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User profile for user: PTHEOFYL
PTHEOFYL Author
User level: Level 1
6 points

USB hard drive not detected on reboot

I am running Windows 7 Ulitmate 64-bit on my 2011 15" Macbook Pro. I have a USB Hard Drive (WD My Passport SE - USB 3.0/2.0 - 1 TB).

The hard drive is formatted for HFS+ and I am running Mac Drive 8 to detect it in Windows.

For some reason when I reboot (in Windows), the hard drive won't be there until I unplug it and plug it back in.

This is really annoying! Can anybody help me? I'm pretty good with things like this but I can't think of any reason this shouldn't be working right.

HELP User uploaded file =T

Message was edited by: PTHEOFYL

Message was edited by: PTHEOFYL

15" Macbook Pro 2011, Windows 7, Dual Boot with Snow Loepard and Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit

Posted on Jan 29, 2011 7:01 PM

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14 replies
User profile for user: GeekBoy.from.Illinois
GeekBoy.from.Illinois
User level: Level 4
2,829 points

Jan 30, 2011 8:28 AM in response to PTHEOFYL

If the drive is seen by the Windows Drive Manager, then is appears you have a MacDrive issue and would probably be best to ask your questions over in their support area. If the drive isn't seen by the Windows Drive Management software, then it could be a USB driver issue, or it could still be the MacDrive drivers. I would suggest you ask in the MacDrive support area and see if they have any ideas for you.
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User profile for user: PTHEOFYL
PTHEOFYL Author
User level: Level 1
6 points

Jan 30, 2011 5:36 PM in response to PTHEOFYL

Thanks for your response. It actually comes up with a message "USB Device not recognized". It does NOT show up in windows disk management. When I open Device Manager it shows up under `Universal Serial Bus Controllers` as `Unknown Device`.

If I unplug the USB from the computer it disappears, when I plug it back in it shows up under `WD Drive Management Devices` as `WD SES Device`.

If the driver is there why wouldn't it just find it when it starts?
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User profile for user: georose
georose
User level: Level 1
10 points

Mar 29, 2011 11:08 PM in response to GeekBoy.from.Illinois

I am having the same problem with an external 1TB WD USB 3.0 drive exactly as you describe. Win 7 indicates unknown USB device when Win 7 started via Bootcamp. Drive is partitioned as GUID with two HFS+ partitions and one NTFS partition. One partition is used for Time Machine. If the drive is disconnected and reconnected the WD driver in Win 7 will recognize the drive and it can be used. I believe Bootcamp may a contributing cause for not recognizing the device as a disk drive that would allow the WD driver to do its job when Win 7 boots. I may look at the drive with an old disk utility used with an older PC. I believe the drive may contain a hidden partition that could also be part of the problem. If one is identified I should be able to get rid of it and see if that helps.
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User profile for user: ReMacs
ReMacs
User level: Level 2
295 points

Mar 30, 2011 2:00 AM in response to PTHEOFYL

1) MSFixIt - Under windows icon one fix is:
Automatically diagnose and repair problems with devices when the device manager does not detect your hardware, audio, USB, or other devices, or when your devices are disabled or not working.
http://support.microsoft.com/fixit/?fi=50195

2) You may find something with searching for: UAC and USB device recognition

3) After boot you could try right click "Update Driver Software" on Unknown.

Though not the same as yours, I have had USB problems that seem to have started with SP1, Windows 7 64 Bit OS in bootcamp
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User profile for user: georose
georose
User level: Level 1
10 points

Mar 30, 2011 8:52 PM in response to ReMacs

Thank you for suggesting:
1) Device manager "sees" the device it just can't figure out what it is. Same goes for any "driver repair" since Windows doesn't know what to repair.
2) Searching 3 pages of forum messages turned up nothing that was closely related to the problem at hand.
3)Latest WD driver update installed.


Message was edited by: georose

Message was edited by: georose

Message was edited by: georose
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User profile for user: Fisdemous
Fisdemous
User level: Level 1
0 points

Jun 27, 2011 12:04 PM in response to PTHEOFYL

I am having the exact same problem. WD 1TB Passport. USB 3.0 drive. Running on Windows 7 Pro 64 via Bootcamp.


My 1TB Passport is formatted with FAT32 and works with Windows and Mac OS.


I was getting the same problem when I was running Windows XP Pro on the same MacBook Pro. I was hoping the upgrade to Windows 7 would remidy the issue but it did not.


The drive light is on in a steady state when I boot and I have the same symptoms as reported by everyone else above.


In my research, I am leaning towards thinking that it is a power issue related to the cable used to connect the USB 3.0 Drive or something to do with the USB driver for Bootcamp, but researching the WD site suggests it's a power issue, not a faulty or failing drive.


I have a 500GB WD Passport USB 2.0 also attached to my computer, also running FAT32 and it starts up no problem. It's just the USB 3.0 drive that is having this issue.


Also worth noting; the drive is detected properly when I boot in Mac OS X. It's only the Windows side I have to unplug and plug back in to access the drive.

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USB hard drive not detected on reboot

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