my external hard drive is not connecting to my Mac any more since the last software update Tahoe 26.1?
[Re-Titled by Moderator]
Original Title: Ext. Drive Connection Issue.
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 26.1
What file system is on that external drive?
Is that file system encrypted?
Are you using the drive manufacturer's proprietary third party software to manage that drive in any way, or any third party software to allow write access to that drive?
Is this your only drive with this issue?
Have you tried using another cable to connect the drive directly to the laptop? Make sure it is a good high quality cable since the cables provided by the manufacturer many times will barely work.
Have you tried connecting the drive to a powered USB3 hub (assuming the problem drive is a USB drive)?
Make sure to disconnect all other external devices in case one of them is causing a problem.
If you have any anti-virus software, cleaning/optimizer apps, or third party security software installed, then completely uninstall them by following their developer's instructions (just moving them to the Trash is not sufficient).
"How to resolve external hard drive connection issue after macOS Tahoe 26.1 update?: my external hard drive is not connecting to my Mac any more since the last software update Tahoe 26.1?"
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Troubleshooting a Greyed-Out Hard Drive in Disk Utility:
A. Verify the Format Type:
The format type need to use is APFS for your macOS version.
B. Frist-Aid:
Use First-Aid: While in Recovery Mode, click on First Aid.
C. Single-Out this User:
Try creating a new administrator user, seeing if you get this issue. If so, it is an issue with your current user. If not, it is an issue with your entire macOS.
Hi. Thank you for helping.
I have powered the Mac down and rebooted it few times, it still won’t connect.
you can see it in the desk utility but it would be grayed out. And it won’t mount?
I tried connecting the Drive to another Mac with an older IOS and it will recognise the drive immediately.
before the last 26.1 Tahoe update, the drive was working perfectly.
Shut down the computer.
Unplug the ext drive.
Reboot the Mac.
Reconnect the ext drive.
Does Disk Utility see the drive?
Check Finder > Settings... > General.
Under "Show these items on the desktop" do you have external drives check marked?
How to resolve external hard drive connection issue after macOS Tahoe 26.1 update?
