I have several WD external drives… One of them was purchased in July - but I haven’t taken it out until now to use. I went to plug it in to my computer and noticed their is no power switch - not a big deal. I plugged it in, waited a moment, and nothing popped up. When I go to my computer - I can see everything but this drive. I thought maybe I had too much plugged in (an SD card, WD passport, and an older WD MyBook). So I unplugged my older MyBook - and still nothing.
I was able to run a test (WD Data LifeGuard Diagnostics - DLGDIAG for Windows) and see the drive under Physical Drive, but it did not appear under Logical Drive. - It gives me the Model Number, Serial Number, and says the SMART Status is PASS and the Test Result is PASS. The Firmware Number is 1050 - and it has a capacity of 3000.56 GB.
I am unsure at this point what to do. How can I access and use this hard drive without it showing up on my computer? Is there some sort of update that I may need? And if so, how does this hard drive get it - if it won’t connect?
Make sure the drive is plugged in directly into a wall outlet. Avoid any extension cords, surge protectors and or power strips.
If the issue remains then go to disk management to verify if the drive is seen. If you see it in disk management then I recommend you try to format it.
I have a similar problem with a 1tb WD Book. It is on and running and was working and half full. Now it just sits there running but unable to be switched off or communicated with. Checking it out the system declares it is working properly. But you can’t communicate with it. A point Hamlet seems to have missed with Lovebug…
john4771 - Thanks - I felt that the previous answer did not address my issue. I should be able to have any device connected to a surge protector - without limiting it (and it was powered on).
I unplugged my original 3 TB drive (MyBook 1170) before I went to work - nothing happened immediately, but I guess at some point during the day, it read the new 3 TB drive (MyBook 1230). So when I got home, I was able to see everything on the 1230 - nothing but the files that came with the drive.
I played around a bit, plugging both in, unplugging, etc. It seems that eventually, if I unplug one the other will show up - but I don’t know how long that is (I couldn’t sit around for more than 5 minutes waiting). So, if I want to use 1170, and they are both plugged in, I have to unplug them both, and plug 1170 back in. Same with 1230. I will check an older computer (my current computer is roughly 10 months old - 16 MB RAM, Intel Core i7…). Not sure if it an issue with my current computer or the MyBooks. Oh - and the passport will stay connected with either of them. And unplugging that does not affect the other two (by allowing them to both be on my computer at the same time). One last thing, WD Quick View shows both MyBooks in the task bar - but it will not show the percentage used of the drive that it can’t access, and obviously does not have a drive (G: ). Again, reads and recognizes both, but not the important information for the one that was plugged in 2nd that it is not able to access
If anyone else has suggestions, please let me know.
My problem is that I dont get how the system can access the drive, carry out various routines that require in & out communication, yet still declare the unit to be working properly. But in reality and despite running, it is deaf dumb and blind to me. Fails to respond to the on/off/reset button and runs non stop until power supply is unplugged. It will continue like this even if the system is shut down. Which leads me to belive that there is a malfunction in the control area, if so, how can this be bypased to enable recovery of data to a more stable or new unit?
It also never shows in device manager as “My Book” only as Wdc WD10…USB Device. Unlike my other unit which does show as My Book.
