External hard drive is not shown - what to do?

In this practical tip, we will show you what to do if your external hard drive is not displayed.

External USB hard drive is not shown - you can do that

The drive letter may not have been mapped correctly. You have to change this afterwards:

1. Open the Windows Start menu and enter "Computer Management" in the search field. Confirm with Enter. You may be asked to confirm Windows User Account Control.
2. Now click on "Disk management" in the left menu under "Data storage". Here you have a list of all data carriers connected to the PC.
3. Find the external hard drive and right click on the name.
4. Select "Change drive letter and paths" from the context menu.
5. To add a drive letter to the external hard drive, click on "Add" and then select a new letter.

Other causes of incorrect detection of the external hard drive

The fact that your hard drive does not have to be recognized is not necessarily due to the software. The hard disk hardware could also play a role:

• The hard drive may not be connected properly or the USB port may be defective. Therefore, test the hard drive on several USB ports on your computer.
• A defective hard drive can also be the problem. Therefore, make sure that the existing lamp lights up. Also make sure that you hear the hard drive working.

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The instructions refer to Windows 7. The problem can be solved similarly on other Microsoft operating systems. In another article we will show you the 5 best USB gadgets. If you need individual help to solve your problem, please contact the experts in the CHIP forum.