The laptop does not see the entire hard drive. Laptop does not see hard drive

HDD (hard drive) is the main means of storing information on computer devices, and if the laptop has stopped seeing HDD, you simply lose access to it, because the operating system will not start. It is not at all difficult to understand what the problem is, the BIOS in this case issues alerts with a specific reason: the laptop does not see the HDD. The solution to the problem is determined after diagnosing the device, the laptop may need to configure the BIOS, replace hard drive or repair / replacement of the motherboard (if the hard disk controller is out of order). All these operations are carried out by specialists of the Note Expert Moscow service center, who are highly qualified and have extensive experience, with high quality, quickly and at the most competitive prices.

Why is the HDD not detected on a laptop

The reasons why the hard drive is not detected on a laptop may be due to damage to the hard drive, a malfunction of its controller, and a failure of the BIOS settings. If the problem is in the hard drive itself, most often it is associated with mechanical damage to the device resulting from shocks, falls, or even strong shaking, since it is quite easy to damage the laptop's HDD. The exact cause can only be determined with the help of professional diagnostics.

What to do if the laptop does not see the HDD

The first user action in this situation is to go to the BIOS settings screen. If the HDD is defined, it can be activated (connected). If your HDD is not in the table with information about installed media, most likely it is out of order and needs to be repaired or replaced. However, the option remains that the malfunction of the controller on the motherboard or cable is to blame. You can verify this yourself by connecting your hard drive to another laptop (if possible). If the HDD is detected and all its partitions are visible, it is obvious that it is working, and the problem lies in the motherboard.

The cost of replacing a hard drive in Note Expert

Since the cost of HDD replacement includes the cost of installed disks, the prices for these services in our center have a wide range, varying depending on the needs of the customer and the capacity of the selected hard disk. Troubleshooting is free of charge, BIOS setup has the most affordable prices.

Hardware
diagnostics

Is free

Setting
BIOS

from 500 rub.

Installation
HDD 320 GB

Installation
HDD 500 GB

Having a personal computer or laptop, you notice that your computer can't see hard drive, or built-in USB device. Problems can be related both to the hardware reasons of your PC, and to probable operating system (OS) errors. It is also allowed that BIOS does not see hard disk due to a misconfiguration. The best option is to check by connecting the hard drive to another PC, in order to be able to fully verify who is the "culprit" of the emergency.

We look at the following characteristics of the device, if the hard drive still recognizes the existing device, then the problem lies in the system itself, if, then the reason lies in the disk itself. If there is a force majeure, never try to “treat” your personal computer or laptop on your own, entrust the complete “treatment” to a specialist.

Sometimes there is a problem in the "native" system, where you can carry out preventive maintenance yourself, but remember that all troubleshooting work must be done if you have an idea about the device of your personal computer.

In case if laptop does not see hard drive, perform simple manipulations that will help you avoid unnecessary costs for a specialist who will accurately perform the available operations to return a PC or laptop to life.

• We enter the available BIOS settings using the F2 or Del keys, be sure to wait until your device is configured and loaded.
• If necessary, remember the correct connection of cables with SATA outputs.
• If you removed the hard drive, then the best way preservation will be storage with the help of materials having antistatic.
• If there is a lower part of the device where the board is located, also put the spare part on the antistatic.

Windows 7 does not see the hard drive, we are looking for problems

You can troubleshoot the hard drive yourself, and then you can clarify why Wwindows does not see hard drive. Conflict situations software, as well as the possible waste of contact connections can be carried out independently. Consider the reasons why the system does not see the hard drive, and possible solutions on their own.

• The contacts are gone. The reason why the computer does not see the hard drive is banal, your contacts have gone. Remove cover, reconnect all contacts. If the result does not work, try using parallel cables.
• BIOS settings. Your computer, BIOS does not see the hard drive due to incorrect settings. Checking the system date block. If there is a reason for this, reset the settings. We remove the battery built into the board, wait 10-30 minutes and put it back in place.
• Minimum power supply. If there is a characteristic buzzing when changing work cycles, and Windows does not see the hard drive, then you may need to buy a new power supply or from time to time you will have to turn off one of the most important devices.

In addition, there are additional factors that indicate that Windows does not see the hard drive for certain characteristics.

WhyBIOSdoes not see the hard drive, fix the problem yourself

If you removed the battery, which is located on the motherboard, and put it back in place after 30 minutes, then the hard drive can accurately detect the connected device. Sometimes Windows does not see the hard drive due to the boot order of embedded systems.

In this case, you do not have to reset the existing BIOS settings. For these purposes, it is enough to enter the menu, and use the Boot menu, which will become a priority during the boot process. In this case, set the HDD option to the topmost position in the first place in the menu.

Pay attention to the characteristic "clicks" of the hard drive. If necessary, you can reduce the noise by adjusting the AAM option, which is responsible for the noise level. This option reduces the movement speed for the built-in drive head, thereby reducing or eliminating clicks. In some cases, experts recommend using the MHDD utility, which will help you effectively fix the problem.

Additional reasons whyWwindows 10 not seeing hard drive

In addition to the above characteristics, you can additionally find out why Windows does not see the hard drive. Experts recommend paying attention to the following:

• If two disks of the same manufacturer are involved, they can cause a conflict of operation. In this case, it is necessary to start the device one by one.
• Tire problem. Some versions of Windows prior to Vista did not support SATA(SATA II). In this case, it is recommended to update the operating system.
• Direct problem in the OS.

If you suspect that Windows is not seeing the hard drive because of the operating system, try the following.

1. In the panel part "Start", open the option "Control Panel".
2. Try clicking twice "Administration".
3. In the dialog box that opens, look for "Computer Management".
4. On the left side there is an item "Disk Management".

Now you see all your drives, and one of them doesn't have a volume letter (letters, C, D, etc.). On the viewed tile on the right, click the drop-down menu, with which we use the option "Change drive letter". In this case, you need to specify the literal value of the free type in Latin from A to Z.

If you have tried all the methods and do not find the reason why the computer does not see the hard drive, then seek help from a specialist who, using professional diagnostic equipment, will identify the exact causes and problems of the failure to start your personal computer.

A hard drive is one of the key components of a computer, without which you will not be able to start the operating system, and therefore work with files and data.
There are, of course, workstations where this role is played by a regular USB flash drive with a Live image, but this is rather an exception and we will not dwell on it, but turn our attention to ordinary home or office computers and laptops. Let's take a closer look at the main troubles that can lead to the fact that the computer does not see the HDD hard drive.
The most common case is when the hard drive worked for a long time and suddenly disappeared, the BIOS does not see it and, of course, the operating system does not boot. What to do?

1. Switch the HDD to an adjacent slot on the motherboard

The average PC has at least 2 IDE and 4 SATA ports. That is, with whatever interface you have a hard drive, the motherboard has at least one more connector into which it can be connected. This will test its performance. I have repeatedly met with the fact that the hard drive port was cut off for some unknown reason - it may have burned out, its controller may have turned off, or the BIOS may have failed.
To exclude all this, you need to disconnect the screw from the port used and turn it on to the next one. Even if it is busy, for example, under a DVD drive, it does not matter. Just swap them and everything will immediately become clear: there is a snag in the connector or not.

2. Change the connecting cable

The cable that connects the hard drive to the motherboard is called a "flex cable". On older machines, hard can be connected via an IDE cable - a flat 40 or 44 pin harness. Now it is rare, but it can still be found.
Modern devices already use a SATA cable. It looks like this:

In my practice, I met with the fact that the computer does not see the hard drive and stops detecting it due to a faulty cable. Moreover, a couple of times they were strongly bent and once the plastic plug was broken. But most often the cable does not have visible physical damage and is cut off due to poor workmanship. Fortunately, its cost in computer stores is low and changing to a new one is not a big problem.

3. Check the power connector

2 cables are suitable for the hard drive - one for data. The second one is the power supply.
There are two types of power connectors. The first is an ancient Molex with four pins. And the second - more modern for SATA - narrow and wide - here it is in the photo:

Try disconnecting it from the HDD and reconnecting it. If it doesn’t help, then find another similar free cable coming from the PC power supply and swap them.

4. Reset BIOS settings

Despite the fact that the Basic Input-Output System (BIOS) is reliable as a hammer, nevertheless, it fails. To exclude this moment, you must try to do. The easiest way to do this is to remove the battery from the motherboard for 10-15 minutes.

After you return it back and turn on the computer, all system parameters will be reset to zero and return to factory settings.

As a rule, the above three diagnostic methods allow you to find out with an accuracy of 90% why the computer does not see the hard drive and determine who is to blame - the screw itself or the problem is more global and affects the motherboard, power supply, etc.

External hard drive not available

Another common case is when a computer or laptop does not see the second or external hard drive connected via USB. At the same time, everything is in order with the cable and connectors, the indicators on the hard drive are on, but it is not displayed in the list of partitions. What to do?
The reason for this phenomenon is usually that the system cannot properly initialize the new drive because it is not formatted or assigned a drive letter.
To fix this, you need to open the "Computer Management" console and select the "Disk Management" section:

At the bottom right, the second external hard drive connected will be displayed. If it has the status "Not initialized", then right-click on it and select "Initialize". Then right-click on the black bar and select the "Create Partition" menu item. Next, a wizard will be launched, following the instructions of which you can create one or more local partitions.
If the disk status is “Online”, but no letter is assigned, then right-click on it and select the “Change drive letter” menu item. A window will appear with a list of free characters, any of which can be assigned to the volume and used in the future.