SSDs are gradually replacing older and traditional hard drives, and most new computers now use this new type of drive. However, there are also problems here. One of the problems you may run into when using these drives is your SSD not showing up on your computer.
If this ever happens, you will find that the recently purchased solid state drive cannot be accessed because it is not showing up anywhere. It does not appear in Explorer, Command Prompt, or even Disk Management.
There are actually a few things you can do to fix your new SSD not showing up on your computer.
Disconnect other drives from your computer
If your SSD is not showing up in the BIOS and main interface of the operating system, the first thing you need to do is disconnect all other drives from the computer. What it will do is prevent your computer from getting confused about choosing a drive to connect to in File Explorer.
If there is a problem with other drives connected to your computer, that should fix it as well. You only need to do this when you have an SSD problem on your computer, and after fixing it, you can always reconnect other drives and access them on your computer.
Verify that the SSD appears in BIOS
Sometimes your operating system runs into problems and this could be the reason why your new SSD is not showing up on your computer. One way to check if your machine actually recognizes your drive is by using the BIOS menu.
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You can open your computer’s BIOS and see if it shows your SSD drive.
- Turn off your computer.
- Turn on the computer while holding down the F8 key. your keyboard. If you are unsure which key will take you to BIOS, check with your computer manufacturer.
- If your computer recognizes the SSD, you will see it listed on the screen.
- Basically, it reports a problem with your operating system. One way to fix this is to reinstall the entire system on your computer
Use Live Linux to see if an SSD appears
A live Linux distribution is an operating system that resides on a CD, DVD, or USB stick. This allows you to boot the entire operating system onto your computer using any of these media, and then you can use all the functions of the system.
If you think there is a problem with your current system, it is recommended that you create a valid Linux disk and boot your computer from it. When it boots up, you will see your SSD showing up in the main interface.
If you see it, there might be a problem with your operating system. If you don’t see it, there might be a problem with your SSD that needs to be checked.
Configure Your SSD Drive
If the drive you are trying to connect to your computer is new, make sure it is formatted correctly before it appears in utilities such as File Explorer. You can use the disk management tool built into your computer to format the disk.
- Press the Windows + R keys at the same time, type diskmgmt.msc and press Enter.
- Disk Management should be open on your screen. Find your SSD in the list, right-click it and select Format.
- Format the drive in NTFS file format.
- Remove the disc from your computer.
- Connect the drive to your computer.
Update storage console drivers
Outdated storage controller drivers can also be the culprit and you should update them to the latest versions available. Most people don’t need to do this unless they have any problems, however, since you are running into issues where your SSD is not showing up, it is worth updating your drivers to see if that solves the problem for you.
- Use Cortana Search to find and open Device Manager.
- Expand Storage Controllers, select your controller, right-click it and select Update Driver.
- If you do not already have drivers for your storage controller, select Search automatically for updated drivers.
- Restart your computer after installing new drivers.
Using the Hardware and Devices Troubleshooter
In fact, your Windows computer has a feature that allows you to troubleshoot problems with your hardware devices. It helps to automatically find problems and offers recommendations on how to fix them on your computer.
The troubleshooter should be in Settings and Control Panel. However, I was unable to find it there, so I used the command line method to open it.
- Search for Command Prompt in the Cortana search and run it.
- Type the following command in the Command Prompt window and press Enter.
msdt.exe -id DeviceDiagnostic
- The Hardware and Devices troubleshooter will open. Click Next to continue.
- Wait while it detects hardware problems on your computer.
- If there really is a problem with your devices, he will advise on how to fix it.
Fix memory problems on your computer
Memory issues on your computer can cause the SSD to not appear on your computer. Luckily, Windows has a tool that lets you check for these errors and fix them on your computer.
- Press the Windows + R keys at the same time, type mdsched.exe and press Enter.
- The Windows Memory Diagnostic Tool will open. Click the first option that says “Restart now and check for problems” to immediately restart your computer and run a test.
- Your computer will restart and the tool will check for memory problems.
- Your computer will automatically restart after the scan is complete.
It’s a little disappointing that your PC doesn’t recognize your newly purchased SSD. However, there are ways to fix the problem as described above, and we hope they help you map the drive on your computer.
If this helped you fix the problem, please let us know in the comments below.
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