How to unlock and format My Passport Essential?

I used My Passport Essential for several years for watching movie on media player and it worked well before.

I never install any driver and setup any password protection for it.

Yesterday, I tried to plugged it into my media player again and it cannot recognize.

I tried it several times and the result was the same, so that I plugged it into computer and checked what happen.

The computer prompted me that the HDD was locked since I entered a wrong password 5 or more times.

I give up to recover the data inside and would like to format it and disable the smartware.

However, the computer prompted the HDD was locked even I access the virtual CD.

What can I do to:-

  1. format the HDD

  2. disable the smartware

Many thanks.

Hi dude, try a firmware update, that will force a drive erase when you try to put the password, but I’d replace it if I were you.

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Thanks first.

But what is the meaning of “replace it”?

You mean buy and use another external HDD?

The drive should be under warranty with WD, so they should be able to change it.

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I see.

Thanks first~