I'm having a confusing issue with my MaxOne external hard drive. When I copy everything from the drive to my downloads, it shows 344 GB of files. However, the drive indicates that it has 586 GB of data on it, which seems off because it claims that the space marked as free is the same amount. How can this happen? I'm new to troubleshooting storage problems, and I'm not sure if it's a problem with my device or something else entirely. I can't share images here, but I tried uploading them to Imgur for context.
3 Answers
Don't forget to look at your recycling bin too—files deleted from the drive might still sit there, taking up space until the bin is emptied. It could contribute to those unexpected numbers you're seeing.
You should definitely check your drive properties in Windows. Right-click the drive in 'This PC' and select 'Properties' to see a breakdown of used space. Sometimes, there are system files or hidden folders that aren't visible to regular users, which can take up significant space. If you run Disk Cleanup and click 'Clean up system files', it might help free up some unwanted files. Just be careful if you don’t want to lose restore points or anything important!
It’s normal for the system to report different storage amounts. You might not have permissions to see all files, especially system or recovery files. Consider using an administrator tool to check those hidden files. It might also help to look at your drive's contents through an admin account to find the missing GBs.
I'm the only user on this computer, so I'm confused about the permission issue. I thought I should have access to everything on my own external drive.
That's good advice! Also, I recommend using a tool like WizTree; it helps visualize what's taking up space on your drive and can reveal hidden files.