Victus 15-fa0025nr not recognizing external drive (at times)

[PJ03]

I purchased this HP laptop last week: (https://www.amazon.com/HP-i5-12500H-Keyboard-Enhanced-15-fa0025nr /dp/B09ZCM561G) chose the i7 instead of the i5, and I upgraded the SSD to 1TB and upgraded the RAM to 64GB.

I have this docking station (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09WDCH35N/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and attached via the docking station I have a WD - My Passport 5TB external USB 3.0 portable hard drive. 

And whether I attach the WD external drive directly to my laptop and/or via the docking station, the laptop detects it only at times.  For instance, File Explorer will load the contents of the external drive just fine and then all of a sudden I receive the error message stating something like "The last USB device attached is not recognized." 

I've made sure that the drive is attached via a USB 3.0 SuperSpeed port, and I've also purchased a new cable for the WD drive.  I've gone in Windows Device Manager and removed the check mark beside the "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power" and I've uninstalled and reinstalled the driver, rebooted, did all Windows updates, etc. but nothing seems to help. 

Everything I need is on this external drive and it's obviously so very frustrating when this happens especially when I'm in the middle of using a file on the hard drive and I've made a change to the file and then I cannot re-save the file because all of a sudden the drive is no longer recognized.  It doesn't matter if I have numerous programs open nor if only one program is open, this continues to happen.  And sometimes Windows does not recognize the drive immediately when I turn on the laptop.  So frustrated with this!  

[Raj_05 · Accepted solution]

Hi @PJ03,

Welcome to HP Support Community.  

Thank you for posting your query, I will be glad to help you.

If your Victus 15-fa0025nr laptop is not consistently recognizing an external drive, there could be a few reasons for this issue. Here are some troubleshooting steps you can try to identify and resolve the problem.

• Check the external drive on another device: First, verify that the external drive is functioning correctly by connecting it to another computer or device. If it works fine on other devices, then the problem is likely with your laptop.
• Use a different USB port: Sometimes, USB ports can develop issues or become loose. Try connecting the external drive to a different USB port on your laptop and see if it gets detected consistently.
• Try a different USB cable: The cable you are using to connect the external drive might be faulty. Replace the USB cable with a known working one and see if the drive is recognized consistently.
• Update USB drivers: Outdated or corrupted USB drivers can cause connectivity issues. Go to the official HP website and check for any available driver updates for your laptop model. Download and install any relevant updates, especially USB-related drivers.
• Check for Windows updates: Ensure that your Windows operating system is up-to-date. Sometimes, new updates include fixes for hardware compatibility issues.
• Check Disk Management (Windows): If the external drive is not recognized, you can check the Disk Management utility in Windows to see if it's detected but not assigned a drive letter. To do this, press Windows Key + R, type "diskmgmt.msc" (without quotes), and press Enter. Look for your external drive in the list. If it appears but doesn't have a drive letter, you can right-click on it and choose "Change Drive Letter and Paths" to assign a letter.
• Check the external drive on a different OS: If you have access to another computer running a different operating system (e.g., macOS or Linux), try connecting the external drive to that system to see if it gets recognized. This can help determine if the issue is specific to your laptop or if it's related to the drive itself.
• Check for malware: In some cases, malware can interfere with USB connections and cause issues. Run a thorough malware scan on your laptop to ensure it's not affecting your external drive's recognition.

I hope this helps. 
 

Take care and have a good day.

Please click “Accepted Solution” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution. Click the “Kudos/Thumbs Up" on the bottom right to say “Thanks” for helping!

Alden4
HP Support 

[PJ03]

Thank you, Alden4!  After doing SO MANY Windows updates, I failed to realize there were still driver updates.  After the driver updates, the external drive is recognized and functioning properly.  Again, thank you so much, and God bless!