Today, if you buy a new external hard drive, you may notice that working between the two is an often demoralizing task. But it doesn't need to be. Fortunately, there is a solution. Rshari was only noting his SD card reader was also not working as well as his USB ports which is what he is using for his external HDD's. Rshari's issue is power! The USB ports offer power and what can happen is the system's USB power line is shut down or the fuse link goes bad as the current load was too great.
by Jenefey AaronUpdated on 2020-09-29 / Update for Mac OS
So you plugged in your Seagate hard drive into your Mac and it ain't showing up, right? Well, perhaps, the files and folders or the disk itself is unapproachable and therefore, your Mac was unable to detect the Seagate external hard drive. Consequently, the Seagate external hard drive not showing up on Mac Sierra! But worry no more, we've got your back! We are going to uncover some proven ways to fix Seagate hard drive not showing up Mac. Stay glued!
Part 1: Why Seagate External Hard Drive Not Showing up Mac?
Usually, when an external hard drive is plugged into Mac via a USB port, it gets mounted over the desktop. You can even find it under the Devices column on the left in the Finder. Just in case, your Seagate hard drive not showing up on Mac, there can be a number of reasons behind it. Here are they.
- 1. Chances are that your hard drive may have been corrupted.
- 2. Perhaps, it may not have been formatted properly.
- 3. Maybe, the drive got broken internally due to physical damage.
- 4. Or, your Seagate hard drive is faulty.
Part 2: Quick Fix The Issue of Seagate Hard Drive Not Showing up Mac
1. Check If Connected Properly
First things first, check if the Seagate external hard drive that is not showing up Mac is properly plugged in to the USB port. It is one of the most notable reasons when Mac fails to mount the drive. If you are using an older Mac ensure that the drive is receiving enough power supply. Older Macs need a special USB power cable, which splits up into two USB connectors and both of which has to be plugged into the Mac.
2. Troubleshoot the Seagate Hard Drive
If the above mentioned solution brought you no good, then you need to troubleshoot the Seagate Hard Drive. Try reconnecting the hard drive into a different USB port and check if it shows up or not. If not, you should then plug it in a different Mac or Windows PC to check if it is the hard drive itself that is faulty.
3. Restart your Mac
Performing a restart has known to be an ideal solution to resolve various software glitches in the first place. If your Seagate external hard drive not showing up Mac Sierra, try restarting it with the help of the steps mentioned right below.
Hit on the 'Apple' icon available on the top left corner of your Mac screen and then opt for the 'Restart' option from the appearing drop down menu.
Apple External Hard Drive
4. Fix The Seagate Hard Drive with Disk Utility
If the above methods were not able to produce good results for you, the next method to fix Seagate external hard drive not showing up Mac is via Disk Utility. Here's what you need to do.
Step 1: Launch the 'Spotlight search' by hitting the 'cmd + spacebar' key over your keyboard and punch in 'Disk Utility'. Hit the 'Return' key afterwards to launch the program.
Step 2: On the left panel of the Disk Utility, you'll be able to locate your Seagate hard drive. If your drive is there and not mounted, it should appear as greyed out. Select the drive and then opt for 'Mount' option. Once mounted, the drive will now turn to normal.
Step 3: If Seagate external hard drive not showing up on Mac yet, try running the First Aid and Erase options to fix or format the drive respectively.
Part 3: The Ultimate Way to Recover Files from Formatted Seagate External Hard Drive
Since, the Seagate hard drive has now been formatted and is now accessible on your Mac, the data stored over it have been wiped off completely. Now, if you wish to recover the data contained within the formatted Seagate external hard drive. We have brought you the ultimate way to serve the purpose. Tenorshare 4DDiG for Mac Data Recovery is your life saver when it comes to recovering data from various data loss scenarios. No matter if the data was stored over your Mac or over the external storage drive, Tenorshare 4DDiG for Mac Dasta Recovery can retrieve the lost data without any hassle.
Step 1: Install and launch the Tenorshare 4DDiG for Mac Data Recovery over your Mac and then opt for the desired location from where the data has been lost. Then hit the 'Scan' button to initiate scanning of lost data.
Note: If you're recovering data over the macOS High Sierra system or higher, you need to grant access to Mac files by disabling SIP first. Hp utility for mac catalina.
Step 2: Soon after the scan completes, you will be allowed to preview the data detected for recovery. You can selectively check the categories or the individual files as well that you wish to recover. Once done, hit the 'Recover' button. Lastly, set the destination location and you're done.
Conclusion
Well, that was all about how to fix Seagate external hard drive not showing up on Mac Sierra. We are now positive that you've successfully got your issue resolved. And just in case, you need format your hard drive for some reason, you can always look up to the mighty tool Tenorshare 4DDiG for Mac Data Recovery to retrieve the lost data back.
You've dropped your external hard drive, and you're worried that it might not work anymore. Now what?
If the drive contains absolutely essential data, the best practice is to leave it powered off. Get it to a data recovery company and explain the situation; they'll be able to evaluate the drive without risking platter damage, ensuring that you'll be able to get a full recovery of the contents.
Best External Hard Drives For Mac
With that said, if you're reading this article, you probably didn't do that — you tried to start the drive, at which point you realized that your data was inaccessible. In that case, you probably encountered one of the following scenarios:
The drive 'beeps.' A beeping sound usually comes from the spindle motor hub. The hard drive's electronics aren't able to provide enough power to the spindle to spin the platters. This can occur due to electronic issues, but it's more commonly associated with a spindle failure. Essentially, the spindle is 'locked up,' so it's not able to run at its normal speed.
That's a problem, since hard drives need to maintain a certain amount of speed in order to keep their read/write heads from coming into contact with their platters (the part of the drive that stores your data). If you hear a beep, we strongly recommend turning the drive off. Do not attempt to recover your own data. An engineer will need to repair or replace the spindle in order to copy the data off of the drive.
The drive 'clicks.' This can occur when the hard drive's actuator arm hits a limiter, which prevents them from going too far in one direction. If you're hearing a persistent clicking sound, the drive's heads are having trouble finding your data.
Again, this is a serious sign of a physical hard drive failure. It's possible that the read/write heads are in contact with the platters, and they could remove the magnetic material that stores your data. Unplug the drive immediately and contact a data recovery professional.
The drive 'whirrs.' A whirring sound can also indicate a spindle or head failure. It could mean that the read/write heads are in direct contact with the platters, which is obviously bad news. To put it simply: If you're hearing any sort of unusual sounds from a dropped external hard drive, turn it off immediately. It's past the point of home repair.
The drive doesn't seem to turn on at all. It's possible (if unlikely) that the electronic component of your hard drive was damaged. It's more likely that the drive has sustained physical damage, and it's simply unable to boot as a result.
Reformat External Hard Drive Mac
If you're absolutely sure that your hard drive won't boot at all, you can remove it from its external enclosure — taking care to properly ground yourself before touching it — and try to hook it up to a desktop computer. If you're lucky, it'll boot up, at which point you can access the data, provided that the external drive's electronics weren't serving some essential function (for instance, disabling encryption). In most cases, opening the drive's external enclosure will void your product warranty, so you might want to enlist the help of a data recovery provider anyways.
External Hard Drive Mac To Windows
At Datarecovery.com, we operate fully outfitted laboratories at each of our locations, staffed with experienced engineers who can treat any type of hard drive failure. If you've dropped your external hard drive, contact us at 1-800-237-4200 to discuss the situation and obtain a free estimate.