[FIXED]Hard Disk Not Showing In Disk Management

Summary: If you are not able to see a disk (internal/external) in the disk management, you might feel you’ve been locked out of your data. But in most cases, you can fix the error and recover your data with ease from hard disk not showing in disk management. This blog will detail all possible fixes and data recovery solutions. Get FREE Quote

You inserted an HDD/SDD device in your system. It doesn’t show up in the disk management.

And now you have no way to access the contents of the storage device. Panic sets in and you are wondering if you’ll ever get your data back. Don’t panic. Find the solution to this issue right here.

This guide will answer the following questions

1. What Are The Causes Of Disk Not Showing In Disk Management?
2. How To Fix Disk Not Showing In Disk Management?
3. What To Do If The External Hard Drive Shows Up In Disk Management But Not File Explorer?
4. How To Recover Hard Drive Data Even If The Disk Is Not Showing In Disk Management?
5. Case Study – Recover Data From a Hard Disk Not Showing

Causes Of “Disk Not Showing In Disk Management”

Before you try to fix the Hard Disk not showing in disk management issues on Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, or Windows 11, it would help to know what are some of the most common causes for the issue.

Some of the common causes of disk not showing in disk management include

1. Loose connections
2. Absent or corrupt SATA drivers
3. Incorrect BIOS settings
4. Bad sectors on the drive
5. The drive is being considered as a foreign dynamic disk
6. Outdated/incompatible drivers
7. Physically damaged drive

Based on what is the cause behind this, you can use the below-mentioned fixes to access data from your disk.

How To Fix Disk Not Showing In Disk Management?

If your hard disk drive not showing in disk management, you can try the following fixes.

1. Check The Cables And Connections

It often happens that the hard drive, SDD, or USB storage device is not properly connected to your PC/laptop. This can make the disk not show up in the disk management. To fix the issue, start by checking the connecting cables.

• Unplug and re-plug loose cables properly.
• Check if the USB port in your PC is functioning by plugging in another drive/device and see if that works.
• Try connecting your drive to another healthy PC to ensure nothing is wrong with your PC.

Additional Reading: How to recover data from USB Flash Drives

2. Check BIOS

BIOS (Basic Input/Output System) is the firmware used for hardware initialization during the booting process. Checking if your disk is showing in BIOS and fixing errors in the BIOS settings for it can also help access the drive.

Here’s how you can do it:

• Restart your computer.
• When your computer is starting up, press the F1, F2, F10, or the Del key to enter the BIOS menu.
• Select the Boot Device Priority tab.
• Check if you can see the disk in this menu or not.

If yes, try using one of the other methods followed below.

If not, enable the disk in BIOS to find it in the disk management.

Here’s how to enable a drive in BIOS:

• Remove and re-enter the hard drive to your PC.
• Restart your device
• Enter the BIOS menu.
• Enter Setup.
• Check System documentation. If the drive is turned off in the System Setup, turn it on to normally access your disk.

3. Delete ATA Channel Drivers

One of the ways to solve the HDD not showing in disk management issue is to delete all ATA channel drivers. There is no official documentation that lists it as a fix. But deleting ATA channel drivers makes Windows configure all the devices from scratch.

Here’s to do that:

• Open Device Manager

• Expand the IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers

• Right-click on all ATA channels and uninstall them one by one.
• Restart your device
• Check the disk management again

Additional Reading: How to fix ATA/SATA hard drive not detected in BIOS

4. Remove The Drive From The Storage Pool

The Windows’ Storage Spaces feature lets you group 3 or more storage devices into a storage pool. If you have already done that, removing your disk from the pool might help resolve the issue.

To do that:

• Open the Control Panel (Press Windows Key + X to find it in the menu or search for it in the search bar in your toolbar.)
• In the Control Panel go to System and Security

• Click on Storage Spaces

• Expand Storage Pool
• Delete the Storage Pool that contacts the disk that you are unable to see in the disk manager.
• Click Yes to confirm.
• Restart your device and look for the disk again.

5. Install The Updated SATA Driver

Especially for Windows 10 or 11, issues with your SATA driver can cause the HDD not showing in disk management issue.

Start by downloading the SATA driver based on the manufacturer and model of your motherboard. Then install the driver and restart your laptop/PC to check for the disk again.

Additional Reading: How to fix your PC ran into a problem and needs to restart

6. Run Windows Troubleshooter

If you are facing the issue of hard disk drive not showing in disk management on a Windows 10 device, you can use the in-built troubleshooter.

• Go to Settings
• Click on Update & Security

• Select Troubleshoot from the left pane

• Select Hardware and Devices
• Click Run the Troubleshooter button

The wizard that appears will guide you regarding the rest of the process.

What To Do If External Hard Drive Shows Up In Disk Management But Not File Explorer

The primary reason why an external drive shows up but not a file explorer is that it has no partitions. This means the entire disk space is unallocated.

To fix that, you should:

1. Press the Windows key + R to open the Run box.
2. Type “diskmgmt.msc” and press Ok.
3. If the disk is labelled unknown or uninitialized, right-click and select Initialize disk from the drop-down menu.
4. Select a partition style and click Ok.
5. Right-click the disk and select New Simple Volume.
6. Follow the on-screen instructions to fix the issue.

If none of the aforementioned fixes works for your disk your last resort is to format it. But remember, that will mean all your data will get deleted.

To avoid data loss while trying to solve the hard disk not showing in disk management issue, you should.

Get Hard Disk Data Recovery Service From Stellar

Hard disk data recovery services by Stellar are suitable for:

Also, you get guaranteed 100% data recovery as our team of experts uses state-of-the-art technology and processes.

Stellar Data Recovery has 14 Branches all over India, you can take data recovery services in Kolkata, Mumbai, Kochi, Delhi, Gurgaon, Chennai, Coimbatore, Chandigarh, Vashi, Noida, Pune, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, and Hyderabad.

Moreover, you also get an initial phone consultation, which can help you decide whether the hard drive data recovery service is the best option for you or not.

With that, you now know all the methods of fixing the external hard disk not showing in my computer issue. And that too, without losing your valuable data.

Case Study – Recover Data From a Hard Disk Not Showing

Client Name: Individual

Goal: To recover data from a Hard Disk not showing.

The challenge faced by the client: Data Retrieval Issues

The client encountered challenges with their data, as outlined below:

• Data not showing: The initial problem was the inability to access data.
• UV210 E23: Specific details about UV210 E23 data were not available.
• Search for missing Data: The client was actively seeking missing data.

Stellar Data Recovery To The Rescue:

Stellar Data Recovery addressed these challenges through the following steps:

Initial Analysis:

• Data not showing as Partition info corrupted: The initial analysis revealed that the data was not visible due to corrupted partition information.
• Successfully make the clone: A successful clone was created to preserve the data.

Expertise in Action:

• Scan the Clone using our expertise, able to fetch Partition correct info: Stellar Data Recovery’s expertise came into play as they scanned the clone, successfully retrieving accurate partition information.

Challenges & Breakthroughs

Stellar Data Recovery overcame the challenges encountered:

• Recovered the Data successfully: Despite the initial data retrieval issues, Stellar Data Recovery successfully recovered the required data.

Client Feedback: The client was happy with our services and satisfied. The client was pleased with the outcome and overall satisfied with the services provided by Stellar Data Recovery.

Additional Reading: How to Fix External Hard Disk Not Detected in Windows