WD Smartware does not see or display My Book Drive-(network connected)

WD Legacy Products My Book Live
1

I am using Win 10—Windows Explorer does see the drive. I can also access it using my browser—I use WD Smartware to backup my computer; somehow WD backup engine seems to be working in the background, but Smartware does not see it.

2

Did you install the latest version of WD SmartWare from WD’s site?

3

Yes I downloaded the latest software, and I am currently using WD smartware pro

4

PS

All WD smartware displays are my dropbox and any USB drive I plug into my PC

5

There are reports of various solutions, all non-WD related. Google it and see if one works for you.

6

Is there a Unix partition in My Book Live drive, besides the windows partition?
I ask because some of the folder security settings in my window folders show, root (unix user\root) and share (unix group\share) in addition to Everyone and Nobody??? Where does WD shareware store the backup files?? Is there any way to view the drive map from the dashboard? How can I manually restore any hidden WD smartware backup files if I deleted the WD smartware program and then reinstalled it?

7

NAS 101: :slight_smile:

  • Just about all NAS devices, regardless of brand, are some flavor or Linux. So if you take out the hard drive, you have a Linux drive. It has its own OS non-dependent on the client at all.
  • There are no Windows partitions at all, see previous comment.

For the WD Smartware, someone else will have to answer those, as I do not use any WD software at all. But you can do evertythingl using the OS build-in tools for backup, viewing and management.

  • internet browser for dashboard access: http://my-devce-ip
  • Windows File Explorer for accessing or map the share: \\my-devce-ip\
  • OS x Finder for accessing the share: Finder > Go > Connect to Server > smb://my-device-ip

You can also replace “my-device-ip” with your device’s name if you wish

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You say, “There are no Windows partitions at all, see above”----where is “above”?

Question—So if I look at the NAS using Windows File Explorer, I should be able to see the entire contents of the NAS drive?

9

Above as in previous comment… :grinning:

You will see all the contents of the network shares.
If you want to see all the contents of the device’s OS, you will need to enable SSH and use either Putty (CLI) or WinSCP (GUI)

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10

Duh for me—I had not read the prior comment—thanks for the great info.

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A bit out of my league—how do I enable SSH? also which is easier to use? CLI or GUI

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I finally received an answer from AVAST support and based on their instructions, I was able to troubleshoot and identify the problem—it seems my problem with the WD software is their firewall shield. Their Internet Security program has a firewall, that takes over for the Windows firewall and disables and controls it. I still need to get guidance on how to allow an exception for WD shareware, but at least I now know what the problem is. I am wondering whether I should disable their firewall and use Windows firewall.