No drive

[Marie219]

My laptop is not  reading 

[Raj_05]

Hi @Marie219,

Welcome to HP Support Community.

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

If your HP laptop is not reading a drive, here are some steps to diagnose and fix the issue.

Check Physical Connections

• Ensure the drive is properly connected.
• For an external drive, check the USB cable and port. Try using a different cable or port.

Verify the Drive in BIOS/UEFI

• Restart your laptop and enter the BIOS/UEFI settings (usually by pressing F10, Esc, or another key during startup).
• Check if the drive is detected in the BIOS. If not, the drive might not be properly installed, or it could be faulty.

Check in Disk Management

• Press Win + X and select Disk Management.
• Look for the drive in the list. If it appears but is unallocated or unformatted:
  • Right-click the drive > Select Initialize Disk > Follow prompts.
• If it appears with no drive letter, assign one:
  • Right-click the drive > Select Change Drive Letter and Paths > Assign a drive letter.

Update or Reinstall Drivers

• Open Device Manager:
  • Press Win + X, then select Device Manager.
• Expand Disk Drives or Universal Serial Bus controllers (for external drives).
• Right-click the drive > Select Update driver.
• If updating doesn't work, uninstall the driver, then restart your laptop.

Run Hardware Diagnostics

• Restart the laptop and press F2 or Esc to enter HP Diagnostics (or similar utility).
• Run a hardware test to check if the drive is functioning properly.

Test with Another Device

• If the drive is external, connect it to another computer to confirm if it works there.
• If it doesn’t, the issue might be with the drive itself.

Check Power and Partition Issues

• If the drive has its own power source, ensure it is powered on.

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