I connected a friend's external HDD to my PC and transferred some game files to it. After physically unplugging the drive, it still appears in File Explorer, and the games seem to run as if the drive were connected. I can even move files to and from it, despite nothing being plugged into the computer. Restarting did not remove it. When the drive is connected to my friend's PC, it appears as unknown and asks to be initialized. What could be causing this, and how can I fix it without losing the data?
3 Answers
If the drive disappears only after a full shutdown rather than a restart, disable any software that automatically remounts disks and remove stale drive mappings. You can also safely remove the drive from Disk Management, but make sure you are selecting the correct disk so you do not remove or alter your system drive.
A genuinely disconnected physical drive cannot continue transferring files, so check whether Windows mounted a virtual disk or another drive with the same label and drive letter. Look in Disk Management and Device Manager for virtual disks, storage-mirroring software, or a mounted VHD. Also confirm the files are not actually stored on your internal drive under a similarly named folder.
Do not initialize or format the HDD on your friend’s computer yet. That can make data recovery harder. Try a different USB cable, port, and powered adapter, then check whether the disk appears correctly in Disk Management. If it still shows as unknown or uninitialized, the enclosure, USB-to-SATA adapter, partition table, or drive itself may be failing.
If the drive contains important files, stop writing to it and use a recovery tool or professional recovery service before attempting repairs.
A reboot normally clears a temporary mount, but if it remains afterward, check for virtualization, backup, or drive-emulation software rather than assuming the HDD is still connected.