External HD hard drive used on TV not recognised by laptop

dog_eared

Commendable
Sep 13, 2016
1
0
1,510
Sometime ago I attached a Seagate external hard disk to my LG TV (USB) for recording programmes. It works very well but I no longer need it. When I attached it to my Laptop in Windows10 the laptop shows in printers and devises and makes all the attachment sounds but I cannot read the disk nor does it show in file manager. How can I get my laptop to recognise this drive in order to format it to use on laptop?
 
Solution
Welcome to Tom's Hardware, @dog_eared!

I'd recommend you go to Disk Management and check how the external HDD is recognized there. Sharing a screenshot would be really helpful. If you are able to see the external drive there, you could try changing the drive letter assignment, which might help your Windows 10 laptop recognize it.

You could also check how the hard drive is recognized by another Windows computer, if you have access to one. Make sure you backup your data from the external as soon as you can access it. Keeping only one copy of your files on the drive and using it on multiple devices is potentially dangerous for your files. So back them up as soon as you can.

Keep me posted.
SuperSoph_WD
Welcome to Tom's Hardware, @dog_eared!

I'd recommend you go to Disk Management and check how the external HDD is recognized there. Sharing a screenshot would be really helpful. If you are able to see the external drive there, you could try changing the drive letter assignment, which might help your Windows 10 laptop recognize it.

You could also check how the hard drive is recognized by another Windows computer, if you have access to one. Make sure you backup your data from the external as soon as you can access it. Keeping only one copy of your files on the drive and using it on multiple devices is potentially dangerous for your files. So back them up as soon as you can.

Keep me posted.
SuperSoph_WD
 
Solution