[SOLVED] Hard drive not visible in file explorer

[foreignery]

Wondering if anyone can help.

I have an old Seagate FreeAgent 1000gb external hard drive that has not been powering up recently, so I pulled it apart and connected it inside my desktop PC and it worked fine.

For other unrelated reasons I'm now without my desktop for a week or so, and I bought myself a cheap little USB to SATA cable to connect the drive via USB to my Surface Laptop 3. Whilst the system recognises that something has connected, it doesn't show in file explorer. Instead, it shows up in Devices and Printers as ASM105x.

I've Googled around a bit and tried assigning a drive letter, but this doesn't work. I'm a bit at a loss. Anyone got any ideas?

Thank you.

 

[USAFRet]

Does it appear in Disk Management?

 

[fzabkar]

Does the drive still spin up? Is it a 2.5" or 3.5" drive? What is its model number?

 

[foreignery]

Thanks for the replies. It appears in disk management but just as 'disk 1'. There are no partitions visible.

It's a Seagate Barracuda 7200.11.

Looking at the picture below has made me think of the obvious - maybe installing the software that's described on the sticker...? Still, it worked in my desktop (also windows 10), without this.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/3682/4EFhdg.jpg

 

[Jason H.]

Thanks for the replies. It appears in disk management but just as 'disk 1'. There are no partitions visible.

It's a Seagate Barracuda 7200.11.

Looking at the picture below has made me think of the obvious - maybe installing the software that's described on the sticker...? Still, it worked in my desktop (also windows 10), without this.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/3682/4EFhdg.jpg

In Disk Management, scroll down to the drive, put your mouse cursor on the big empty space, right click, and hit (I believe its called) Initialize drive. You must format the drive basically and assign it a partition.

I had the same issue. When you assign it a partition, you will be able to see it in your boot process.

EDIT: Did this drive have data on it? I responded as if it was a new drive

 

[foreignery]

sorry - should have made it clear - it's full of stuff that I want!

The seagate software didn't do anything btw.

I think the problem is related to the fact it's showing as removable media, because of the use of the USB cable, rather than it being attached directly to the motherboard of a desktop as it is normally intended to be used. Probably explains why it worked on the desktop and not on the laptop?

 

[SkyNetRising]

Can you show screenshot from Disk Management?

Also - can you show a photo of that sata to usb adapter (all of it)?

 

[foreignery]

http://imageshack.com/a/img921/6706/4wWBAT.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img921/6743/tbNq3h.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img923/2121/mqvh7k.png

 

[USAFRet]

http://imageshack.com/a/img921/6706/4wWBAT.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img921/6743/tbNq3h.jpg

http://imageshack.com/a/img923/2121/mqvh7k.png

That device cannot power a 3.5" drive. It lacks the required 12v line.

You need a device that also has wall power.
A USB-SATA dock like this will work.
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Docking-Station-Support/dp/B0099TX7O4

 

[foreignery]

Thanks for the quick replies and the help.

Thinking about it, that kind of makes sense!

So what will the adapter work with do you think? My SSD drives I have? I presume they need less power?

 

[SkyNetRising]

It will work with 2.5" drives - SSD or laptop HDD.

 

[foreignery]

Thanks!

Can I trouble you with a final question then, as a follow-on?

Rather than buy the mounting gadget linked above, I'd rather put the money into a new SSD.

Should I buy an external SSD/portable drive, in a nice enclosure etc, or is there no real advantage to these over just getting a normal SSD for significantly cheaper and using it with this cable. They're pretty robust things aren't they? It's basically gonna just live on my desk - I don't need the portability and nice design of a dedicated external drive.

And even though it'll be rare, I may occasionally want to throw it in my bag for transport - they're not particularly delicate or susceptible to rough and tumble are they? They're 'just' flash memory I presume...

Cheers.

 

[SkyNetRising]

If you need a portable drive, then just get a big capacity USB flash drive.

Connectors on sata drives are not particularly sturdy. They can break.
So - it's not advised to connect/disconnect them regularly on daily basis (as you would do with a portable drive).

If you absolutely must have USB connected SSD, then drive enclosure is definitely preferred.

 

[foreignery]

Not the answer I wanted

But appreciated all the same! Thanks!