Start, select Device Manager

Expand Disk drives

Find your external drive (if it’s listed)

Right-click > Update driver

Choose Search automatically for updated driver software

If That Doesn’t Work:

Right-click > Uninstall device

Restart your PC. Windows will reinstall the driver automatically.

You may also want to update USB controller drivers under Universal Serial Bus controllers in Device Manager.

Solution 4: Enable the Drive in Device Manager

Sometimes a device may be disabled inadvertently.

Enable the Drive:

Open Device Manager

Locate the external drive under Disk drives

Right-click > Enable device

Solution 5: Disable USB Selective Suspend

This Windows power-saving feature can prevent external drives from staying connected.

Disable USB Suspend:

Go to Control Panel > Power Options

Click Change plan settings

Click Change advanced power settings

Expand USB settings > USB selective suspend setting

Set it to Disabled

Click Apply, then OK

Solution 6: Check for Hidden Devices

Sometimes, devices are hidden by default and don’t show up in the list.

Reveal Hidden Devices:

Open Device Manager

Click View > Show hidden devices

Expand Disk drives and Universal Serial Bus controllers

Look for grayed-out entries. Right-click > Uninstall, then reconnect your drive

Solution 7: Use DiskPart to Clean and Format

DiskPart is a powerful command-line tool that can clean and reformat drives if needed.

Warning: This will erase everything on the drive.

Steps:

Press Windows + R, type cmd, then press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to run as administrator

Type diskpart and hit Enter

Type list disk and press Enter

Identify the external drive (based on size), then type select disk X (replace X with correct number)

Type clean and press Enter

Then type:

pgsql

CopyEdit

create partition primary format fs=ntfs quick assign exit

The drive should now appear in File Explorer.

Solution 8: Check BIOS/UEFI Settings

In rare cases, BIOS may have settings that prevent the OS from detecting external drives.

Access BIOS:

Restart your PC

Press the appropriate key (DEL, F2. or ESC) to enter BIOS

Look for USB Configuration or Storage Configuration

Ensure USB ports are enabled

Solution 9: Run Hardware and Devices Troubleshooter

This built-in tool can help detect and resolve hardware conflicts.

Run It:

Press Windows + I to open Settings

Go to Update & Security > Troubleshoot

Click Additional troubleshooters

Select Hardware and Devices

Run the troubleshooter and follow prompts

Solution 10: Scan for Malware

Certain malware or ransomware can block USB devices from appearing.

Steps:

Run a full scan using Windows Defender

Optionally, use a second-opinion scanner like Malwarebytes