External FireWire 800 has disappeared

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Level 1

8 points

External FireWire 800 has disappeared

I have been using a Western Digital My Book Studio FireWire 800/USB 2.0 1TB external hard disk for two years for video editing without a problem. However, while I was editing a video yesterday, the electricity went out, and now the drive is missing. I have checked the connections, restarted the iMac a few times, but the disk is still missing when it is connected with the FireWire cable, although it can be found with a USB cable. I need to use it with the FireWire for fast editing. Can anybody help?

Message was edited by: Indiestanbul

iMac, OS X Mavericks (10.9.5), New iMac

Posted on Mar 31, 2015 11:09 PM

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Answer 1

Apr 1, 2015 12:22 AM in response to Indiestanbul

I hate to say it but if the Firewire port isn't visible but it's visible with a USB connection the port might have blown. Transients associated with power outages can do that to anything. A few years ago I had an iMac and was using it when a thunderstorm rolled around. The electricity went out and when it came back on the hard wired ethernet port had blown. I had to switch to WiFi which, as you might guess is much slower.

You might try this link to look up some info about external HDs. I think their section on Firewire mentions this problem. Here's the link:

Hard Drive Problems

I hope any info I've given helps. Look at the bright side: at least it didn't wipe or damage the drive.

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Answer 2

Indiestanbul Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 1, 2015 2:41 AM in response to Indiestanbul

My iMac has two thunderbolt ports and I connect the external FireWire 800 disk to it with an adaptor cable. I have tested the other thunderbolt port with the disk and It's ok now. Thanks very much for your comment. 🙂

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Answer 3

Indiestanbul Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 1, 2015 2:42 AM in response to Indiestanbul

My iMac has two thunderbolt ports and I connect the external FireWire 800 disk to it with an adaptor cable. I have tested the other thunderbolt port with the disk and It's ok now. Thanks very much 🙂

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Answer 4

Indiestanbul Author

Level 1

8 points

Apr 1, 2015 2:44 AM in response to MrWilliams201

My iMac has two thunderbolt ports and I connect the external FireWire 800 disk to it with an adaptor cable. I have tested the other thunderbolt port with the disk and It's ok now. Thanks very much 🙂

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Answer 5

Ralph9430

Level 7

21,732 points

Apr 1, 2015 8:10 AM in response to Indiestanbul

You might consider getting the damaged Thunderbolt port repaired/replaced. Make an appointment at an Apple Store to have your device examined by a technician. Or contact Apple Support. Be sure to back up your device before taking or sending it to Apple.

You might also consider using an uninterruptible power supple (UPS). This should prevent that type of catastrophe from happening again. I have all my computers, my Airport Time Capsule and my internet connection protected this way. I use APC power supplies.

http://www.apc.com/home/us/en/

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