Toshiba External Hard Drive Not Showing Up? Try These Fixes!

Whether you want to store precious photos or important documents, Toshiba external hard drives are a reliable choice. However, they are not without their problems. Sometimes, when you plug your Toshiba external hard drive into the computer, it doesn’t appear in Disk Management as expected. It can be a real headache, as you can’t access any files on the drive or use it for backups. What can be done? Fret not! We’ve got your coverd! Here, we’ll provide you with 7 solutions to fix the ‘Toshiba external hard drive not showing up’ issue. Read on to regain access to your valuable data!

Part 1: Why Toshiba External Hard Drive Not Showing Up/Working?

Typically, you can access your Toshiba external hard drive from Disk Management or File Explorer. If it goes missing, there is a great possibility that the connection is unstable or the USB port is damaged. Plus, there can be many other reasons why your Toshiba external hard drive is not responding. Here are some common ones:

• Outdated or buggy disk drivers.
• Drive letter conflicts.
• Power supply problems.
• Faulty Toshiba external hard drive.
• Bad sectors or file system corruption.
• Virus attack or malware infection.
• Unsupported file system.

Thankfully, there are several potential solutions to resolve the ‘Toshiba External hard drive not working’ issue.

Part 2: Recover Data from Non-responsive Toshiba External Hard Drive

In most cases, if your Toshiba external hard drive is not working on the computer, formatting is usually the go-to choice. But what if you have important files on that drive? That’s where 4DDiG Free Data Recovery comes in. 

It is a powerful and beginer-friendly tool that enables you to recover lost data from over 2000 storage devices, including Toshiba external hard drives. Whether it’s photos, videos, or documents, there’s a good chance you can easily retrieve them with 4DDiG. Plus, 4DDiG nearly covers all data loss scenarios, such as formatting errors, hardware failures, and partition loss.

Here’s how to recover data from your Toshiba external hard drive with the aid of this tool:

Step 1: Begin with pluging the Toshiba external hard drive into your PC. Install and run this hard drive recovery tool. Now, you’ll see a list of available drives in the main interface. Select the affected hard drive and click on “Scan.”

Step 2: 4DDiG offers a quick scan and a deep scan. Although a deep scan takes longer, it can find more lost files on the hard drive. To save time, you can stop the scan once you find the target files.

Step 3: Finally, select the files you want to restore from the Toshiba external hard drive and click on “Recover.” You’ll be asked to select another storage media or cloud service to save the recovered files.

Part 3: How to Fix Toshiba External Hard Drive Not Showing Up/Working?

Solution 1: Rule out connection issues

Before discussing advanced solutions, let’s take a minute to to check for connection issues. This is the most common reason for the Toshiba external hard drive not working on your PC.

• Restart your computer. Once it is back on, reconnect the Toshiba external hard drive.
• Try using a different USB cable or plug the external hard drive into a new USB port.
• Connect the Toshiba external hard drive to another computer to see if it is detected. 
• Perform a full scan of your computer and hard drive using reliable antivirus software.

If the Toshiba external hard drive still does not show up, head to other tips.

Solution 2: Reinstall the corrupted driver

When it comes to the ‘Toshiba external hard drive not responding’ issue, corrupted disk drivers could be to blame. You can reinstall the driver for the Toshiba external hard drive via Disk Management. Here’s how:

Step 1: To begin, right-click on the Windows button and select “Device Manager” from the list.

Step 2: Typically, you can find the driver for the Toshiba external hard drive under “Disk drives”. Othewise, go to the “Other devices” catagory. Right click on the corrupted driver. Opt for “Uninstall device.”

Step 3: After uninstalling, disconnect the Toshiba external hard drive from your PC. Wait a few seconds, then connect the drive again. 

Solution 3: Run the hardware troubleshooter

If you’re wondering how to fix the ‘Toshiba external hard drive not working’ issue, Windows offers a built-in solution that you can try. Follow the given steps to use this valuable utility:

Step 1: Input “Troubleshoot settings” into the Windows Search box. Then, click on “Open.”

Step 2: Locate and click on the “Hardware and Devices” option in the list. Click on the ‘Run the troubleshooter’ button to initiate the repair process.

Note: this troubleshooter is not available in all versions of Windows.

Solution 4: Assign a new drive letter

Occasionally, the Toshiba external hard drive does not show up in File Explorer but is visible in Disk Management. This is because the drive might not have a drive letter assigned to it. Another possibility is that its drive letter conflicts with other disks. To make it accessible in File Explorer, follow the given steps:

Step 1: Open Disk Management, find the Toshiba external hard drive and right-click on it. Choose “Change Drive Letter and Paths.”

Step 2: Click “Add” if no drive letter is assigned. On the other hand, click on “Change” if you need to change the current letter. 

Step 3: Finally, choose a unique letter for the undected hard drive and click “OK.”

Solution 5: Initialize the newly purchased hard drive

When you purchase a brand new Toshiba external hard drive, it is typically not initialized. This is why you encounter the ‘Toshiba external hard drive not showing up’ issue. Your hard disk can’t be used to store personal files until it is properly initialized and partitioned. Here’s what you can do:

Step 1: Choose “Disk Management” after pressing Win + X on your keyboard. 

Step 2: Locate the new hard drive, right-click on it, and choose “Initialize Disk.”

Step 3: Select the desired partition style (MBR or GPT) and click “OK” to proceed.

Step 4: After initialization, right-click on the unallocated space on the drive and select “New Simple Volume.”

Solution 6: Reformat the hard drive

As we mentioned before, reformatting is an effective way to solve the ‘Toshiba external hard drive not responding’ problem. By resetting the file system, you can not only easily repair any logical damage but also avoid potential compatibility issues. Keep in mind that you should make backup copies of the drive before proceeding. To reformat the hard disk, follow these steps:

Step 1: Launch Disk Management on your computer. Find and right-click the unrecognized hard drive in the list of drives. Select “Format”.

Step 2: Set the file system to NTFS and check the “Perform a quick format” option. Click “OK” to initiate the formatting process.

Solution 7: Repair or replace the hard drive

If all else fails to fix the “Toshiba external hard drive not showing up” problem, the hard drive itself might be damaged. In such cases, it’s best to carefully check for any signs or symptoms of physical damage on the hard drive. For instance, you might hear clicking, grinding, or beeping sounds coming from the hard disk. Or, the drive might feel excessively hot to the touch. Compared to DIY repairs, we strongly recommend contacting the manufacturer or a professional.

Final Thoughts

Overall, with the above-mentioned methods, you can solve the “Toshiba external hard drive not working/showing up” problem on your own. They include performing basic checks, reinstalling disk drivers, reformatting, and more. If you lose any important files while fixing the undetected Toshiba hard drive, give Tenorshare 4DDiG a try. With a 98% success rate, 4DDiG has become one of the most trusted recovery tools in the industry.