Unable to use new SSD expansion drive


GKMagog

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Local time
7:19 PM
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3
OS
Windows 11
I recently bought a 4tb Samsung T7 Shield drive from ebay as an expansion drive for my laptop. When I plug it in I can hear that Windows has recognised the disk is there but can't see it in Explorer, and there is no drive letter for the new drive.

When I look in Disk Management (see screenshot) it is shown as disk 1 with 2 partitions of 200MB & 3725.83GB. I am unable to do anything in disk management as all drop down menu options are greyed out.

When I look in Diskpart it shows Disk 1 as being on line and that it is 3726GB in size, but when I use 'list volume' (see second screenshot) I'm not entirely sure what it is telling me.

Can anyone explain what I am looking at and tell me how to fix it so I can use the drive. Please be gentle in any replies as I am a computer numpty.

** UPDATE** I've managed to use the 'clean' command and the 200mb partition has disappeared leaving me with Disk 1 showing as '3726.01GB unallocated'. Again I don't know what this means or what to do next.
 

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My Computer My Computer

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Windows 11intel core i5nvidia
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
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Acer Aspire 5
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intel core i5
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nvidia
Hard Drives
Internal 1TB SSD
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Eset Internet Security
I have two 4TB Samsung T7 Shield portable SSD drives. Before using them I did a Quick Format on each giving them unique names so I could tell them apart.

I use them as storage for my nightly Macrium Reflect image backups. I have no problem using them or seeing them in Microsoft File Explorer.
 

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Thanks TraderGary I have other T7 Shield drives that worked straight out of the box with no problems. This one just refuses to behave!
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11intel core i5nvidia
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
Acer Aspire 5
CPU
intel core i5
Graphics Card(s)
nvidia
Hard Drives
Internal 1TB SSD
Antivirus
Eset Internet Security
You might try doing a Quick Format on the drive to see if that fixes it.
 

My Computers My Computers

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 ProIntel Series 3 Core Ultra X9 388H64GB LPDDR5x 9600 MT/sIntel Arc graphics B390 Panther Lake
    OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 16 DA16260
    CPU
    Intel Series 3 Core Ultra X9 388H
    Memory
    64GB LPDDR5x 9600 MT/s
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Arc graphics B390 Panther Lake
    Monitor(s) Displays
    16" 3.2K Tandem OLED Infinity Edge
    Screen Resolution
    3200 x 2000 16:10 236 PPI
    Hard Drives
    1 Terabyte M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
    Case
    Black Anodized Aluminum
    Cooling
    Vapor Chamber Cooling
    Mouse
    None
    Internet Speed
    942 Mbps Netgear Mesh + 2 Satellites
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge (Chromium)
    Antivirus
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    NPU delivering 67 TOPS
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    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
  • At a glance

    Windows 11 ProSnapdragon® X Elite (12 Core) with Hexagon NP...32GB LPDDR5x 8448 MT/sIntegrated Adreno GPU
    Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Microsoft Surface Laptop 7
    CPU
    Snapdragon® X Elite (12 Core) with Hexagon NPU delivering 45 TOPS
    Memory
    32GB LPDDR5x 8448 MT/s
    Graphics card(s)
    Integrated Adreno GPU
    Sound Card
    Omnisonic speakers with Dolby Atmos spatial sound
    Monitor(s) Displays
    13.8″ PixelSense Flow touchscreen 120 Hz 600 NIT
    Screen Resolution
    2304 × 1536 (201 PPI), 3:2 aspect ratio
    Hard Drives
    1 TB PCIe NVMe Gen 4 SSD
    Case
    Black Anodized Aluminum
    Cooling
    Vapor Chamber Cooling
    Mouse
    None
    Internet Speed
    942 Mbps Netgear Mesh + 2 Satellites
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SOLVED: I managed to convert the 'unallocated' drive into a new 'simple drive'. This gave me the chance to allocate a file system & a drive letter, once that was done I was able to format it. I now have 4tb of pristine storage available to me!
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11intel core i5nvidia
OS
Windows 11
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
Acer Aspire 5
CPU
intel core i5
Graphics Card(s)
nvidia
Hard Drives
Internal 1TB SSD
Antivirus
Eset Internet Security
Having purchased the drive on eBay, there's no telling what the previous user had done with it. I'll wager a format would also have fixed it.
 

My Computers My Computers

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 ProIntel Series 3 Core Ultra X9 388H64GB LPDDR5x 9600 MT/sIntel Arc graphics B390 Panther Lake
    OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS 16 DA16260
    CPU
    Intel Series 3 Core Ultra X9 388H
    Memory
    64GB LPDDR5x 9600 MT/s
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Arc graphics B390 Panther Lake
    Monitor(s) Displays
    16" 3.2K Tandem OLED Infinity Edge
    Screen Resolution
    3200 x 2000 16:10 236 PPI
    Hard Drives
    1 Terabyte M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD
    Case
    Black Anodized Aluminum
    Cooling
    Vapor Chamber Cooling
    Mouse
    None
    Internet Speed
    942 Mbps Netgear Mesh + 2 Satellites
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge (Chromium)
    Antivirus
    Windows Security (Defender)
    Other Info
    NPU delivering 67 TOPS
    Microsoft 365 subscription
    Microsoft Office 365
    Microsoft OneDrive 1TB Cloud
    Microsoft Visual Studio
    Microsoft Visual Studio Code
    Microsoft Sysinternals Suite
    Microsoft BitLocker
    Microsoft Copilot
    Dell Support Assist
    Dell Command | Update
    Macrium Reflect X subscription
    1Password Password Manager
    Amazon Kindle for PC
    Lightroom/Photoshop subscription
    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
  • At a glance

    Windows 11 ProSnapdragon® X Elite (12 Core) with Hexagon NP...32GB LPDDR5x 8448 MT/sIntegrated Adreno GPU
    Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Microsoft Surface Laptop 7
    CPU
    Snapdragon® X Elite (12 Core) with Hexagon NPU delivering 45 TOPS
    Memory
    32GB LPDDR5x 8448 MT/s
    Graphics card(s)
    Integrated Adreno GPU
    Sound Card
    Omnisonic speakers with Dolby Atmos spatial sound
    Monitor(s) Displays
    13.8″ PixelSense Flow touchscreen 120 Hz 600 NIT
    Screen Resolution
    2304 × 1536 (201 PPI), 3:2 aspect ratio
    Hard Drives
    1 TB PCIe NVMe Gen 4 SSD
    Case
    Black Anodized Aluminum
    Cooling
    Vapor Chamber Cooling
    Mouse
    None
    Internet Speed
    942 Mbps Netgear Mesh + 2 Satellites
    Browser
    Microsoft Edge (Chromium)
    Antivirus
    Windows Security (Defender)
    Other Info
    Microsoft 365 subscription (Office)
    Microsoft Office 365
    Microsoft OneDrive 1TB Cloud
    Microsoft Visual Studio 2026
    Microsoft Visual Studio Code
    Interactive Brokers Trader Workstation
    Lightroom/Photoshop subscription
    1Password Password Manager
    Microsoft Sysinternals
    Amazon Kindle for PC
    Microsoft BitLocker
    Microsoft Copilot

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