Solution 3: Update or Uninstall Device Driver
Drivers-related problems are nothing new to Windows. If the device driver for the Seagate hard drive is corrupt or faulty, you will not be able to access an external hard drive. Updating or reinstalling the device driver might do the trick here.
Update device driver:
- In the search box, type device manager and press Enter.
- Expand Disk drives.
- Right-click on the Seagate hard drive.
- Click on Update driver.
- Select Search automatically for drivers. Windows will automatically check for new updates. If found, it will show you that a new version is available.
- Follow on-screen instructions to install the updated driver.
After you’ve updated the Seagate driver, reboot your computer, and check if the problem is solved. If the problem is still there, try uninstalling the device driver. You don’t have to worry, Windows will automatically reinstall the driver after you restart the device.
Uninstall device driver:
- Open Device Manager and expand Disk drives.
- Right-click on the Seagate drive and tap Uninstall device.
- Click Uninstall. The driver will be installed within a minute.
- Restart your computer.
Solution 4: Initialize the Seagate Hard Drive
If you are connecting an external hard drive to a computer for the first time, you need to initialize the disk using the Disk Management app.
- In the search box, type Disk Management and press the Enter button. Or, right-click on the Windows logo and select Disk Management.
- Right-click on the Seagate hard drive and select Initialize Disk. If the device is offline, right-click on it, tap Online, and then Initialize the disk.
- Choose a partition style. Click OK to accept the default partition style.
Solution 5: Change or Assign Drive Letter
If the Seagate hard drive is not showing on your computer, changing or assigning a driver letter to the Seagate hard drive might do the job.
- Right-click on the Windows logo and select Disk Management.
- Find the Seagate hard drive. Right-click on it and select Change Drive Letter and Paths.
- If your Seagate hard drive does not have a letter, tap on the Add button. Otherwise, tap on the Change button to assign a new letter to the device.
The current file system on your Seagate external hard drive might not be compatible with Windows operating system. In such a case, you will have to format the Seagate hard device to FAT32 or NTFS. These are the two most commonly used file systems in Windows computers. You can format the hard drive using Disk Management.
When did you start facing issues with the Seagate hard drive? was this your first time using a Seagate hard drive? Were you able to fix the issue using any of the solutions mentioned in this blog post? Do let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
