HELP! I plugged in My Passport external hard drive into PC and now it is asking me to format and I don’t DON’T want to loose all my pictures saved! How can I get them back?
Thanks Kristen
Hello, have you tried connecting the drive to a different USB port and using a different USB cable?
First of all, I hope you answered NO.
Secondly, had you been using drive on a Mac before you plugged it into a PC? If so, the PC can’t read it, and is why it asked to reformat it (so it can be used on PC.) Do NOT plug a Mac-formatted drive into a (or vice versa)! For a drive to work on both a PC and a Mac the drive must be formatted in what is called exFAT, and yours obviously is not.
Hi Mike, I have not plugged into a MAC, just replugged it into my PC and now i am being asked to format it and I can’t access any of my pictures on the My Passport
Idea #2 for you:
Are you sure it is saying it needs to formatted, but instead it is saying it needs to be scanned? If so, these are not the same thing. If it is saying the drive needs to be scanned it means the drive can’t be read properly and needs for Windows to fix it.
So, If message says drive needs to be scanned then answer yes, and scan it.
But if it really says it needs to be formatted, answer NO.
And, if you answer no, then turn your PC completely off and when the noise stops when completely off, remove the drive for 10-15 seconds and then re-attach drive and turn PC back on. Sometimes gadgets just need to be turned off and then back on to clear problems. Let’s hope so in this case. Let me know the results, please.
