Verbatim #47512

I have a Verbatim external that shows that the files is on my external for like 5 minutes at most at a time and then the external disappears of the grid and does not pick up. How can I get the verbatim to show so that I can recover my data? Any helpers out there please? It is a 1TB.
 
I have a Verbatim external that shows that the files is on my external for like 5 minutes at most at a time and then the external disappears of the grid and does not pick up. How can I get the verbatim to show so that I can recover my data? Any helpers out there please? It is a 1TB.

I have tried this and it does not work

"Right click on my computer
Choose MANAGE
Then find DISK MANAGEMENT
You should see your ext hard drive under the list.
Right click on it, and choose CHANGE DRIVE LETTER
Choose anything, but I recommand something higher than M:

I've seen this problem with alot of STORAGE DEVICE

It happen more often with Laptop because they usually have Card reader.
So it makes couple drives like e:, f:, g:.
Storage device tries to install themself with the drive letter next to CDROM
c: - HD1
d: - HD2 or CDROM
e: - Mass storage device (maybe for card readers)
So your external HD tries to have the E: drive (probably a bug)"
 
I have also tried this which does not work
"Try using the below mentioned steps and see if the issue is fixed:

1. Click Start and type Diskpart in the search box.
2. Right-click diskpart in the search results > click Run as administrator.
3. Once diskpart loads type list volume, press enter.
4. You should notice that you will see your 2 TB Western Digital Hard Drive, it should not show a drive letter assigned to it.
5. Type select volume 1 (replace 1 with the volume number assigned to the Hard Drive in question).
6. Type assign letter Z (replace Z with the letter that you want to assign to it."
 
The best I can explain is that My Computer picks it up when I plug it in for anything between a few seconds and last night I was lucky for maybe 2 minutes. Then it disappears. It does not show in my computer then nor in disk managment. When I am lucky to view it on my computer I can see al my files (work from the past 15 years) which I need to recover - and before somebody asks why I did not backup - long story short - I was busy making back-ups on my tower when my tower crashed. a week same thing happened on my laptop and then as I was about to put everything back from the back-up - which is my external - I could not access it! if I am lucky enough to get a printscreen I will surely post one - up to now I have had no luck. Any help please.
 
Sounds to me like that drive is dying too. Not much you can do other than grab the most important files first before it disappears. You should be spending 100% of your time getting files off the drive, I don't have any reason to suspect any of the things you have tried are going to do anything to prolong the time your drive is visible - if anything you are just wasting the precious few spins of the platter you have left where you can still access data.
 
This is straight from the Verbatim Website:
"Some computers do not provide enough power through the USB port to fully power the USB hard drive. If your computer’s USB port is not able to supply enough power, you may experience one of the following:

• The drive will have a blinking light, but it will not show up in My Computer (Windows).
• The drive will not successfully mount and show up on your desktop (Mac).
• Your Operating System may show an error message stating that a device
connected to the USB port has exceeded the power limit.
• The drive will frequently disconnect, appearing and then disappearing from My Computer.
• You hear the drive repeatedly spin up and down, or repeatedly click, but it never installs or mounts properly.
• The computer may freeze when the drive is connected or accessed.
• Windows may not recognize the device to install the correct drivers.

If you are experiencing any of these conditions, you may have a power issue. If your model drive came with an included USB Y-cable, use it to allow the combined power of TWO USB ports to power the drive. Otherwise, you may need the optional USB Y-cable (96531, 96532, 96533, 96534), or optional AC Adapter (ACFLB)."

Have you tried plugging it into a different USB port? Do you have the above mentioned Y-cable?
 
Thats a good point @Spykezxp I have seen that happen before but it has been years.. certainly worth looking into. If you are working off a desktop computer, the USB ports on the back panel are likely going to be able to get you more power than a front panel connection. If you are on a notebook, either get that Y-Cable or try it off a powered hub.
 
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