Solved A full internal drive is no longer accessible but occasionally (after start) it shows in the list of drives, but only briefly

Re: a full internal drive is no longer accessible



Firstly, I admit I have made some mistakes, which is why I am experiencing this issue.



I allowed (internal) Drive E to become full without backing it up. Two days ago, I connected another external drive to my computer and started copying some of the files from this full drive onto this external drive.

In hindsight, I should have immediately deleted the copied files on the E Drive and then backed up the disk! I didn’t. I was planning to do it the next day.

However, the next day, although E Drive appeared on the list of drives after the computer started, I was unable to access it. It also caused some freezing on the computer. I had to use the power button to switch the computer off and try again, but the issue persisted.

Yes, on the day I copied the files, I was able to access the E Drive with no issues. It was only the next day, after copying the files, that the E Drive became inaccessible.

Ran DISM RestoreHealth = successful and confirmed by sfc /scannow



Although E Drive shows up after the computer starts, it remains inaccessible and eventually disappears from the list of drives.

This situation remains.



The E Drive does not appear in Windows Drive Manager or anywhere else.

Recovering your data is first and foremost before messing with the drive more than you have to. Have you looked in event viewer for any critical errors. The error message might give a sense of direction?

First, does bios recognize the drive consistently or does it come and go in bios, too? If it doesn't disappear from bios, there is a good possibility you can download one of the Linux distros (I suggest Mint Cinnamon or Ubuntu) Create a bootable Linux usb (Instructions on the site)

Boot from it. (you may have to turn off secure boot in bios to boot from it)You will be given 2 options...install or run from the usb. Run it from the usb.
If the drive shows inaccessible from Linux, your drive is borked. If it does show in Linux and does not disappear,, you can try copy and paste the data to an external drive using the Linux equivalent of file explorer (I think it's called Nemo in Mint and Nautilus in Ubuntu).

My second suggestion is to put the drive into a external usb drive enclosure.. If the drive works properly as a usb drive, IMO it would point to something else internal to the computer.

If the drive is stable in bios, You can also try to create an offline image of the drive by booting from the recovery media of whatever imaging application you use.

If the drive shows in UEFI Firmware (aka BIOS), check Disk Manager. To access that, right-click on This PC icon, select Manage to open Computer Management. Then click Disk Manager at the left. If the disk shows there (probably with unknown partition or unallocated), it means that your data are there but File Explorer cannot access them because the "file table" (I know it's probably incorrect term) is damaged. There are data recovery tools that can scan the whole disk and extract your data bypassing the damaged "file table". I use GetDataBack for NTFS (scroll at the bottom) :

Thanks Glasskuter and spapakons

I entered the BIOS but was unable to see any information concerning the drives.

Disk Manager does not show the drive.

The drive in question appears in the list of my drives sometimes after I start my computer, but it disappears quickly again.

I think I am going to have to remove it and try it in an external hard drive.

Then it must be a connection issue. Turn off your computer, remove the side cover to investigate. First try to disconnect and reconnect the SATA and power cables to see if there is a loose connection. Disconnect and reconnect the SATA cable both from the motherboard and the drive side just in case. Switch on the computer. Is your disk detected? If yes restart and shutdown, power on several times to check if it is always detected. Next thing to try is to give power from a different cable just in case the specific one has an issue. Next is to try replacing the SATA cable. If you have a free SATA port on the motherboard, try connecting the disk to that port instead, just in case the original port has an issue. I would have a look in BIOS in the storage section. Are all SATA ports enabled? I guess yes, otherwise the disk would not be detected at all.

spapakons said:

Then it must be a connection issue. Turn off your computer, remove the side cover to investigate. First try to disconnect and reconnect the SATA and power cables to see if there is a loose connection. Disconnect and reconnect the SATA cable both from the motherboard and the drive side just in case. Switch on the computer. Is your disk detected? If yes restart and shutdown, power on several times to check if it is always detected. Next thing to try is to give power from a different cable just in case the specific one has an issue. Next is to try replacing the SATA cable. If you have a free SATA port on the motherboard, try connecting the disk to that port instead, just in case the original port has an issue. I would have a look in BIOS in the storage section. Are all SATA ports enabled? I guess yes, otherwise the disk would not be detected at all.

Click to expand...

Thanks spapakons.

I have only just seen this reply from you, having already solved the issue. And yes, there was a connection issue of some kind.

ISSUE SOLVED:

Yesterday, I began disconnecting Drive E, but stopped before removing it. I had removed the cables, but I made no other changes. Reconnecting the cables, I put back the cover and restarted the computer. E Drive was showing and remained showing. Just to be sure, I backed up the E drive onto another external drive.

This morning, when I started the computer, everything was fine. I have full access to the data on Drive E.

I cannot explain the issue. None of the drive connections were faulty or loose. I have had no previous issues with E Drive. This issue only happened after I started copying some of the files to another external drive, because it was full. But why?

I have changed this drive. It was split into two parts (the other part being for games). I removed the games and extended the E section using the previous games section. E Drive now has enough space.

Thanks

Explanation: Over time dust can accumulate everywhere in the computer including inside the SATA or power connector making a loose contact, or the contact might become loose due to some mechanical shock (accidentally kicking of the tower). Disconnecting and reconnecting the cables remedies that issue.