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LaCie external HDD won't mount, crashes Dick Utility

sunsnewmac

sunsnewmac

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 3, 2007
263
0
A few months ago I bought a new LaCie "Little Disk" external 500 GB HDD. Has Firewire and USB power. Formatted for both Windows and Mac (Fat32). Everything was going fine. One day the disk would not eject. That is when the problems started. I had to manually remove the disk without ejecting. Having done this with my other LaCie external HDD without any future problems (it would always remount) I didn't think anything of it.

Since then, the disk will not mount on either the Mac or the PC. The disk will not mount using the Firewire or the USB power connectivity even though the blue power light is on.

When I open Disk Utility with the LaCie plugged in, Disk Utility crashes. When I open Disk Utility before the LaCie is plugged in and then plug the LaCie in afterwards, it crashes.

I tried plugging the LaCie in before booting my MacBook to see if that worked, but that method prevented the MB from booting at all!

Contacted LaCie about this but have yet to hear back. I'm convinced that this can be solved cleanly without any data loss. Suggestions?
 
I think the HDD is just bad. Have to tried trying to connect it to other computers to see if there are any problems connecting? Few years back, LaCie were good HDD's but recently I've read that they have various problems but I haven't personally used one. Hopefully you can still exchange it for another HDD if it has gone bad.
 
iLog.Genius said:
I think the HDD is just bad. Have to tried trying to connect it to other computers to see if there are any problems connecting? Few years back, LaCie were good HDD's but recently I've read that they have various problems but I haven't personally used one. Hopefully you can still exchange it for another HDD if it has gone bad.
Click to expand...

I hope it has not gone "bad." The data on it is far more important than the disk. I am abroad and in no position to arrange an exchange anyway.
 
UPDATE: Got disk to show in Disk Utility but all options grayed out

I ran a Verify Disk Permissions on my internal HDD and then plugged in the external. The external finally showed up in Disk Utility. However, all options except "Info" and "Eject" are grayed out. What should I do???
 
Can you actually post a screenshot of the disk utility window? Also, have you tried connecting it to a Windows-based computer to see if it will detect it?
 
iLog.Genius said:
Can you actually post a screenshot of the disk utility window? Also, have you tried connecting it to a Windows-based computer to see if it will detect it?
Click to expand...

Yes, I've tried on a PC with Vista and it doesn't mount there either. The HDD was formatted FAT32.

I just DLd the screenshot software, here is an image

NBkc1MphbI0KCoU3J_k5cw


It's worth noting that "LaCie" was the factory name for the HDD. I renamed it to FAT32 when I first formatted it.

Also I tried to find it in Terminal command lsof/...
but it comes back with "No such file or directory.

Thanks
 
If it's not showing up in Windows, then your rule out any software problems and you're likely looking at the HDD being bad. I would wait to see the response from LaCie before tying to do anything. Unfortunately, if you can't get it to mount and both OS X or Windows, there's very little if not anything, you can do.
 
you could try taking the hdd out of the case putting it in a sealed plastic bag and freezing it over night, sounds strange but it might give you another 20mins of life out the drive
 
max¥¥ said:
you could try taking the hdd out of the case putting it in a sealed plastic bag and freezing it over night, sounds strange but it might give you another 20mins of life out the drive
Click to expand...

I heard about this method and want to try it. Is it really necessary to remove from the case? The model I have is the Little Disk, and it's in a fully-sealed case (not a screw or opening to be seen).
 
sunsnewmac said:
I heard about this method and want to try it. Is it really necessary to remove from the case? The model I have is the Little Disk, and it's in a fully-sealed case (not a screw or opening to be seen).
Click to expand...

probably would be fine in the case but you MUST put it in a sealed plastic bag
 
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