Trouble connecting LaCie external HD to MacBook Pro

[alextinder]

I have a 1TB LaCie external and I want to backup my MacBook Pro, but it isn't being recognized. I plug it into an iMac, and it is recognized and I can view everything on it, but it doesn't even show up on my Pro. It was showing up the other day, but now I can't even see it under Disk Utility.

On my iMac, I checked the HD under Disk Utility and there is nothing wrong with it. The Pro is connected to the charger and is at 100%, but could it still be an issue with power? I also tried relaunching Finder, but nothing changed. I closed down most everything I have open but to no avail.

I'm kind of at a loss for what to do, any help would be appreciated. The computer is old and runs very slow, I don't want to lose anything.

 

[CoastalOR]

Is the LaCie bus powered or external powered? What model LaCie drive?
How are you connecting it to the MBP?
Are you using the same connection method and/or cable between the iMac and MBP?

My first impression from your symptom description is that it might be USB bus powered and the older MBP may not be providing enough power from a single USB port to reliably spin up and mount the drive.

 

[Floris]

Is the LaCie bus powered or external powered? What model LaCie drive?
How are you connecting it to the MBP?
Are you using the same connection method and/or cable between the iMac and MBP?

My first impression from your symptom description is that it might be USB bus powered and the older MBP may not be providing enough power from a single USB port to reliably spin up and mount the drive.

I was thinking the same, I assume you tried different USB ports? Sometimes on Mac the USB port you have access to is on a shared hub, giving less power. The port on the other side is not sharing, and has more to give to external devices like hard drives. A family member had the same problem. HDD won't work on one side, worked on the other side's USB port.

 

[alextinder]

Is the LaCie bus powered or external powered? What model LaCie drive?
How are you connecting it to the MBP?
Are you using the same connection method and/or cable between the iMac and MBP?

My first impression from your symptom description is that it might be USB bus powered and the older MBP may not be providing enough power from a single USB port to reliably spin up and mount the drive.

It's bus powered, connected with the USB that came with the HD. The same exact connection is being used for the iMac and Pro.

I've seen a lot of people saying it could be the power, but I was able to get the external to open up on the iMac just a few days ago and I haven't done anything with it since.

I was thinking the same, I assume you tried different USB ports? Sometimes on Mac the USB port you have access to is on a shared hub, giving less power. The port on the other side is not sharing, and has more to give to external devices like hard drives. A family member had the same problem. HDD won't work on one side, worked on the other side's USB port.

Yes, I tried both ports. The ports are only on the left side, there are none on the right.

 

[DeltaMac]

Your MBPro may not provide enough power for some external devices. It's not unusual for that to happen.
Try adding a power supply to the LaCie, if it accepts one. Not all "portable" external drives include an external power port.
Or, connect the LaCie through a powered USB hub to your MBPro.

 

[alextinder]

Your MBPro may not provide enough power for some external devices. It's not unusual for that to happen.
Try adding a power supply to the LaCie, if it accepts one. Not all "portable" external drives include an external power port.
Or, connect the LaCie through a powered USB hub to your MBPro.

Any idea why it was working last week but isn't now? I didn't add anything new to it, so it still has the same amount of documents and things on it.

This is the LaCie I have: https://www.lacie.com/us/products/product.htm?id=10564

Any suggestions for a powered USB hub?

 

[DeltaMac]

What about other changes, not obviously connected in any way to your hard drive?
for example, have you changed to a different wireless router? Do you have any bluetooth devices.
USB 3.0 devices, in some circumstances, can get interference from Wifi on the 2.4 GHz band.
Bluetooth can also be affected (or at fault) too.
Try turning OFF your wifi card, and bluetooth, too - then try connecting your LaCie.
(This is so you can say "tried that, didn't change anything about the LaCie" )

 

[alextinder]

What about other changes, not obviously connected in any way to your hard drive?
for example, have you changed to a different wireless router? Do you have any bluetooth devices.
USB 3.0 devices, in some circumstances, can get interference from Wifi on the 2.4 GHz band.
Bluetooth can also be affected (or at fault) too.
Try turning OFF your wifi card, and bluetooth, too - then try connecting your LaCie.
(This is so you can say "tried that, didn't change anything about the LaCie" )

The router was changed about a month ago, but I've used the HD since then, and no bluetooth devices are connected to the MBP. The HD and computers are all at my office now, so I'll try that out tomorrow and see what happens!

 

[alextinder]

What about other changes, not obviously connected in any way to your hard drive?
for example, have you changed to a different wireless router? Do you have any bluetooth devices.
USB 3.0 devices, in some circumstances, can get interference from Wifi on the 2.4 GHz band.
Bluetooth can also be affected (or at fault) too.
Try turning OFF your wifi card, and bluetooth, too - then try connecting your LaCie.
(This is so you can say "tried that, didn't change anything about the LaCie" )

I tried turning off wifi and bluetooth, but nothing changed. Do you have a recommendation for a powered USB hub you mentioned?