What Causes Internal Hard Drive Not to Appear in Windows 10/11

An internal hard drive stores critical data on your PC and serves as a fundamental storage device for computers or laptops. It typically holds default applications and Windows operating system files. Encountering an issue where your internal hard drive doesn't show up in Windows 10/11 can be troublesome, as it might lead to data loss. Before addressing this hard drive not showing up problem, it's crucial to understand the reasons behind it:

Reasons Description
? Connection issue Even without a cable for an internal hard drive, loose connections can still occur accidentally.
❌ Wrong drive letter The internal hard drive is typically designated as the C drive, and assigning another drive with the same label can cause problems.
?️ BIOS/UEFI setting issues This issue might arise if there are incorrect BIOS/UEFI configurations.
? Physical damage

If your internal hard drive is physically damaged, it might not be visible.

如何解决Windows 10/11中内部硬盘不显示的问题

If you've encountered issues with hard drives not being displayed, you can try the following methods to resolve them. We will present five of the most effective approaches to assist you in fixing this problem. You can refer to the table below for more information:

Methods Description Time Difficulty

1. Change Drive Letter

If the drive letter conflict causes the issue, you can choose this way to fix the problem. 3-5 Mins Simple

2. Windows Troubleshooter

You can use Windows built-in utility to fix the internal hard drive's problem. 10 Mins Normal

3. Update Disk Driver

An outdated disk driver may cause this issue; you can update the hard drive driver to fix it. 10-15 Mins Normal

4. Format Hard Drive

An incorrect file system format can cause this issue; you can format your internal hard drive to solve it 15-20 Mins Normal

5. Run CHKDSK

This command will help you fix the hard drive errors when your internal hard drive is corrupted. 15 Mins Difficult

However, you can learn more information about hard drives not showing up in Windows through a video tutorial:

  • 01:02 How to format the hard drive
  • 02:10 Create new partitions
  • 03:40 Change drive letter

1. Change the Drive Letter to Resolve an Undetected Internal Hard Drive

This is the first and possibly the simplest method to resolve the issue of the internal hard drive not appearing. You've learned that this problem can occur due to a drive letter conflict. Now, follow these steps to change the drive letter:

Step 1. Use the Windows search box to open Disk Management.

Open Disk Management

Step 2. Right-click on the internal hard drive whose letter you want to change.

Step 3. Select "Change Drive Letter and Paths…".

Change Drive Letter and Paths

Step 4. Click on "Change" to modify the drive letter.

Step 5. Choose a drive letter and click "OK" to confirm.

change the drive letter

Also read: How to fix internal hard drive not showing files though they still exist

2. Run the Hardware and Device Troubleshooter on Windows 11/10

Running the Windows Troubleshooter can effectively address the issue of the internal hard drive not appearing. The Hardware and Devices troubleshooter can identify and resolve issues with Windows devices and hardware.

Step 1. Open Windows settings on your computer.

Step 2. Click on "Update & Security."

Click on **Update & Security**. ![Select the Update & Security option to proceed with the restoration](/images/en/data-recovery/drw-pro/select-the-update-security-option-to-restore.png)

Step 3. Scroll down and select "Troubleshoot".

Step 4. You can select "Run the troubleshooter" in the Hardware and Devices section.

run the Troubleshooter

Windows Troubleshoot settings are designed to assist users in resolving various issues, like problems with Windows updates not functioning properly. If you're interested in learning more about addressing Windows update issues, please refer to the following passage:

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Windwos update not working

6 Solutions to Fix Windows Update Not Working on Windows 11/10

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3. Update Disk Driver to Resolve the Not Showing Up Issue

You can also update the internal hard drive disk driver to fix errors that go undetected in Windows. Follow the tutorial below to update it:

Step 1. Open Device Manager using the Windows 11 search box.

Step 2. Select disk drivers and choose your internal hard drive.

Step 3. Right-click the internal hard drive and select "Update driver".

update driver

Note: You can also download and update USB drivers through Device Manager. Don't forget to share the article if you've resolved the issue.

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4. Format Internal Hard Drive to NTFS or exFAT Format

A incorrect file system might cause the internal hard drive not to appear or be detected. Formatting the internal hard drive won't reveal such issues.

Step 1. Just like the first method, you should format this internal hard drive in Disk Management.

Step 2. Select the target disk, right-click on it, and choose "Format".

Step 3. To resolve this issue, follow the instructions to format your internal hard drive to either NTFS or exFAT format.

Format hard drive

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recover data from formatted hard drive

How to Recover Files from a Formatted Hard Drive

If you accidentally formatted your hard drive and lost important data, you can still retrieve the files. Read more >>

5. Run the CHKDSK Command to Fix Internal Hard Drive Corruption

Are you familiar with Command Prompt command lines? The final method we'll introduce is using the CHKDSK command to repair corrupted hard disks without formatting. Follow the instructions below to execute this command:

Step 1. Open Command Prompt as an administrator.

run CMD

Step 2. Once the CMD window is open, type chkdsk C: /r and press "Enter" to run this command.

CHKDSK command

Step 3. After executing this command, restart your computer to check for any issues with the internal hard drive.

Recover Lost Data from Internal Hard Drive on Windows 10/11

Have you resolved the issue of the internal hard drive not showing up on your PC? If you accidentally lose some photos or documents, you can download the tool Data Recovery Wizard to retrieve them.

Trust this recovery tool and explore the following highlights to learn more about its capabilities:

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  • Carry out hard drive recovery when encountering hard drive issues. You can swiftly retrieve data from a hard drive and resolve the hard drive problem.
  • Recover data from external hard drives, internal hard drives, USB flash drives, SD cards, camcorders, and numerous other storage devices.
  • Find all pictures on hard drives. It can restore lost photos, videos, documents, emails, and audio files from a hard drive.

Preview and automatic repair. This software enables you to preview the files, and it can automatically repair them if they are corrupted.

We assume you've learned enough about the tool Data Recovery Wizard. Proceed to launch the software and recover data from your internal hard drive:

Step 1. Choose a location and begin scanning

Launch the Data Recovery Wizard tool and select the partition where you lost your data. Next, click on "Scan".

select a location to scan
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Step 2. Filter and preview files This step translates to: Step 2. Filter and preview files

Utilize the file format filter located in the top left or upper right corner to locate the files you need. Afterwards, you can click the "Preview" button or double-click on a file to preview its contents.

Select files to recover

Step 3. Recover Lost Data or Files

Select the file by clicking the checkbox next to it, and then click "Recover" to restore the lost data to a secure location.

Recover lost data

Upon reading the detailed methods, you can bookmark this passage by sharing it!

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Summary:

Have you resolved the issue of an internal hard drive not being detected in Windows 11/10? With the five methods provided, you can also fix the problem of external hard drive not showing up in Disk Management. If you need to recover data from the internal hard drive or retrieve data after formatting it, utilize the tool Data Recovery Wizard!

Internal Hard Drive Not Showing Up FAQs

We hope you can gather more information about internal hard drives not showing up through the following frequently asked questions:

1. How to resolve the issue of a USB flash drive not appearing in Windows 10?

You can resolve the issue of the USB flash drive not appearing in Windows 10 using the following methods:

    1. 1. Seek USB flash drive repair services.
    2. 2. Update USB drive driver
    3. 3. Reinstall the USB driver
    4. 4. Create new partitions
    5. 5. Assign a new drive letter to your USB
    6. 6. Fix file system errors

< strong > 2. Why has my internal hard drive disappeared? < /strong> Translation: < strong > 2. Why can't I see my internal hard drive anymore? < /strong >

Many scenarios can result in internal hard drives not being detected:

    1. Connection issue
    2. Wrong drive letter
    3. BIOS settings issues
    4. Physical damage

3. Should I format the internal hard drive to resolve the hard drive issue?

There are numerous ways to address issues with an internal hard drive. You can alter the drive letter, update or reinstall the driver, run the Windows Troubleshooter, or utilize Command Prompt to repair the internal hard drive.

4. Can I recover photos from a formatted internal hard drive?

Recovering photos from a formatted internal hard drive is not complicated with the assistance of tools like Data Recovery Wizard:

  1. 1. Launch the software and select the formatted internal hard drive.
  2. 2. Filter the files to display all the deleted images on the internal hard drive.
  3. 3. Choose the photos you wish to recover and retrieve all of them.