Next, the freshly exFAT formatted (and renamed) WD drive plugged in & assigned as Extended Storage on the PS4 itself.
All appeared to have been carried out successfully, but when plugging in the WD back into the laptop (to begin transferring the original media files back onto it), the drive does not show up on File Explorer. Whilst the LED light is on, on the WD unit, & I can ‘safely remove’ the drive, there now appears to be no way to access the drive via ‘This PC’ or any other File Explorer route.
It IS possible to find it under [WIN+R] Disk Management, but it is not in any way accessible - and is only designated as “Disk 1” rather than the new name I gave it, as well as being termed “Unallocated” & the bar above is black rather than blue.
Using an external hard drive as “Extended Storage” (for game and software installation) on the PS4 will freshly format the drive in Sony’s propriety format. (wiping the exFAT file system) and is probably encrypted as well to prevent access to the game files.
Once formatted as Extended Storage it can not be used for anything else ie. Media Playback of video/photos/music on the PS4.
The drive will also be un-readable on a PC in Windows Explorer. (But, the drive will still appear under Windows “Disk Management” where it can be re-formatted/re-partitioned back to being compatible with your PC … wiping the Sony file system and your games along with it.)
USB storage devices formatted as extended storage are compatible only with a PS4™ system :
What you will need if you want Extended Storage and Media Storage on the PS4 is 2 External Hard Drives.
My PS4 Setup …
4TB WD Elements for Extended Storage
2TB WD Elements (formatted exFAT) for Media Playback on the PS4 and Compatible with a PC.
Note: Extended Storage hard drive MUST be connected directly to the PS4 Console … if you run out of USB Ports on the console for other devices then buy a Powered USB Hub and you can connect more devices.
