The first thing you should do is to connect your external drive to some other PC/s, as suggesied by forerunner in his post #4, and check whether you can access it.
If you can access it, backup all your files into some other drive.
You may experiment any other solutions afterwards.
Sorry, I should add the Windows Update does not do anything for the driver issue also. I never does in my experience too lol
Unfortunately, I can not get to another computer until a few days time. I would rather try and fix this issue before then.
Since you said you reformatted, that makes me think you are missing some drivers that come when the computer is bought. Do you by chance have the CD that came with your machine? ive seen my webcam not working before until i hunted down the driver for it myself after reformatting a laptop before.
It sounds like your computer doesnt have any drivers for the USB ports themselves, or maybe the computer was using preinstalled windows drivers, then they failed or something or other. Does anything else work in these USB ports? like a thumb drive?
I reformatted using the disk that came with the laptop. Although I used the option that completely wipes all pre exisiting drivers. I remember this wiped my network controller so had to borrow a friends internet to instal the network controller driver just so I could get my internet back lol
Yeah, other devices seem to work in the USB ports no problem. For example small flash drives, my phone, my iPod, and there is currently a laptop cooling tray and seperate ionizer plugged into it.
Lol go MacGuyver on that sunofa and splice one of your phone usb cables into the type that goes into the external hard drive, then use an app like file explorer to see if your files are still in existance :P
Hahaha! :P
You'll probably not belive me when I say this but ....the cable I use for the HD IS the cable for my phone! Its the only one I have.
Oh man! >.<
That might actually be your problem. I know in order to get my Tablet to recognize my PS3 controller i had to MOD the cable itself to turn it into a "Host" cable, or some crap. basically just shorting two of the wires together... I think its simply just a way to get you to buy a new cable.
Well, the problem is fixed guys. Sort of.
I didn't do a thing. it basically fixed itself. I did no Windows updates. I didn't install anything. Nothing.
I managed to get the most important stuff off the HD but then when I went on it again today to try and get the rest, its stopped working again lol
I feel a should bring this up because i'm seeing a recurring pattern here. Remember I was saying earlier that my webcam no longer works? Well, actually, sometimes it just starts working. Randomly. Then it will go through long periods again of not working. Like the laptop just doesn't recognise that it has a built in webcam at all. This is similar to what is happening with the external hard drive.
Also, my touchpad just stopped working one day. Well, I can still scroll the pointer with the main pad and use the right click button. but I cannot click with the main pad or the left click button. However, this problem seems to rectify itself at times too and then suddenly stop working again.
I have never heard of such a tempromental laptop. My guess is I've wiped some important drivers or what not when I reformatted. But I was having major trouble with this machine beforehand (hence the need to reformat). And I've never heard of problems fixing themselves and then stop working again.
Its all very strange. Do you think these symptoms are related? And, if so, do you guys have any idea what the hell is going on? lol >.<
Yeah well in theory it could all be driver based errors. i dont really know too much about it but idk i would think that if all you perihperals are starting to screw up then it could be related. maybe theres just a bad connection somewhere inside the laptop itself from being droped or bumped or even just poorly manufactured.
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