WD portable drive has stopped working

WD External Drives External Drives for Mac
1

My WD portable drive has stopped working because every time I try to open a folder or view a file it takes a long time. I have run the check disk utility on my mack book pro and it says ok. I would like to see how I can correct the slow operation of my WD disk

Thank you so much

2

Hi @diesan,

Common Causes of Slow External Drive Performance and Data Transfer Rates:Common Causes of Slow External Drive Performance and Data Transfer Rates

Please contact the WD Technical Support team for the best assistance and troubleshooting:
https://support-en.wd.com/app/ask

3

If your WD portable drive is experiencing slow operation, there are several steps you can take to try and resolve the issue:

  1. Check the USB connection: Ensure that the USB cable connecting your WD portable drive to your MacBook Pro is securely plugged in. Try using a different USB port or cable to rule out any issues with the connection.

  2. Restart your MacBook Pro: Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve temporary glitches or conflicts that may be affecting the performance of the WD drive.

  3. Update the WD drive firmware: Visit the official Western Digital website and check if there are any firmware updates available for your specific WD portable drive model.

  4. Verify power supply: If your WD portable drive relies on external power, make sure it is receiving adequate power supply.

  5. Check for conflicting applications: Certain background applications or processes on your MacBook Pro might be causing interference with the operation of the WD drive.

  6. Check for drive errors: Even if the macOS check disk utility reports the drive as “OK,” it may still have errors. Try running a more comprehensive disk diagnostic tool to scan for any potential errors or bad sectors on the WD portable drive.

  7. Repair disk permissions: In macOS, you can use the Disk Utility application to repair disk permissions. Launch Disk Utility, select your WD portable drive, and click on the “First Aid” tab. Then click on “Repair Disk Permissions” to check and fix any permission issues that might be affecting the drive’s performance.

  8. Backup and reformat: If none of the above steps resolve the issue, it’s possible that the file system on your WD drive is corrupted. Before proceeding with this step, ensure that you have a backup of your important data. Reformatting the drive will erase all data on it.

Further, if there is any data loss situation, then try recovering lost or deleted data using a trustworthy data recovery software such as Stellar Data Recovery for Mac, which will help you recover data from any storage device.

If none of the above steps help, it’s possible that there might be a hardware issue with the WD drive itself. In that case, you may need to contact Western Digital’s customer support or consider getting the drive repaired or replaced if it’s still under warranty.

4

If your WD portable drive is experiencing slow performance or taking a long time to open folders or view files, there are a few troubleshooting steps you can try to resolve the issue:

  1. Ensure Sufficient Power: Make sure your WD portable drive is receiving adequate power. Connect it directly to your Macbook Pro without using a USB hub or extension cable. If your drive has a separate power supply, ensure it is connected and functioning properly.

  2. USB Connection: Verify that the USB cable you’re using is in good condition and properly connected to both your WD drive and your Macbook Pro. Try using a different USB port on your Macbook Pro to rule out any issues with the USB port.

  3. Update WD Drive Firmware: Visit the official WD support website and check if there are any firmware updates available for your specific WD portable drive model. If updates are available, follow the instructions provided to update the firmware.

  4. Disk Utility First Aid: Although you mentioned running a disk check utility, it’s worth trying macOS’s built-in Disk Utility tool to verify and repair the WD drive. Follow these steps:

    • Connect your WD portable drive to your Macbook Pro.
    • Open “Finder” and navigate to “Applications” > “Utilities” > “Disk Utility.”
    • In Disk Utility, you should see your WD drive listed on the left-hand side. Select it.
    • Click on the “First Aid” button at the top.
    • Wait for Disk Utility to complete the verification and repair process. If any issues are found and repaired, check if the drive’s performance improves.

  5. Data Backup and Reformat: If none of the above steps resolve the issue, it’s possible that your drive’s file system has become corrupted. In such cases, it may be necessary to back up your data from the WD drive and reformat it. Follow these steps:

    • Connect your WD portable drive to your Macbook Pro.
    • Copy any important files or data from the drive to a different location on your Macbook Pro or an external storage device.
    • Open Disk Utility (found in “Applications” > “Utilities”).
    • Select your WD drive in Disk Utility.
    • Click on the “Erase” tab.
    • Choose an appropriate format (such as exFAT or macOS Extended Journaled) and provide a name for your drive.
    • Click on the “Erase” button to reformat the drive.
    • After the reformatting is complete, you can copy your data back to the WD drive and check if the performance has improved.

If the issue persists even after trying these steps, it could indicate a hardware problem with your WD portable drive. In such cases, it might be necessary to contact WD customer support for further assistance or consider professional data recovery services if your data is not backed up.

6

I’m sorry to hear that you’re experiencing issues with your WD portable drive. Slow performance can indeed be frustrating, but let’s see if we can troubleshoot the problem.

Firstly, it’s good to know that you have already run the check disk utility on your MacBook Pro, and it didn’t detect any integrity issues with the drive. This rules out any potential file system errors or corruption.

Here are a few steps you can take to further investigate and potentially resolve the performance issue:

  1. Test the drive on a different computer: Connect the WD portable drive to another computer, preferably a different model or operating system, to see if the slow performance issue persists. This step will help determine if the problem is specific to your MacBook Pro or if it’s a drive-related issue.

  2. Update WD portable drive firmware and software: Visit the official WD website and check if there are any available firmware or software updates for your specific drive model. Keeping the drive’s firmware and software up to date can sometimes improve performance and address known issues.

  3. Check for conflicting software or processes: It’s possible that certain background processes or conflicting software on your MacBook Pro are causing the slow performance. Try closing unnecessary applications or running a scan for malware or potentially unwanted programs that might be affecting the drive’s performance.

  4. Defragment or optimize the drive (if applicable): If your WD portable drive is formatted as NTFS, you might consider defragmenting the drive using a suitable tool like Windows’ built-in defragmentation utility. However, please note that defragmentation is generally not necessary for drives using modern file systems like APFS (used by macOS) or exFAT.

If none of the above steps resolve the issue, it might be worth contacting WD Support directly for further assistance. They can provide specific guidance tailored to your WD portable drive model and help troubleshoot the performance problem more comprehensively.

I hope these suggestions help you improve the performance of your WD portable drive. If you have any more questions or need further assistance, feel free to ask!