WD usb HD only recognized in safe mode

[XxMX26xX]

so, i got a WD my passport external HD (1TB) that i use to store all my games and any other random things on, i'v been using it for about half a year no problem now, but, that changed yesterday. When i booted up my PC the drive wasn't loaded, the system just couldn't find it no matter what i did. First thing i did was scan my PC (i'm using malewarebytes), it found a pup but nothing major. Then i decided to boot up my PC in safe mode to try something someone suggested on another thread, and the drive was there, thought it somehow fixed itself, nope.

so.... anyone got any idea why this is happening? or even better: how to fix it?

additional info: the HD is plugged into a back side 3.0 USB
motherboard: ASrock z77 extreme 4

edit: it doesn't work on any 3.0 port, but it does on a 2.0, the 3.0 ports work for other things like my headset doe...

 

[D_Know_WD]

Hi there XxMX26xX,

I guess that the issue you are facing is caused by some kind of a driver problem. After there is some HDD issue(of any sort), it will be a good idea to back up the crucial data that is stored on it.
I would advise you to reinstall the USB controllers. If this does not help, you can go to Device Manager and uninstall the drive. After that you can reboot -> plug the drive in and wait to automatically install drives.

Cheers,
D_Know_WD

 

[XxMX26xX]

totally forgot about this post.... anyway, i reinstalled windows and with that the USB drivers, still got the same issue :/

 

[D_Know_WD]

You have downloaded the latest USB 3.0 drivers from the website of your MOBO's manufacturer right?
The best way to see whether the problem is caused by or system or the HDD is to just connect the HDD to another system(USB 3.0), or another external HDD to yours.

D_Know_WD

 

[XxMX26xX]

looks like it's the HDD :/