Just plug the external drive’s USB cable into your PC and copy your files to the drive. After everything is copied, shut down Windows, unplug the hard drive’s data cable from the PC, and plug the cable into your Mac. The drive’s letter or name should appear on your Mac’s desktop. Double-click it. You can then copy everything to the Mac. Now, you can see a 'Move to' option on your screen. Make sure you select a folder located in your external hard drive. Step 4: Now, move all the files and data of your OneDrive to the folder located in an external hard drive. After that, go to the OneDrive setup screen that was popped-up in step 2.
Summary: Files are not showing in external hard drive? Can't see files in external hard drive? If you are also having such type of questions, then check the solutions in this post and get missing files back.
External hard drives are portable storage devices that can be attached to a computer through a USB cable or wireless connection. It typically comes in various storage capacities, letting you transfer massive files between computers, expand the capacity of your computer and back up essential data easily.
While enjoying the advantages of portable hard drives, you may encounter troubles they make. Sometimes, when you open an external hard drive, you find some important files disappeared, or even worse, the external hard drive is empty. In this comprehensive guide, you will learn about why you can't see files in an external hard drive and how to access the disappeared files in external hard drive on Mac.
Real-life Case: I Can't See the Files on My External Hard Drive
If you can't see files on your external hard drive, including Seagate external hard drives and WD external hard drives, don't be panic. You are not the only one. Quite a lot of Mac users have complaint in forums that they encountered this issue:
I am trying to use my external hard drive I have had for a couple years to back up some files on my computer, but the data I had stored on there already have disappeared. I know the data I already had on there is still on the hard drive because nearly half of the space on the drive is used up. Is there any way I can find and access the old files again?
Why do files suddenly disappear in external hard drive? How to fix this issue and recover disappeared files in the external hard drive? Please move forward.
Why do files suddenly disappear in external hard drive?
There are the most common reasons why the files are disappeared in external hard drive on Mac:
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1. Accidental deletion. Sometimes, the files are accidentally deleted but you don't even notice that.
2. The files or folders are hidden by the system. In some cases, files are hidden by the operating system, so you can't see them on the external hard drive. It could be that you accidentally hide files, and the system also hides sensitive files by default to keep things simple.
3. File system error. Files are not showing in an external hard drive because the disk's file system is corrupted. As a result, the computer system fails to access the entries to your files or show these files.
4. Virus attack. Your external hard drive might be infected by a virus or attacked by malware that hides, deletes or encrypts the files on the drive.
In addition to the four common causes, there are other reasons that may lead to files not showing in external hard drives issue. Don't worry. All such issues can be resolved and files can be easily recovered. Let's dive right into how to fix this problem.
Solutions to access files in external hard drive on Mac
Faced with such a situation, most users behave like ants on hot bricks. First of all, take a deep breath and calm down. As you can't identify what the specific reason is, please try the solutions one by one to fix files disappeared from external hard drive on Mac.
Solution 1: Make sure your external hard drive is mounted in Disk Utility
Only when your external hard drive is mounted in Disk Utility that you can access files on the drive on Mac. So, if you can't see files on your external hard drive, you should at first check whether the external hard drive is showing up in Disk Utility and mounted.
Copying To External Hard Drive
Step 1: Go to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.
Step 2: If the drive is visible in the sidebar, click the Mount button on the top of the window to mount this drive. Alternatively, you can also click the Mount option beside the drive.
Hopefully, you can see all files on the external hard drive in Finder and on the desktop now.
Solution 2: Check the Mac Trash
The first step is to check if the file is still in the Trash in case you've accidentally deleted it. Click on the Trash icon in the Dock and inspect the Finder window that opens. If you see the file, drag it out of the Trash, or right-click the file and choose Put Back.
Solution 3: Show hidden files in external hard drive
If you can't see any file you want in the Trash bin, your files on the external hard drive might be hidden by the operating system. Let's see how to show hidden files on Mac:
Option 1: Use a keyboard shortcut
Step 1: From the Finder of Mac OS, navigate to any folder where there might be hidden files.
Step 2: Now press Command + Shift + Period to instantly toggle to show hidden files.
Option 2: Run command lines
Step 1: Open the Terminal application from Launchpad.
Step 2: Copy and paste the following command into the Terminal window, then press Enter.
Step 3: Copy and paste the following command into the Terminal window and press Enter.
Note that this command causes the Finder to quit and restart. When the Finder reappears, you will see hidden files if any exist.
Don't know how to show hidden files on Mac computers? Just read this page and find the hidden files on Mac computers quickly. Read more >>
Solution 4: Repair the External Hard Drive with First Aid
After following steps aforementioned to show hidden files, if you are still unable to see files on your external hard drive, this issue may result from file system errors. Fortunately, macOS has a built-in tool, First Aid, that can check and repair file system errors. Here are steps to run it:
Step 1: Go to Utilities, find Disk Utility and run this program.
Step 2: Click Show all devices in View option and select this external hard drive in the left sidebar.
Step 3: Click First Aid on the top menu of Disk Utility.
How To Download From External Hard Drive
Step 4: Click Run to check and repair errors in this drive.
If you receive a report that First Aid process has failed, and it's asking you to back up your data as much as possible, that means your external hard drive may be seriously corrupted. In this case, reformatting the disk is your last resort.
Solution 5: Fix the Corrupted External Hard Drive by Reformatting
Reformatting will refresh the file system which is a quite efficient way to fix any file system error. This process is very simple and shouldn't take more than a minute to complete. https://supernalsol649.weebly.com/blog/download-msn-messenger-latest-version-for-android.
Note: Keep in mind that the reformatting process will erase all data stored on the drive. So please make sure you have backed up your important files. Don't have any file copy at other places? You should move to the next part to recover lost data from the external hard drive before reformatting.
Step 1: Go to Utilities, find Disk Utility and run this program.
Step 2: Click the external hard drive in the left sidebar and select Erase on the top menu bar.
Step 3: Fill in a disk name and a format that the wizard asked.
Step 4: Click Erase and wait until this process complete.
Import Files From External Hard Drive
When the erase process completes, you will get an empty external hard drive. Then move your backup files back to the drive and you will find everything works great.
How to Recover Disappeared Files from an External Hard Drive?
Want to reformat your external hard drive but haven't backed up your important data yet? Or none of the solutions above worked for you? This is where a data recovery tool comes into handy.
As free and professional Mac data recovery software, iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac is highly recommended. It can thoroughly scan your external hard drive and quickly recover files disappeared from an external hard drive, no matter what the reason you lose data, such as accidental deletion, virus attack, or files hidden by system. This reliable tool can support 1000+ file types, including pictures, documents, videos, audio files, and more. In addition to external hard drive data recovery, iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac is also designed to recover lost data from internal hard drives, USB flash drives, SD cards, memory cards, and other storage devices on macOS 10.15 and earlier.
Through only 4 steps, you can recover lost or missing files from external hard drives on Mac. Update adobe reader for mac catalina.
Step 1: Download, install and launch iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac.
The software is very light-weight in just 7.7 MB, with a collection of features built in. After a quick download, you double-click the DMG file to open it. Follow the instructions to drag the application to the Application folder. Delete the downloaded file once you're done.
Step 2: Connect the external hard drive that is not showing files to your Mac.
Step 3: Select the external hard drive, then click Scan to start scanning for lost files. Adobe illustrator for mac download.
You need to wait for the scan to finish. If you have a large number of files, this could be quite a while. The software will give a real-time list of discovered files. During the scanning process, you can pause the scan at any time by clicking the Stop/Pause button at the left hand. Click the button again to resume the scanning.
iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac delivers a powerful session management feature that allows you to save and resume a scan anytime. With this helpful feature, you can easily pause if you have to step away or turn off your computer. Then you can perform your recovery later without needing to rescan the disk.
Step 4: Preview the scanning results, choose files you want to recover, and then click Recover.
After finishing the scanning process, you can filter the results as needed by filename keyword, file type, file size, and date. iBoysoft Data Recovery is built with a strong preview feature that enables you to preview images, documents, music files, videos, etc. With this handy feature, you can ensure the file is exactly you are looking for and its content is recoverable.
Besides, iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac can recover deleted files even emptied from the Mac Trash, recover lost data from formatted, unreadable, unmountable, inaccessible drives. Even when your Mac won't boot, it can help you regain access to your computer data.
Bottom Lines
It's bothering if you can't see files in external hard drive due to various reasons. In this article, we mainly focus on the most possible reasons that caused this problem, such as accidental deletion and file system errors. More importantly, we hope you can find useful solutions to fix files not showing in external hard drive issue.
Fail to fix this issue with the solutions above? iBoysoft Data Recovery for Mac might be a lifesaver to get missing/hidden files back. It can recover lost data from any storage volume attached to your Mac, regardless of what file system the disk has.
But even so, it's still important to do regular backups to prevent the loss of data. Start to back up today!
An incompatible file system, faulty permission settings, and unexpected formatting error are all likely to cause your external hard drive to show up as 'Read Only' on your Mac. Luckily, there are solutions to these problems, either by formatting the device, changing settings, or repairing your device. Besides, if you get your data lost during the problem-solving process, you can retrieve your data with EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard. Try these tips without worries!
Don't worry when your external hard drive displays as read-only on Mac. This page includes 3 reliable solutions that can assist you in removing the 'read-only' error from your external hard drive, making it readable again on Mac. Pick up any method below to make your device accessible without losing any data now:
SymptomsThe External Hard Drive Shows Up as 'Read Only' on Mac, Help!Download Files From External Drive
'Hi there, do you know how to make the external hard drive accessible again when it shows as 'Read Only' on Mac computer? I'm having this problem that my Seagate external hard drive suddenly turned to read-only this morning when I connected it to Mac. I could only read and view saved data on the drive. But get no access to use the data on my external hard drive. If you have any clues to get permissions to access the read-only external hard drive on Mac, please tell me. Thanks very much.'
If you right-click your external storage device, select 'Get Info', and see 'You can only read' at the bottom of the info window, you are encountering one of the commonest problems with an external hard drive. When your external hard drive or other external storage devices show up as 'Read Only' on your Mac, you can:
You can't:
When you can't use your external storage devices normally, it could be quite annoying and frustrating for the problem not only represents a threat to your work efficiency but also shows the possibility of data loss.
ReasonsWhy Is Your External Hard Drive Read-Only on Mac
Why can you only read the external hard drive that is connected to your Mac? There are three possible reasons.
The File System Is NTFS
Right-click your hard disk and select 'Get Info'. If you find your external hard drive is NTFS format, that's what the cause is. The incompatibility of the file system is the main cause of the error-external hard drive 'Read Only' on Mac. NTFS is a file system that is optimal for Windows-based computer. Although the Mac operating system allows you to read the files on external hard drive, you can't write files to it because the way that NTFS writes data to the device is incompatible with the way of macOS doing it. (Go to the Fix.)
The Permission Settings Is Not Ignored
An external hard drive is subject to the access permission set up by OS X for all files and folders on the system. When you use the device on another computer with a different OS, the permission settings with it may not be recognized or prevent access to the files on the hard disk. (Go to the Fix.)
The Hard Drive has Formatting Errors
Another common cause for the external hard drive 'Read Only' problem on Mac is the formatting errors of the storage device itself. If you see a warning says the device is only being mounted in read-only mode while connecting, your hard disk is diagnosed to have formatting errors that prevent you from writing files to it. (Go to the Fix.)
Identify the cause that leads to the 'Read Only' error on your Mac from the information above, then follow the corresponding solution to solve the problem with ease.
FixesHow Can You Solve the External Hard Drive 'Read-only' Problem on Your Mac
Based on different reasons, there are three solutions to the problem.
Fix 1: Reformat the External Hard Drive
If your external hard drive is read-only on your Mac due to its NTFS file system, you can easily fix it by reformatting the device to a Mac-compatible format with the built-in Disk Utility on Mac. Before that, remember to back up your external hard drive quickly with a highly-efficient data backup software since the formatting will erase all the files on the device.
Step 1: Launch 'Disk Utility'.
Step 2: In the list of available drives on the left, choose the problematic external hard drive. Then click the 'Erase' option in the main window.
Step 3: Choose a proper file system and rename your hard disk. (Both APFS and Mac OS Extended file system are Mac-exclusive. Thus, if you want your external hard drive to be both Mac and PC compatible, choose MS-DOS, also known as FAT, or ExFAT instead.)
Step 4: Click Erase to reformatting your external hard drive.
Wait for the reformatting process to complete and then go to the information window, this time you will see the 'You can only read' has changed to 'You can read and write', which means you can read and write the drive on your Mac normally.
Generally speaking, when a storage device shows up as read-only, you can still copy files off of it. If you cannot view or see all saved data on the drive, don't worry. After you format it, you can use the Professional Mac hard drive recovery software - EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac to get back your lost data on the drive with simple clicks:
Step 1. Select the disk location (it can be an internal HDD/SSD or a removable storage device) where you lost data and files. Click the 'Scan' button.
Step 2. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac will immediately scan your selected disk volume and display the scanning results on the left pane.
Step 3. In the scan results, select the file(s) and click the 'Recover Now' button to have them back.
Fix 2: Ignore Permissions
If you are sure the problem is caused by the permission settings, you just need to ignore the permissions to solve the 'Read Only' external hard drive problem on your Mac.
Step 1: Right-click your external hard drive shown on your Mac and select 'Get Info'.
Step 2: Expand the 'Sharing & Permissions' section, then click the lock to authenticate.
Step 3: Check 'Ignore ownership on this volume'.
Fix 3: Check and Repair Hard Drive errors
If there is formatting error on your external hard drive that makes the device read-only, you can use Disk Utility to check the errors and repair the external storage device.
Step 1: Go to 'Disk Utility'.
Step 2: Highlight the read-only external hard drive, click 'First Aid' in the top center, then click 'Run'.
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