Clean install fixed some issues but created another.

I was on the Windows 11 Insider Program but had some issues and did a clean install to a stable release of Windows 11 Pro 64-bit, Version 22H2 (OS Build 22621.1413).

Before the clean install my USB 6TB backup NTFS HDD was fully recognized. Now, it's not. All Disk Management says is the drive is 2048 GB, not 6TB, GPT Protected Partition.

I removed the HDD from it's housing and installed it inside my PC. Cool, it reads 6TB NTFS! Reinstalling the HDD back into its housing and connecting to USB did work at first but now back to 2048 GB GPT Protected Partition. I tried other USB cables and different USB ports. Same results. I tried connecting my wife's backup HDD which is 2TB NTFS & that works fine.

I do remember when first using large capacity HDDs with USB, the drives full capacity was limited, not recognized. The solution was to install the drive inside the PC, format and then reinstall as a USB drive. That worked. This issue now resembles that issue, but I would think newer OS like Windows 11 would not need to do that.

I'd like to restore this drive if possible. I don't get why the old Windows 11 install was fine, but newer clean install made a new issue.

Suggestions?

What you're seeing is abnormal. I don't know the cause.

Do you have any missing drivers in Device Manager?

Maybe you should download and install the latest AMD chipset drivers.

bobkn said:

What you're seeing is abnormal. I don't know the cause.

Maybe you should download and install the latest AMD chipset drivers.

Click to expand...

Yes. When I finished the clean install, I immediately installed the AMD Chipset drivers.
I only see in Device Management a Network Controller located at PCI bus 6, device 0, function 0 without drivers and none can be found. Everything on my PC seems okay except the backup HDD.

Odd.

Are you using that machine to access the Internet via the motherboard's ethernet port? I don't know how that would work if your NIC had no drivers.

bobkn said:

Odd.

Are you using that machine to access the Internet via the motherboard's ethernet port? I don't know how that would work if your NIC had no drivers.

Click to expand...

Yes. I do have a WiFi compatible card but use a direct connection to my modem. Get 350Mbs with it.

While troubleshooting today I noticed the HDD drive got noisy. I decided to and move on. I purchase a Seagate Expansion 6TB External Hard Drive HDD - USB 3.0, (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B093BVQYYM/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). The drive is preformatted as exFAT but says there's no problem reformatting to NTFS while plugged into USB port. GOOD!

Thank you for your help.

So this is yet another coincidence? (Hardware failure at the same time as an OS re-install.)

bobkn said:

So this is yet another coincidence? (Hardware failure at the same time as an OS re-install.)

Click to expand...

I thought my other issues were with the Insider version of Win 11. For example, my software (Oops! Backup is old software, 10yrs+) for backing up data could not open because of a max size file name. Windows said it was over the max of 260+characters. I could look into folders on the HDD (the HDD now in question) and figure out how to find a file I needed but that was it. After the clean install that software works fine. I just need a working HDD!

I don't think Windows 11 killed the drive. It was old, seldom used and a little noisy long before all my issues. It's all confusing when things seem to happen at once.

If internally the drive works OK, then there is something wrong with the enclosure. You can buy another enclosure to put the drive in, if you want it external. Make sure it supports disks larger than 2TB, because that was the limit of some old cheap models.

Sounds like the USB chipset/controller in the drive enclosure has come to the end of its life. As suggested, grab a new enclosure if you still want to keep using the drive externally.

Yes, have seen this many times. Thankfully the disk is OK when the enclosure fails, so just replace the enclosure. If you buy an external hard disk avoid WD because they have soldered the SATA to USB circuit directly on the disk's PCB and you cannot just replace the enclosure like in other brands. Too bad, I always considered WD very good hard disk manufacturer, but I hate dirty tricks like that.