How to Troubleshoot Storage Devices
With storage, the rule is simple: check cables and connections freely, but do nothing that writes to the drive. No formatting, no repair tools, no rebuilds.
An external drive is not showing up
- Try a different USB port, plugged straight into the computer and not through a hub.
- Try a different cable. Cables fail far more often than drives.
- If the drive has its own power adapter, check it is connected.
- Try the drive on another computer.
- On Windows, right-click Start and open Disk Management; on a Mac, open Disk Utility. See whether the drive is listed there.
When to stop: Stop and call if the computer offers to format or initialize the drive, or the drive clicks, beeps or spins up and down. Do not click Format.
A USB flash drive is not recognized
- Try another port, then another computer.
- Check the connector is not bent or loose.
- Look in Disk Management or Disk Utility to see whether it appears without a drive letter.
When to stop: Call if it shows the wrong size or asks to be formatted. The data is often still there.
The NAS cannot be reached
- Check the NAS is on and note the color of its status and drive lights.
- Check the network cable at both ends, and the switch or router it plugs into.
- Restart your own computer, then the router.
- Try reaching the NAS by its IP address, or with the maker’s finder app.
When to stop: Call if a status light is amber or red. Do not press the reset button and do not reinstall the NAS software.
The NAS shows a degraded or crashed volume
- Do not remove any drive.
- Do not choose Repair, Rebuild or Create in the NAS settings.
- Note which drive is reported as failed.
- If the volume is still readable, copy the most important files off it now.
When to stop: Call. See NAS data recovery for what happens next.
A drive is making unusual noises
- Switch it off.
- Do not tap it, shake it or put it in a freezer.
- Do not run recovery software on it.
When to stop: Call. Clicking and grinding mean a mechanical fault, and every further power-up makes recovery harder.
Files were deleted by mistake
- Stop saving anything to that drive.
- Check the Recycle Bin or Trash.
- Check for earlier versions: File History on Windows, Time Machine on a Mac, or version history in your cloud storage.
- Check your backup.
When to stop: Call if none of those has the files. Do not install recovery software on the same drive: it can overwrite what you are trying to get back.
Questions
The computer says I need to format the disk. Should I?
No. That message means Windows cannot read the drive, not that the data is gone. Formatting makes recovery harder.
Is it safe to try recovery software?
Only on a healthy drive, and only installed on a different drive. Never on one that clicks or disappears.
How do I know if my NAS drive has failed or the NAS itself?
The lights and the NAS status page usually say. Either way the data is on the drives, and can be recovered from them.
Still not working?
Call us or book online and tell us the make, the model and what is going wrong. For IT support a technician comes to your home or office. For a repair we pick the computer up from your door, fix it at our own workshop in Burbank and bring it back. We have no storefront, so there is nowhere to drop a machine off. Outside our area, you can mail it to us.