Solved: External Hard Drive (or USB Drive) Shows Up in Device Manager but Not Explorer

Struggling to get a drive properly recognized by Windows? I’m all too familiar with the battle to get a previously functioning drive back to a visible and accessible state. Unfortunately, storage devices of all kinds are prone to issues once in a while – even if you take extra good care of them.

Why This Happens and How to Approach It

According to my research and understanding, this problem can manifest in one of two ways. Either the drive appears in Device Manager but not File Explorer, or the drive appears as normal but Windows says it’s inaccessible. Typically, this issue stems from a logical issue; like a corrupted file system, missing drive letter, or compatibility problem. In some cases, the problem could originate from a physical issue like a damaged hardware component.

Some of the fixes I’ve included will address both types of issues, while others may only target one or the other. Since I’ve covered both, you can use the table below as a way to skip to each applicable solution.

I always recommend creating a backup of the drive where possible. I know that may sound contradictory considering the nature of the article, but there are some tools that can bypass the operating system (OS) and interface with the drive directly, like Clonezilla. As your data may be in a vulnerable state, implementing these fixes may be the tipping point for causing it to become lost or deleted. Furthermore, it gives you the option to scan the backup instead of the drive itself, which could otherwise put additional strain on the device, causing more problems.

How to Fix a Drive That Appears in Device Manager but Not Explorer

A USB or external hard drive that shows in Device Manager but not Explorer is actually being recognized by the computer, but something is getting in the way of it appearing as normal. Work your way through the steps below to diagnose the problem.

Option A: Check the Connection and Inspect the Drive

Before doing more extensive troubleshooting, always do a basic inspection of the storage device and any cables that connect it to your computer. Faulty cables can cause your drive to intermittently disconnect, prompting Windows to display a message like “USB device not recognized”. If you have replacements or spares, I’d recommend switching them out to see if it’s a hardware-related issue.

Option B: Initialize the Disk

An uninitialized disk will not appear in File Explorer because it doesn’t contain any partitions. Initializing a disk gives it a partition style. This defines how data will be organized and accessed on the drive. Windows gives you the choice of two partition styles: Master Boot Record (MBR) and GUID Partition Table (GPT). Initializing the disk is necessary to use it, as seen in this thread where a user needed to initialize their new Samsung 500 GB SSD.

Here’s how to initialize a disk using Disk Management:

1. Right-click Start and click Disk Management.
2. Right-click the uninitialized disk and click Initialize Disk.
3. Select a partition style and click OK.

Option C: Create a Partition Using Unallocated Space

Before data can be written to a drive, the drive needs to be formatted with a file system. Nowadays I’d say it’s pretty common for drives to be preformatted to support plug-and-play for consumers. However, this isn’t always the case, and sometimes a drive will be shipped with unallocated space. Unallocated space refers to space on the drive that isn’t managed by a file system.

Follow these instructions to create a partition using unallocated space:

1. Right-click Start and click Disk Management.
2. Right-click the unallocated space and click New Simple Volume.
3. Click Next.
4. Specify how large you want the volume to be and click Next.
5. Select a drive letter and click Next.
6. Choose a file system, specify a volume label, and ensure Perform a quick format is ticked. Click Next.
7. Click Finish.

Option D: Assign a Drive Letter

Windows automatically assigns a drive letter to storage devices that are connected to your computer. When a USB drive shows in Disk Management but not Explorer, it could be that a drive letter wasn’t assigned, or the existing one was removed. If so, the drive won’t appear in File Explorer, nor will you be able to access it, as seen in this thread of a Reddit user who’s moving from macOS to Windows.

If your drive is missing a drive letter, the fix is really easy. This is how to assign a drive letter using Disk Management so you can tell File Explorer where to find the USB on Windows:

1. Right-click Start and click Disk Management.
2. Right-click the volume without a drive letter and click Change Drive Letter and Paths.
3. Click Add.
4. Choose a drive letter and click OK.

Option E: Use TestDisk to Recover the Lost Partition

TestDisk is a free and open-source partition recovery tool that can locate your missing partition and write it back to the partition table. This method is pretty technical and you must be comfortable navigating a command-line interface (CLI), but this program can work wonders if the partition becomes lost due to logical damage like file system corruption.

Follow these guided steps to recover the lost partition with TestDisk:

1. Download and unpack TestDisk. Open testdisk_win.exe.
2. Press Enter to create a log file.
3. Select the drive and press Enter.
4. Select the partition table type and press Enter.
5. Press Enter to analyze the current partition structure.
6. Press Enter again to begin the Quick Search.
7. Select the lost partition and press Enter.
8. Choose the Write option and press Enter.
9. Press Y to confirm the action.

Option F: Recover Files Using Disk Drill

Data recovery software can read a drive that’s otherwise invisible or inaccessible, so long as it shows up in Device Manager and the correct capacity is shown. It can scan the drive for recoverable data (existing or deleted) and restore it to a safe location. This is useful if none of the previous methods have worked and you just want to recover your data and format the drive.

My preferred data recovery tool is Disk Drill because it’s easy to use and useful in a wide range of situations, including this one. If you’ve lost your partition, there’s a chance it will find it in its scan, along with any data that was deleted or lost due to whatever damage affected your drive. We dive deeper into the tool in our Disk Drill review if you want to learn more.

These steps will explain what it looks like to recover files from a drive that’s showing up in Device Manager but not Explorer with Disk Drill:

1. Download, install, and open Disk Drill.
2. Select the drive and click Search for lost data to begin the scan.
3. Click Review found items once the scan is finished. Alternatively, you can click Recover all to recover everything Disk Drill found in one go.
4. Select what you want to recover. Existing data is located under the Existing dropdown, while other data can be found under Deleted or lost and Reconstructed respectively. The Recovery chances column gives you an indication of what data has the best chance of successful recovery. Click Recover when you’re ready.
5. Choose a recovery location on another drive, then click Next to recover the data.

Option G: Download the Correct Dependencies

This applies to drives that contain volumes formatted with file systems that are incompatible with the host operating system. For example, if you try to use an APFS-formatted drive in a Windows computer, it won’t be readable unless you use something like APFS for Windows.

If you don’t have the necessary software installed, Windows will typically ask you to format the drive as it is unable to read its contents and assumes it’s damaged.

Option H: Format the Drive With a Compatible File System

Formatting an external or USB drive that’s detected but not accessible addresses any logical issues it has and ensures it’s set up to be used by your Windows computer. Bear in mind, however, that this process will delete all of the data on the drive. While data recovery is possible, it shouldn’t be considered a replacement for backing up data.

Follow these steps to format a drive using Disk Management:

1. Right-click Start and click Disk Management.
2. Right-click the volume and click Format.
3. Specify a volume label, file system, and ensure Perform a quick format is ticked. Click OK.
4. Click OK to confirm.

Monitoring Your Drive’s Health

Checking your hard drive’s health at least semi-regularly is a really good way of staying ahead of problems. A storage device like a hard drive uses Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology (S.M.A.R.T. or SMART) to keep tabs on itself. This SMART data can be read by software, allowing you to see the status of your drive.

While you can check the SMART status manually by typing wmic diskdrive, get status into a terminal like Command Prompt, it’s much more convenient to do it with software. I personally use Hard Disk Sentinal, a known community favorite that offers a comprehensive overview of all SMART parameters and active status monitoring. This functionality is available in many tools, including Disk Drill which can alert you to any issues that it detects.

Conclusion

A drive that’s visible in one place but not in others indicates something is wrong with the drive, whether it be logical or physical. Rest assured, the methods I included in this article should be of help in getting your drive back in working order.

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