Have you ever thought of carrying your Mac OS on an external device and gain access to it at any time? If the reaction is yes, then you have arrived at the right post. We will be providing you with the information through which you can install macOS High Sierra on an external drive.
Find Disk Utility by opening Spotlight (cmd+Space-bar) and start typing Disk Utility, press enter to open the program. Look in the column on the left to see if the hard drive appears there. Part 1: How to Boot Mac from USB Drive/CD/DVD. Actually, it is possible to boot Mac from external drive or a hard drive, but there are a few specific requirements needed for your Mac to become eligible for that process. First, you have to have an Intel-Based Mac.
Part 1. How to Install macOS High Sierra on the External Drive
Before beginning the process, there are a few requisites that you must meet. You will need an external drive with a minimum capacity of 16 GB, and second, you will need the copy of the macOS High Sierra installer. You can obtain the installer from the App Store by searching for 'macOS' and download it to your Mac hard drive.
Step 1: Formatting the External Drive
To allow the external drive to function as the startup disk, you need to format it to Mac OS Extended and employ GUID partition map. Start the utility disk. You can find it under the Applications category or search it using Spotlight.
As utility disk runs in the background, you can check for the format of the external drive. In the following example, the drive is in Master Boot Record format. First, unmount the drive. After unmounting, you can select the same drive from the left of the window as shown in the figure below. Now, from the tabs that appear in right window, choose 'Erase' option.
In the next window, you can now format the external drive as 'Mac OS Extended' and opt for GUID Partition Map. If you choose to, you can also give it a name. Press 'Erase' to proceed. After completion, you will see the following screen. Press 'Done' to proceed.
Step 2: Installing macOS High Sierra on the External Drive
After you complete the download of the macOS installer, double click the same from the Applications folder to begin the installation procedure. Press 'Continue' in the following screen.
Click 'Agree' to the accept license agreement. In the next window, press the 'Show all disks' option. The window will display the local drive and the connected external drive. Choose the external drive in this case. You will have to key in your system user name and password.
macOS High Sierra will begin installing on the selected external hard disk. It requires some time to complete the task. You can wait until the process is complete. Before it completes the installation, the Mac will restart. Therefore, it is preferable to save any other work that is in progress.
After restarting, the Mac will take a minimum of 15 minutes to complete the installation process. It will then reboot from the new device. You then have to proceed with the general process of activating Siri, time zone, and adding the user account. Once you complete these actions, you will possess the new version of macOS High Sierra on your external drive. Do not remove the external drive, as Mac OS will access the files on the drive periodically. You can now use the same every time you wish to use High Sierra.
Part 2. How to Use macOS High Sierra with the Bootable Hard Drive
As you now have macOS High Sierra in the form of bootable hard drive, you can use it with another compatible Mac or when the situation demands. However, remember that using the external device as a bootable drive will slow down the functioning of the system. More importantly, it is useful only when you are facing trouble with your existing internal drive of the Mac.
The following information will be helpful in case if you choose to use macOS High Sierra with the bootable hard drive:
Step 1: If there is a trouble with the current hard disk, and you wish to solve it or use the new version of the OS, then plug the bootable external drive to the Mac.
Step 2: Power on the machine and hold the option button until you notice the recovery screen appear. From the screen, you can choose the bootable external device that you have created.
Step 3: You will boot into the macOS High Sierra version for that particular session.
External Drive Not Mounting Mac
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Summary :
Many people are complaining about the same problem: external hard drive not showing up on Mac. Actually, the external hard drive, USB flash drive, SD card, and even internal hard drive maybe not detected by Mac sometimes due to different reasons. 11 useful solutions are provided here to help users fix hard drive not working on Mac.
Quick Navigation :
In general, a hard drive or flash drive will be recognized and showing up on the desktop automatically after it's connected to Mac. However, it's true that there are chances for Mac not reading external hard drive after users connected the drive to Mac. External hard drive not showing up Mac is a hot topic among users. A lot of reasons should be blamed when you can't see external hard drive: the cable or port issue, corrupted system settings, improper file system, virus attack, etc. It's important to figure out the causes of Mac not recognizing external hard drive (internal hard drive, USB flash drive, or SD card) and try the corresponding methods to fix the problem.
How to fix hard drive not showing up on Mac? I'll demonstrate the Solutions from 3 aspects.
External Hard Drive Not Showing Up Mac
In this section, I'll summarize some popular causes for Mac not recognizing external hard drive and the corresponding tips on how to find external hard drive on Mac.
First of all, I'd like to advise Mac users to solve external drive not showing up by: removing the external drive completely -> restarting Mac (repeat this action for several times to see whether it works) -> re-connecting the external drive to Mac properly. Download files from android to mac. If this didn't work, please try the following methods.
How to fix external hard drive not showing up or recognized on Windows?
The problem – external hard drive not showing up/recognized/detected – can be fixed easily by following ways. Enjoy 2 mac.
#1. Take a Look at the System Information
Seagate external hard drive not showing up Mac:
Hi. I have a 1TB Seagate Backup Plus external hard drive, and it won't show up in my Mac Pro. The Mac Pro is the 2006 Intel Xeon model running 10.6.8 Snow Leopard. The System requirements for the external HDD are snow leopard or higher, so I don't know why it isn't working.
P.S. When I plug in the USB cable into the computer, the HDD starts to spin, but it never shows up in the finder or on the desktop. Also, this HDD works in my MacBook Pro, but not the Mac Pro. If anyone has any useful information, that would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. - posted by DisneyWorld in Apple Community
Many people are trying to help by providing possible solutions to Mac won't recognize external hard drive after DisneyWorld published this post to ask for help. Finally, DisneyWorld got his drive showing up and working after inspected it in System Report.
How to Check Using System Report
- Click on the Apple icon in the upper left corner.
- Select About This Mac from the drop-down menu.
- Click on the System Report… button in the pop-up window (below the information about your Mac & its operating system).
- Check the external hard drive there.
#2. Check Hardware for Problems
How do I get my Mac to recognize a hard drive connected through USB? Here are some quick tips.
- Please try a different port on your Mac.
- Check whether the USB connector/USB adapter works well.
- If you're using a hub, please try to plug your external hard drive directly into the Mac.
- If you're plugging into a wall outlet, please try a different outlet.
- Please check the cable to see whether it's physically damaged (whether there are snug fits, frayed cables, or missing pins). You can also try to use a different USB cable.
- Connect the external hard drive to another Mac or a PC. You can also test the disk on PC manually.
- Please try to connect the external device to its own power source, if applicable.
How to fix when USB flash drive not recognized on Windows?
Various solutions are provided for you to fix USB flash drive not recognized error and recover data from the inaccessible flash drive.
#3. Change Finder Preferences
Why is my external hard drive not showing up Mac? Another common reason is that the Finder preferences settings are not proper. How to change the settings?
- Open Finder on your Mac.
- Select Finder from the menu bar at the top.
- Choose Preferences from the submenu you see.
- Go to the General tab and look for the Show these items on the desktop section.
- Check External disks option under it.
- Then, go to the Sidebar tab at the top.
- Check External disks under Show these items on the sidebar.
#4. Check in Disk Utility
Step 2: Power on the machine and hold the option button until you notice the recovery screen appear. From the screen, you can choose the bootable external device that you have created.
Step 3: You will boot into the macOS High Sierra version for that particular session.
External Drive Not Mounting Mac
Recoverit
- Complete set of extraction tools
- Cost effective method in comparison to technician's bills
- Intuiting wizard based layout
- Retrieve 550+ file from any category
Summary :
Many people are complaining about the same problem: external hard drive not showing up on Mac. Actually, the external hard drive, USB flash drive, SD card, and even internal hard drive maybe not detected by Mac sometimes due to different reasons. 11 useful solutions are provided here to help users fix hard drive not working on Mac.
Quick Navigation :
In general, a hard drive or flash drive will be recognized and showing up on the desktop automatically after it's connected to Mac. However, it's true that there are chances for Mac not reading external hard drive after users connected the drive to Mac. External hard drive not showing up Mac is a hot topic among users. A lot of reasons should be blamed when you can't see external hard drive: the cable or port issue, corrupted system settings, improper file system, virus attack, etc. It's important to figure out the causes of Mac not recognizing external hard drive (internal hard drive, USB flash drive, or SD card) and try the corresponding methods to fix the problem.
How to fix hard drive not showing up on Mac? I'll demonstrate the Solutions from 3 aspects.
External Hard Drive Not Showing Up Mac
In this section, I'll summarize some popular causes for Mac not recognizing external hard drive and the corresponding tips on how to find external hard drive on Mac.
First of all, I'd like to advise Mac users to solve external drive not showing up by: removing the external drive completely -> restarting Mac (repeat this action for several times to see whether it works) -> re-connecting the external drive to Mac properly. Download files from android to mac. If this didn't work, please try the following methods.
How to fix external hard drive not showing up or recognized on Windows?
The problem – external hard drive not showing up/recognized/detected – can be fixed easily by following ways. Enjoy 2 mac.
#1. Take a Look at the System Information
Seagate external hard drive not showing up Mac:
Hi. I have a 1TB Seagate Backup Plus external hard drive, and it won't show up in my Mac Pro. The Mac Pro is the 2006 Intel Xeon model running 10.6.8 Snow Leopard. The System requirements for the external HDD are snow leopard or higher, so I don't know why it isn't working.
P.S. When I plug in the USB cable into the computer, the HDD starts to spin, but it never shows up in the finder or on the desktop. Also, this HDD works in my MacBook Pro, but not the Mac Pro. If anyone has any useful information, that would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. - posted by DisneyWorld in Apple Community
Many people are trying to help by providing possible solutions to Mac won't recognize external hard drive after DisneyWorld published this post to ask for help. Finally, DisneyWorld got his drive showing up and working after inspected it in System Report.
How to Check Using System Report
- Click on the Apple icon in the upper left corner.
- Select About This Mac from the drop-down menu.
- Click on the System Report… button in the pop-up window (below the information about your Mac & its operating system).
- Check the external hard drive there.
#2. Check Hardware for Problems
How do I get my Mac to recognize a hard drive connected through USB? Here are some quick tips.
- Please try a different port on your Mac.
- Check whether the USB connector/USB adapter works well.
- If you're using a hub, please try to plug your external hard drive directly into the Mac.
- If you're plugging into a wall outlet, please try a different outlet.
- Please check the cable to see whether it's physically damaged (whether there are snug fits, frayed cables, or missing pins). You can also try to use a different USB cable.
- Connect the external hard drive to another Mac or a PC. You can also test the disk on PC manually.
- Please try to connect the external device to its own power source, if applicable.
How to fix when USB flash drive not recognized on Windows?
Various solutions are provided for you to fix USB flash drive not recognized error and recover data from the inaccessible flash drive.
#3. Change Finder Preferences
Why is my external hard drive not showing up Mac? Another common reason is that the Finder preferences settings are not proper. How to change the settings?
- Open Finder on your Mac.
- Select Finder from the menu bar at the top.
- Choose Preferences from the submenu you see.
- Go to the General tab and look for the Show these items on the desktop section.
- Check External disks option under it.
- Then, go to the Sidebar tab at the top.
- Check External disks under Show these items on the sidebar.
#4. Check in Disk Utility
- Open Finder.
- Select Applications from the left sidebar (under Favorites).
- Choose Utilities from the right-hand panel.
- Click on Disk Utility to open a new window.
- Browse the drives list here.
External Hard Drive Not Mounting Mac
Sometimes, your external hard drive won't mount. If you find the external hard disk in Disk Utility but it doesn't shows up, it may be not mounted. Not mounting and improper disk format (how to check disk format will be talked later) are two of the common reasons causing new hard drive not showing up.
How to mount external hard drive Mac?
- Select the target external hard drive from the left sidebar.
- Click on the Mount option from the menu bar at the top.
If your Mac is set to show only mountable drives, you should try to fix Mac not recognizing external hard drive by allowing Show All Devices.
- Open Finder -> select Applications -> select Utilities -> choose Disk Utility.
- Select View from the menu bar at the top of the window.
- Click Show All Devices from the drop-down menu to view all mountable and non-mountable drives.
#5. Repair the Disk with First Aid
First Aid is a tool built in Mac to check disk for errors (startup problems, corrupted files, corrupted file system, etc.) and then repair them. If your external hard drive appears but not shows up on desktop, please run First Aid.
Mac Os Mount Usb Drive
- Repeat step1 ~ 4 mentioned in method 4.
- Select the problematic external hard drive from the left panel.
- Click on the First Aid option in the top menu bar.
- Click Run in the pop-up confirmation dialog window.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to continue.
How to Recover Data from Mac Hard Drive
You may find some important files not showing in the external hard drive (internal hard drive, flash drive, SD card, etc.). How to get them back on Mac? You should get a professional recovery tool that supports Mac to help you (Stellar Data Recovery for Mac, jointly designed by MiniTool and Stellar, is a good choice).
- Download the software to a location which doesn't contain any lost files (to avoid data overwriting).
- Double click on the setup program and follow the on-screen instructions to finish the installation process.
- Run the software to start the recovery process (please make sure the external disk is always connected properly to Mac).
- In the Select What To Recover page, please toggle the switch under Recover Everything to ON or choose the file types you need from Documents, Emails, Videos, Audio, and Photos.
- Click on the Next button to continue.
- Choose the target hard disk which can't show up on Mac in the next Select Location page.
- Click on the Scan button in the lower right corner to start scanning the drive (you can turn on the Deep Scan feature in the lower left corner to show more scan results).
- Browse the found files and folders carefully and select all the ones you want to recover.
- Click on the Recover button in the lower right corner.
- Please select a destination to store the recovered files by clicking Browse.
- Click on the Save button to confirm your selection.
- Wait for the recovery process to finish.
Some people may want to recover crucial data from their Mac when it can't boot successfully. What should they do? This post tells you all about how to recover from a crashed/dead MacBook (MacBook Pro).
#6. Repair External Drive by Using Terminal
- Open Finder.
- Select Applications and then Utilities.
- Double click on Terminal to open it.
- Type diskutil list into the command line and press Return.
- The basic information of volumes and drives available will be displayed.
- Look for the disk# section of the target external disk.
- Type diskutil mountDisk /dev/disk# and press Return.
- Type diskutil repairVolume /dev/disk# and press Return.
- Wait for the process to finish.
- Go to the Terminal and then Quit Terminal.
#7. Check Disk Format
If you can find your external hard drive under Disk Utility, but you can't mount and use it, it's possible that the disk format is the issue. Your Mac can't recognize a drive that's been formatted with a file system that it cannot read.
In this case, you need to reformat the drive (please backup at least the important files on target drive since the erase action will ruin them):
- Open Disk Utility.
- Select the target external disk from the left panel.
- Click Erase at the top.
- You can give a name to the disk.
- Choose a proper file system from the drop-down menu of Format.
- Choose a Scheme and then click on the Erase button to confirm.
- Wait for the operation to finish.
Best External Hard Drive For Macbook Pro
APFS and Mac OS Extended are used frequently on Mac; you should figure out the differences between them (read APFS vs Mac OS Extended) before you decide which one to use.
Can you read a Mac-formatted hard drive on a Windows PC?
Usually, you can't read Mac drive on a Windows PC; this post shows you how to view content on Mac-formatted drive easily.
#8. Reset NVRAM
If there's problem with the Mac's RAM, it may cause external hard drive not showing up. You can troubleshoot the problem by resetting NVRAM properly.
- Restart your Mac (shut down and turn it on again).
- Press these 4 keys simultaneously: Command+Option+P+R; hold them for at least 20 seconds.
- Release these keys when you hear the second startup chime
#9. Check the /Volumes/ Folder
When you can't find an external hard disk on Mac, you can also try your luck by checking the /Volumes/ folder.
- Open Finder.
- Select Go from the top menu bar.
- Choose Go to Folder from the drop-down menu.
- Type /Volume/ into the textbox.
- Click on the Go button below or press Enter.
- Look for your external hard drive under Volumes folder.
How to recover a Mac file deleted from a folder or the desktop?
Believe it or not, we can make it easy to recover deleted data on Mac even if you are totally a novice.
#10. Uninstall Conflicting Apps
The applications you have installed on you Mac may have conflict with the external hard drive so that it can't be detected. How to troubleshoot Mac not detecting external hard drive?
- If you have installed new apps on Mac recently, please go to uninstall them completely.
- If you haven't installed any new app, please go to browse your installed apps and delete the ones with potential conflict.
#11. Update macOS
Updating OS is another useful fix for hard drive not showing up Mac.
- Select Apple menu.
- Choose SystemPreferences.
- Click Software Update.
- Wait for the checking process.
- Click Update Now when available updates are found.
- Wait for the update to complete.
If your external disk runs very slow after you updated the macOS, please try to troubleshoot the issue by resetting the SMC (System Management Controller).
Bonus Tip: Internal Hard Drive Not Showing Up
If your internal hard drive doesn't show up on Mac suddenly, please try to fix it by the following solutions:
- Change Finder Preferences settings.
- Mount/repair the hard drive in Disk Utility.
- Repair disk in macOS recovery mode.
- Check the internal hard drive in Terminal.
For more information about USB not showing up on Mac or flash drive/SD card not showing up Mac, please read this page. Adobe suite for mac price.
Verdict
There are many actions and issues that could lead to the problem – external hard drive not showing up Mac. You should read this page carefully to find out the possible reasons and master the corresponding solutions that may help you fix the problem yourself.
