Windows 7 doesn't recognize my external hard drive

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  1. Posts : 7
    Windows 7
       #1

    Windows 7 doesn't recognize my external hard drive


    I"ve had a Simpletech external hard drive for a few years now, and it's worked great on every computer that's had Windows XP (it's a plug and play). However, I just bought a new laptop with Windows 7, and when I tried to plug it in to the USB port on it, it just told me "USB device not recognized." The power light comes on, too. This is a brand new computer, so I'm not taking it apart to reassemble anything, and the external HD still works fine on my XP computers, so I know it has to be something about Windows 7 it doesn't like.

    Help!
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 11,840
    64-bit Windows 8.1 Pro
       #2

    Check your device manager and make sure that your USB drivers are up to date...
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 7
    Windows 7
    Thread Starter
       #3

    I did this - all the drivers are up to date. Still no solution.
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 12,177
    Windows 7 Ult x64 - SP1/ Windows 8 Pro x64
       #4

    Does it show up in Disk Management?

    Is the external IDE or SATA?

    Have you tried booting with the external plugged in?

    Can you give us some specs on your new laptop?
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 7
    Windows 7
    Thread Starter
       #5

    Does it show up in Disk Management?

    Is the external IDE or SATA?

    Have you tried booting with the external plugged in?

    Can you give us some specs on your new laptop?


    It doesn't show up anywhere. I don't know if it's IDE or SATA. I've rebooted with it plugged in - no difference. My new laptop is what you'd expect with a new one - Windows 7, lots of space, several USB ports. Can you be specific about what specs you want?
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 10,200
    MS Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64-bit
       #6

    Use Speccy and complete your System Spec info.


    SPECCY- System Information Tool
    http://www.piriform.com/speccy

    Operating System, CPU and Temp, Ram, Motherboard, Graphics, Hard Drives, Optical Drives, Audio, Peripherals, Network info.
    Simply put—this is the best and it’s free!
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 7
    Windows 7
    Thread Starter
       #7

    karlsnooks said:
    Use Speccy and complete your System Spec info.



    SPECCY- System Information Tool
    http://www.piriform.com/speccy

    Operating System, CPU and Temp, Ram, Motherboard, Graphics, Hard Drives, Optical Drives, Audio, Peripherals, Network info.
    Simply put—this is the best and it’s free!
    I have no idea what you're asking. Are you trying to sell me something?
      My Computer


  8. Posts : 12,177
    Windows 7 Ult x64 - SP1/ Windows 8 Pro x64
       #8

    Click the link posted by karlsnooks, download the program, it's free.

    Run it, it will tell you all of your computers specs.

    In the lower left corner of any of your posts click the "My System Specs", then click "Update your System Specs".

    Windows 7 doesn't recognize my external hard drive-system-specs-update-system-specs.png

    Fill in all the info you can, this will help us to get a resolution to your problem.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 7
    Windows 7
    Thread Starter
       #9

    Ok, here's the specs on my new computer. I didn't know how to do a copy and paste, so it's here as an attachment. Thanks.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Windows 7 doesn't recognize my external hard drive-system-info.jpg  
      My Computer


  10. Posts : 1,379
    Win7 Pro 32-bit, Win8 Pro 32-bit
       #10

    Don't know if this will help ... but I routinely use an external drive adapter to plugin drives for reformatting, repartitioning, and other such stuff. When I do that, the drive does NOT appear in the drive list.

    What I have to do is the following:
    1) Go into Disk Management
    2) Scroll down the page until I see the entry for the drive -- usuall near the bottom
    3) Notice that it says "Offline"
    4) Right-click and select "Online"

    After that, the drive is assigned a letter and it then appears both in the drive list in my file manager and is available for use.

    I think that, sometimes, drives attached via USB have to be manually "mounted" in this manner.

    Try this and see if it works.
      My Computer


 
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