I've got a 2TB external hard drive, but every time I connect it to my computer, Windows recognizes it as just 31GB. When I try to transfer a 4GB file to it, I get an error saying the disk is full. I've tried formatting it and checking for errors, but nothing seems to work. This issue happens on multiple PCs. Is there a way to fix this or is the hard drive broken? It's only a year old and was previously used for installing Windows on a new PC.
3 Answers
What does your SMART test indicate? That might give you insights into any underlying issues with the drive.
Have you tried changing the file system when you formatted the drive? Sometimes, Windows needs the drive to be in a specific format like NTFS or exFAT instead of FAT32, which can limit storage space. It's worth checking!
Can you check Disk Management and see what the drive details look like? A screenshot would help—upload it somewhere and share the link!
I managed to fix it by switching the format back to NTFS!
Exactly! You should open Disk Management, repartition the drive, and format it to NTFS or exFAT as needed.