What to do if the computer does not see the internal hard drive

What to do if the Windows computer does not see the hard drive

Disk not showing up in BIOS

1. If you have just connected the hard drive, check if you did it correctly. Find the official instructions for your motherboard and hard drive on the manufacturers' websites and follow all the recommendations.

2. If you are trying to install Windows XP or an older version and the system reports that there is no hard disk, make sure that the BIOS is enabled in the BIOS compatible with this OS mode of the hard drive - IDE. To do this, find in the BIOS the setting for SATA operation (SATA Mode, SATA Configuration or with a similar name). Set IDE as value, save changes and restart your computer.

3. If possible, check the operation of the hard disk by connecting it to another PC. It will work - look for faults in the motherboard or other components of your computer. If not, you can take the hard drive to a service center.

Drive not showing on Windows

1. Make sure the hard disk is enabled in the BIOS setup. To do this, restart the computer and, as soon as the machine starts to turn on, press the F2 or Del key (the desired key is usually displayed on the screen) until.

Then find the section for disk management (Storage Configuration, Drive or with a similar name) and make sure that the required hard drive is activated. Opposite it should be the inscription Active, On or something similar. Save changes and restart your PC.

2. Check if Windows prepared the disk correctly. First open a command prompt window (Windows key + R), then enter in it


diskmgmt.msc

and press Enter. Read all system warnings carefully to avoid accidentally formatting the drive or altering the data stored on it.

The computer does not see the hard disk: Disk Management menu

If you see a disk without a volume label in the Disk Management menu, this may be the cause of the conflict. Then right-click on the disk and assign a letter to it using the appropriate option in the context menu. Then restart your computer.

If in the same menu you see a new disk labeled "Not Initialized", right-click on it, select "Initialize Disk" and follow the Windows prompts. After initialization, click on the disk again to open the context menu, select "Create Simple Volume" and proceed according to the instructions of the system. When finished, restart your PC.

3. Download the latest drivers for SATA drives from your motherboard or laptop manufacturer and install them.

4. Check your computer for malware with an antivirus.

5. Try reinstalling Windows after saving all important data.

If none of the above helps, contact the service center for help.

What to do if your Mac can't see your hard drive

Mac won't boot

The computer does not see the hard drive: Mac will not boot

If you have a more or less modern Mac, then it will most likely have one disk. And it is obvious that in case of problems with it, the computer simply will not boot. In this case, you need to diagnose using the Apple Diagnostics application.

Shut down your Mac and disconnect all external devices except the monitor, keyboard, mouse or trackpad, Ethernet cable (if applicable), and AC power cord or adapter. Make sure the computer is on a level, stable and hard surface to ensure good ventilation.

Check if your Mac uses an Apple processor - search for your model in. Then proceed depending on the installed chip:

If you have an Apple processor: Turn on your Mac and keep holding the power button until you see a window with a gear icon and the words "Options". Then press Command + D on your keyboard.
If you have an Intel processor: Turn on your Mac and immediately press and hold the D key on your keyboard until a progress bar or a prompt to select a language appears.

This will start the component diagnostics process. It takes a few minutes. When finished, the test results will appear on the screen, including help codes if any.

If during testing, disk problems are identified, you will have to contact the service. It is possible to carry out repairs on your own only on old models with HDD, and even then by replacing the disk with a new one.

Drive not showing in Finder

1. If your Mac has multiple disks and the problem is not with the boot one, but with the auxiliary one, the computer will boot, but the disk will be inaccessible. In this case, you need to check if it appears in Disk Utility.

The computer does not see the hard disk: check if the disk is visible in the "Disk Utility"

To do this, open the application from the Applications → Utilities folder or through Spotlight and check if the drive is visible. If so, you can try to format it (keep in mind that this will delete all data).

2. If your drive is not listed in Disk Utility, you should check if it is recognized by your Mac. To do this, you need to make sure that it appears in the "System Information".

The computer does not see the hard drive: select "About this Mac"

Click on the Apple logo in the upper left corner of the screen, select "About This Mac".

The computer does not see the hard disk: click the "System Report" button

Then click the "System Report" button.

The computer does not see the hard disk: check if there is a disk in the "Storage"

Go to Storage or SATA / SATA Express. Check if the drive you want is available there.

If the disc does not appear, you can test using the Apple Diagnostics utility as described above, and if you find any errors with the disc, contact a service for repair.

The material was last updated on January 12, 2021.