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External drive not recognized

juvaxe Posted messages 23 Status Member -  
juvaxe Posted messages 23 Status Member -

Hello

I have a PC, Windows 10, that was seriously lagging, especially at startup.

I chose to reinstall Windows: to do this, I created a boot USB drive using the "Media Creator Tool."

I booted from the USB drive while selecting the option that allows me to keep my files.

While the operation was in progress, my computer shut down. When trying to start it up again, the BIOS informed me that the shutdown was done to prevent overheating!

Not wanting to lose everything (I do however have complete backups of my personal data), I bought a new drive (I took the opportunity to switch to a 250 GB SSD) on which I was able to reinstall Windows 10 from the boot USB drive.

I now want to reuse the drive I removed, I put it in a "hard drive enclosure" to make it an external drive (it is 1 Terabyte).

When I connect this enclosure to a USB port, the drive is not recognized. However, the enclosure works because another hard drive is properly recognized by Windows.

Does anyone have a lead on what to look for?

Thank you in advance for your replies.

Best regards

7 answers

  1.
    MPMP10 Posted messages 47333 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   18 957
     

    Hello,

    Generally, if the disk is no longer recognized (and inaccessible for that matter…), the only option is to hand it over to a company specialized in data recovery, but this is very expensive; however, these companies always offer free quotes beforehand.

    https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-e&q=entreprise+sp%C3%A9cialis%C3%A9e+dans+la+r%C3%A9cup%C3%A9ration+des+donn%C3%A9es

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  2. juvaxe Posted messages 23 Status Member
     

    Thank you for the response

    I have sufficiently complete backups to restore a satisfactory situation without looking any further.

    My topic is how to avoid throwing this disk away and whether it would be possible to reset it without possibly losing the data. But if I have to erase everything, it’s not a very important issue.

    If I want to access it, it's only to check if I haven't forgotten something. Since the incident happened several months ago, I don't miss anything!

    Best regards

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    1. MPMP10 Posted messages 47333 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   18 957
        
       If I want to access it

      Is it accessible or not?

      If it is a hardware failure, this necessarily requires a repair done in a clean room.

      https://www.data-labcenter.fr/glossaire/salle-blanche/

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    2. MPMP10 Posted messages 47333 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   18 957
       

      In my opinion, the wisest financial decision, if the hard drive is no longer accessible and is faulty, would be, given that you have backups of your data on another medium, to dispose of it.

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  3. cristali Posted messages 9483 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   1 578
     

    Hello, you need to see if it is recognized in Disk Management or in Windows Explorer.

    Maybe it just needs a drive letter.

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    1. MPMP10 Posted messages 47333 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   18 957
       

      Hello,

      <<maybe he simply lacks a letter.>>

       While the operation was in progress, my computer stopped. When trying to restart, the BIOS informed me that the shutdown had been done to prevent a risk of overheating!
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  4. juvaxe Posted messages 23 Status Member
     

    Thank you for all your responses.

    Since a system installation was in progress, the computer likely powered off on its own during a critical operation: the state of the disk should not come as a surprise in itself.

    With every Windows update, we are always told not to turn off the computer, and there’s surely a good reason for that!

    Clearly, I am heading towards a trip to the dump.

    Best regards

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    1. MPMP10 Posted messages 47333 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   18 957
       

      OK and thank you for the feedback, and best of luck moving forward.

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  6. PerroquetTranquille54 Posted messages 29 Status Member
     

    Hello!

    Open Disk Management (Win + X): if the drive appears, assign a letter, initialize it (if necessary), or check if it is in RAW. Try another cable, USB port, or PC. If it still doesn't show up, test Stellar Data Recovery to recover the data.

    I hope this helps you.

    Thank you

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  7. juvaxe Posted messages 23 Status Member
     

    Hello

    Thank you for the response

    Data recovery is not vital; I believe I had what I needed in my backups.

    I would just like to retrieve this drive so I can continue to use it as an external drive; I would also like to understand.

    When I connect it via a USB adapter and go to disk management, it appears as "disk 1", but without a letter. If I right-click on it, none of the options presented are available (the only possible click is for "help")

    Sincerely

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    2. cristali Posted messages 9483 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   1 578
       

      Are you sure you're right-clicking in the right place?

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  8. juvaxe Posted messages 23 Status Member
     

    Hello

    Thank you for the response

    I just made another attempt to verify properly.

    In disk management:

    - When I right-click on disk 0 (letter C) about ten options appear, some in black accessible by click (for example, change letter), others in light gray and therefore not clickable

    - When I right-click below on disk 1 (no letter) all the options appear in light gray except for the last one ("help")

    Best regards

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