There are numerous reasons for which your connected external drivers such as, SSD, USB drive, or flash drive might not show up. The most important ones are, if the driver is not properly plugged in, faulty cable, incorrect formatting, and so on.

Sometimes, due to the damaged USB or flash drive port, you might have to deal with this issue. No matter what might be the reason is, these are the possible fixes that will help you to overcome the situation.

DIY Fix for a Drive that Won’t Appear on Mac

In the below section, we will walk you through the possible solutions that can help you to mitigate this annoying error.

• Ensure that the Drive is Plugged in Properly

This is the basic remedy, that you should try. Thoroughly inspect your USB cable or HDMI cable or and if it’s not connected with your Mac device, connect it properly. Next, check the error status. 

• Check the Cables

Hope, you have already ensured that the drivers are connected properly. Now, it’s time to search for the faulty cable. In case, the external drive uses an older USB-A cable, you have to make sure that enough power is delivered to the drive. Also, if you are using a cable with two USB ports at the end, ensure that you plug both the ends. Besides, if you encounter any faulty cable, you are advised to replace it with a new one.

• Edit your Preferences

So, you have already checked that the drive is plugged in properly as well as there is no issue with the cables. But, still, dealing with the same problem? It is highly recommended to edit the preferences. For that, at first, open the Finder. Go to the top right corner of the screen and tap on the Finder option. Under here, select the Preferences option. 

Thereafter, select the General option. Tick on the dialogue box beside the External Drives option. However, if it is already set up and still the issue occurs, immediately proceed to the next remedy.

• Repair the Drive

In case your external drive is unable to detect the Mac or PC, there is a great chance that it might get damaged. Fortunately, with Apple’s Disk Utility, you can fix the problem. To implement the task, first, you should open the Disk Utility app. For that, simply access the Spotlight and after that, type Disk Utility in the search bar.

On the top left corner of the screen, you will see the list of external drivers. From there, choose your external drive. Now, in case, your Mac device hasn’t already mounted the external drive, tap on the Mount option. After mounting, you should hit the First Aid icon. It will search for the possible errors and if necessary, try to repair them.

Click on the Run option. Now, if any error is found, you have to run the Disk Repair. Wait for the completion of the procedure and when finished, check whether this solution works for you or not.

• Change the Drive Format

To change the drive format, at first, you should plug in the external drive to the Mac. Next, open the Disk Utility. On the next window, move to the left column and choose your external drive. Tap on the Erase option. This will open a new window. Here, you have to enter a new name and then choose the new format. 

In case, you wish to use the drive for another system, we suggest you use ExFAT. However, if you want to exclusively use the macOS, macOS Extended can be your best choice.

Again tap on the Erase option to confirm the changes and then start the reformation process. You should wait as the reformatting procedure might take some time to complete. When finished, exit from the page and see the status of the issue.

Finally, Reboot the Mac Device

If all the above solutions fail to fix the error, you are advised to reboot your system. For that, first, tap on the Apple menu and then click on the Restart option. Alternatively, you should press the Power button and when you see a dialogue box, press the R key. After restarting, the issue will not appear anymore.