SimpleTech HD not recognized by desktop PC

[rowanfae]

When I plug my SimpleTech 250GB external hard drive into my Gateway netbook, it immediately lights up and starts whirring. The netbook makes the device-connect noise and tells me that my drive could run faster using a different port (not that I have any faster ports on my netbook). I can open up the folders, view files, the whole shebang.

My desktop, on the other hand, accessed this drive perfectly until . . . possibly last night. The SimpleTech holds my games, and last night my game kept freezing on me after about ten minutes of gameplay, something I had never experienced before. I eventually noticed that my computer was running hot, so I turned it off and went to bed. This morning, I turned it on to see if my game was working properly, and it did not recognize the SimpleTech.
When plugged into my desktop, the drive lights up, makes a weird clicking noise, like it's trying to whir to life but can't, and I can't find it in A) My Computer, B) Control Panel/Device Manager or C) Disk Management.

Dektop info:
I built it a few years ago, and I don't know what information would be relevant in this case, besides the fact that it's running on Windows 7.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[Boogieman_WD]

Hey there, rowanfae.

Unfortunately clicking and any sort of unusual sounds coming from the drive might be an indication for physical damage, but there are still some things you could try.
Did you try it with the netbook again to see if it's recognized there? If you still have the same issue, then it must be the HDD. Try it out with a different cable as well (preferably shorter than 12"), just in case it turns out to be a faulty USB cable.
If the drive pops-up when you connect it to the netbook, I'd suggest that you backup any important data which you might have on it, just to be on the safe side and then download an HDD diagnostic tool to test it and see if there's anything unusual.

Hope that helps. Please let me know how it goes.
Boogieman_WD