Fantom external hard drive won't mount

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Fantom external hard drive won't mount

I am using an imac G3 with OS 10.3.9. Until yesterday my Fantom external hard drive mounted. I dismounted it and turned it off. I went to turn it back on later and it won't mount. I selected initialize from the dialogue box that says it won't mount and when disk utility comes up it show the two icons for the internal hard drive and just one for the external so I can't do anything with it. Thanks for your help.

imac Mac OS X (10.3.9)

imac Mac OS X (10.3.9)

imac Mac OS X (10.3.9)

Posted on Jun 27, 2006 9:25 AM

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Answer 1

Jun 27, 2006 1:29 PM in response to grp11

hi there--

i would try repairing permissions on your internal drive. also i would boot to open firmware holding apple-option-o-f and type in the following commands--

reset-nvram (hit return)

set-defaults (hit return)

reset-all (hit return)

keep me posted. [ 8 ) ]

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Answer 2

grp11 Author

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Jun 27, 2006 4:56 PM in response to sherry johnson

I tried all of your suggestions and they didn't fix it. When I try to erase it I get a dialogue box that says disk erase failed with error: unknown error: -20

imac Mac OS X (10.3.9)

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Answer 3

Jul 3, 2006 6:55 PM in response to grp11

Thought you could use this info about getting FireWire to work!

First, you should always Repair Permissions in Disk Utility before and after any update; I would do that now. If you installed your update with FireWire plugged in, your Mac may not recognize it anymore.

Try resetting your FireWire ports by disconnecting all FW devices, shut down your Mac and unplug it from AC power (wall socket) for 30 minutes. plug it back in and try FW.

If that did'nt work, download the combo update from this site (yours may be corrupt), not Software Update, disconnect all firewire + USB devices except keyboard + mouse, Repair Permissions, re-install update, Repair Permissions again + try. Yours is the 10.3.9 Combo update. Others reading, download the Combo that applies to your system.

If that still did'nt get it Zap the PRAM. While restarting Mac hold down the following key combo Command-Option-P-R. Keep holding those keys down till you hear the second start-up chime, then release.

For those of you with Macs that are not PowerBooks or iBooks, a bad internal battery can cause FireWire to not be recognized, so make sure it's good!

Good Luck!

Cheers!
DALE
p.s. Hi to you too Sherry! Keep up the good work!

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Answer 4

Jul 4, 2006 9:21 AM in response to grp11

thanks dale, much appreciated.:)

grp11-- did you try repairing the permissions?? it is a good suggestion for a drive that won't mount, with or without a software update. i'm also wondering if you have tried another firewire port if you have more than one, and if you have any other firewire devices you can test in the port(s). another thing i might do would be to power cycle the firewire cable by completely unplugging it from both the drive and the computer and then letting it sit for a half hour or so, or, trying a different cable. another thing that might help would be a pmu reset. you should be able to find info for your particular model online or in your user manual. good luck. [ 8 ) ]

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