# Code 22 and External Hard Drive issues



## Infinitex2 (Aug 26, 2009)

Hey guys,

I bought the 1TB WD external HDD a couple of months ago and it has been working like a charm. Today, however, it seemed to have stopped working. I believe it is more of a software issue than a hardware one because the HDD boots up when connected and sounds to be spinning and everything it usually does. When I heard some bad clicking, probably skipping between files on the HDD, I checked the partition for errors. Windows said it found and corrected all of them. I then rebooted my computer, but then the HDD didn't show up on "My Computer". It was nowhere to be found on Disk Managment as well. I know how to find hidden drives and ones without letter but this one didn't show up anywhere.

In Device Manager, it was under Disk Drives. So i checked it out. Apparently, the drive was disabled. Naturally, I tried to enable it. I tried by clicking on the enable button in the "General" tab and the "Driver" tab. Neither did the job. Windows told be that it could not enable the drive... but didn't specify why.

I have all the most recent drivers for this HDD, but for some reason, enabling the drive doesn't work. I assume there is some error in my HDD, but no the Western Digital Diagnostics tool does not even see the HDD there... because it is disabled. The problem is simple, how do I enable a disabled drive?

Thanks for the help in advance, and I will check back often if there are any clarifications needed, which doubtless there will be. 

EDIT: Vista 32bit, Sony Vaio, 2.1 GHz Core 2 Duo, 3gb RAM, 1 year old.


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## jonquilmcd (Aug 24, 2009)

I think I know the answer.

There are two things the operating system has to do in order to show you the contents of a hard drive. Number one is recognizing the hard drive is there, which Windows is doing. Number two is mounting the hard drive, which Windows oddly enough seems to be failing to do. That's why the hard drive is showing up as disabled. When Windows reports it's unable to "enable" it what it's actually saying is it's unable to mount it.

That clicking noise you heard may have indicated that the drive was about to fail. Another possibility is that the connection was failing and the drive was clicking because it wasn't getting sufficient power to run smoothly. It's not very likely that it's a Windows issue or an issue with your computer because you haven't reported any other drive or USB issues. 

One thing you can try doing to recover the hard drive if it's no longer under warranty is take it out of the encasement and put it in to a stand alone external hard drive enclosure (a decent one will run you at least $20-$30). A lot of times unless the hard drive has been dropped the hardware failure is in the connection and not in the hard drive itself... changing cases on the hard drive will fix this issue as you're getting a new converter and connector for the hard drive.

Your WD Passport may be different from mine and actually have a "disable" feature hidden away somewhere but I must admit I seriously doubt it.


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## DT Roberts (Jun 22, 2009)

Could simply be a corrupted driver. Just uninstall and reinstall before trying more expensive "solutions".


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## Infinitex2 (Aug 26, 2009)

Well Shiznit wins. It was likely a corrupt driver. I went to device manager and uninstalled the driver then unplugged the hard drive, then plugged it back in and it installed the driver automatically. Then I waited and autoplay popped up with my partitions and files all nice and working.

thanks jon. I have to say though, I have a WD Elements, not a Passport. Mine has external power.

Thread closed.


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## DT Roberts (Jun 22, 2009)

*Re: [SOLVED] Code 22 and External Hard Drive issues*

Eh. I always win :laugh:

But really, glad to hear it worked out. Come back if you need anything.


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## Infinitex2 (Aug 26, 2009)

ahh, another snag.

So I got the use of my files again, and I was doing the WD diagnostics and it actually didn't complete it because it said I have too many bad sectors. I am thinking of RMA it back to WD, but I don't want to lose my files, so is there a way to repair bad sectors?


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## DT Roberts (Jun 22, 2009)

Start>CMD>chkdsk /f


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## jenae (Jun 17, 2008)

Hi, if you are going to RMA this drive (and I think you should) then DO not run chkdsk it will most likely result in you losing data. Back up as much as you can the chkdsk /r (r attempts to recover bad sectors and f is implied) command would be the one to use, if it were appropriate. On a 1tb drive chkdsk will take time and this extra strain on the HDD will tell as chkdsk has no impact on a hardware issue and the data written to recover bad sectors can and will overwrite existing data. Chkdsk is a useful and powerful tool however knowing when to use it is a professionals job, if the manufacturers diagnostics has problems running you know now is the time to get the data off ASAP.


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