Files Disappeared from External Hard Drive? Get 5 Easy Fixes

This article describes the possible reasons and how to fix the "files disappeared from external hard drive" issues quickly without losing data.

By @Ivy Last Updated November 7, 2024

Sometimes, you plug in your external hard drive to see all your documents, photos, and videos, but... poof! Your files missing from external hard drive but still taking up space.

Frustrating, right? Well, you're not alone. People encounter this problem more often than you'd think.

The good news is, there are fixes. In order to fix the "files disappeared from external hard drive" issue without data loss, you need to retrieve files using software first.

How to Recover Files Disappeared from External Hard Drive

When files or folders on external hard drive disappeared, you need a reliable way to get them back—and fast! With a powerful data recovery background and integrated cutting-edge scanning technology, MyRecover is the go-to solution for recovering deleted or lost documents, photos, audios, videos, compressed files, etc., from external hard drives.

MyRecover
Powerful Data Recovery Software for Windows 
  • Easy to use & fast recovery: With a user-friendly interface, you can easily find files missing on external hard drive and recover them quickly in just 3 simple steps.
  • 1000+ data formats: Recover deleted or lost DOCX/XLSX/CSV/PDF/ PPT documents, JPG/ PNG /HEIF/GIF/PSD/SVG images, MP3 /CDA/WAV/AIFF/VQF/OGG audios, MP4 /MOV/AVI/ASF/WMV/RMX/F4V videos, 7Z/ ZIP /ZAP/RAR/CAR archive, etc.
  • Locate deleted or missing files or folders quickly: You can use its search or filter feature to locate and recover specific files or folders without waiting for the final result.
  • Preview files before recovering: You can preview different types of files to be sure you get the ones you want.
  • Wide Compatibility: It supports Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, and servers as well as external hard drive of different brands, such as Seagate, WD, Samsung, Crucial, Intel, etc., in NTFS, FAT32, exFAT, or ReFS file system.
Download Software Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 & servers
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Steps to recover files on external hard drive disappeared:

Step 1. Download MyRecover to Scan Your Disk.

  • Head over to the official website, download, and install MyRecover on your computer.
  • Connect your external hard drive and be sure it’s recognized.
  • Then, open it to see all the available drives. Select your external hard drive and click Scan.

Step 2. Check the Scan Result.

  • It will run Quick Scan & Deep Scan to thoroughly scan your external hard disk and find all the recoverable files.
  • The Quick Scan searches for deleted files while Deep Scan searches for lost files.
  • The scan may take some time depending on the amount of data you have. Please wait patiently to see all the scanned files.
  • For specific files or folders, type the file name or the extension in the search box, or specify the data type (e.g. Images) in the filter feature first.

Step 3. Preview and Recover Files.

  • Once found, you can double-click files to preview them.
  • Then, select the files you need and click the "Recover x files" button.
  • Always save the recovered files to a different location (not the external hard drive) to avoid overwriting the data you're trying to restore or file corruption.

Easy, right? What’s more, you can recover files disappeared from external hard drive for free if it’s 500MB or less. If it’s more, you need to upgrade to MyRecover Pro or Technician.

πŸ”— Click here if you are interested in recovering folder disappeared from external hard drive.

Why Did Files Disappeared from External Hard Drive?

Here are some of the most common reasons behind the "files disappeared from external hard drive" issue.

  • Human errors like accidental deletion or formatting. For example, you meant to delete some files but ended up deleting the whole folder.
  • The corrupted or missing file system can result in the file being inaccessible.
  • The "CheckedValue" has changed.
  • Your files are hidden instead of deleted.
  • Viruses or malware can hide or delete your files without your consent.
  • Using the external hard drive across multiple devices or different systems might cause incompatibility issues, leading to files disappearing or unreadable.

5 Fixes for the "Files Disappeared from External Hard Drive" Issue

Now, you can attempt to fix the “file disappeared from external hard drive” issue in Windows 11, 10, or other systems. Here are 6 effective methods to help you. Each one addresses a different potential cause, so pick the one that best fits your situation.

Fix 1: Show Hidden Files or Folders

If your files have mysteriously vanished, there's a chance they're just hidden. Here are 3 ways in the following:

Using File Explorer:

This is the easiest and most common one to unhide files or folders.

1. Open File Explorer.

2. Click the View tab, and check the Hidden items box.

3. Also, you can click Options > View in File Explorer. Then, check Show hidden files, folders, or drives, and click Apply > OK.

Using Registry Editor:

In Registry, there is a hidden file attribute, which can be used to toggle this behavior through a .reg file. It can unhide files from the entire computer instead of specific drives.

1. Press Win + R and type regedit in the Run window to open Register.

2. Navigate to the following path.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

3. Right-click the Hidden attribute and select Modify. Set its value to 1 and click OK to unhide files or folders.

4. Open the ShowSuperHidden attribute and change its value to 1 to display system-protected files.

Using Attrib Command

You can also use the Attrib command to change file attributes of external hard drive to unhide files or folders on it.

1. Type cmd in the search box and select Run as administrator.

2. Input attrib -h -r -s /s /d F:*.*and press Enter to execute. Please replace F: with the drive letter of your external hard drive.

Fix 2: Run CHKDSK to Repair Drive Errors

You can also use the CHKDSK command to repair file system or disk errors and make it function normally if your cause is corrupt file system or disk errors (e.g. bad sectors).

⚠️Sometimes, to restore the integrity of the file system, CHKDSK deleted files, especially when some files or their part are not recognized as belonging to any data structure. But these files usually can be recovered by the software. Free download MyRecover to retrieve files first (if necessary).

1. Open CMD as an administrator.

2. Type chkdsk F: /f /r and press Enter to scan and repair found error. Please replace F: with your drive letter.

Fix 3: Change the CheckedValue in Registry

The CheckedValue attribute decides how your system finds files and folders. If it is damaged, you may find files or folders on external hard drive disappeared. To make it work properly, you need to modify its value in the Registry manually.

1. Open Registry Editor and go to the following path:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced\Folder\Hidden\SHOWAL

2. Check if the CheckedValue is 1. If not, delete it and create a new one, specify the value data as 1.

Fix 4: Scan for Viruses or Malware

Viruses or malware are one of the culprits of files or folders on external hard drive disappeared. You need to find and remove them using antivirus software (e.g. Windows Defender). Otherwise, you may encounter this issue again.

1. Be sure your external hard drive is recognized by Windows.

2. Type windows security in the search box and select the top result. Click Virus & threat protection.

3. Scroll down to Virus & threat protection setting and click Manage settings. Then, turn on Real-time protection.

4. You can then go to File Explorer. Right-click your external hard drive and click Scan with Microsoft Defender.

5. Wait for the scanning process to finish, safely quarantine and remove any found viruses.

πŸ”—You may be interested in how to recover virus-infected files.

Fix 5: Check for Hardware Issues

Hardware issues also cause files or folders on external hard drive disappeared. Try to check your device using a troubleshooter.

In the previous system, the device troubleshooter is available on the Control Panel. For Windows 10 and later system, go to Settings > Troubleshoot > Additional Troubleshooters and select Hardware and Devices to scan your external hard drive for hardware issues.

Conclusion

The “files disappeared from external hard drive” issue is a nightmare, but you still can fix it without data loss. Here are 6 effective ways. In fact, whether files are permanently deleted or hidden, they exist deep within the file system. You can use software to scan it and find lost data.

FAQs

 

1. Why are files missing from the external hard drive but still taking up space?

 

Here are two possible reasons accounting for this:

  • Your files are permanently deleted. In this case, your data still exists deep in the file system and marked as "free" to save new data.
  • Your files are hidden and available on the external hard drive, and take up space.
 

2. How to prevent files on external hard drive from disappearing?

 

Yes, there are some tips to reduce the risk of files disappearing

  • Backup files to external hard drive regularly.
  • Double-check before deleting files.
  • Safely ejecting your external drive
  • Scan your disk for viruses or malware from time to time.
  • Act quickly once you found files missing from external hard drive.
  • ...
 

3. Can I recover files from a formatted external hard drive?

 

You can easily undo quick format and recover files from a formatted drive using software like MyRecover. It will scan and analyze the copies of file allocation tables and file system logs to restructure files. Just act quickly before your data is overwritten.