Does your Mac not recognize a USB drive? Is the USB flash drive not showing up on Mac after inserting it in the USB port? Find solutions here. Download EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac when you want to recover data from a USB drive not recognized.
Mac Won't Recognize USB, What Should You Do?
1 Recommended Answer. $0 Recommended Answers. 1 Relevant Answer. $0 Relevant Answers. Just got a new MacBook Pro running on Mojave 10.14.5. Used to have a Google Drive shortcut icon on Finder Sidebar but now it's missing. Dec 21, 2020 If no, then all you have to do is to tap on the 'Finder' icon from the Dock of your Mac to appear it in the foreground. Once you are able to do it, follow the below steps to show the hard drive on a Mac desktop: Go to the Menu bar, and then, move to 'Finder'. Next, click on the 'Preferences' option. If it does not, then maybe there is a cable problem. If it does appear, and yet it shows no image, maybe your mac is outputting at a resolution or refresh rate that the old display does not support. First, make sure Finder will display drive icons. By default, it doesn’t display much and the setting to not show external disks may be enabled. Open a Finder window. Select Preferences and the.
Commonly, when you insert a USB drive in the USB port on a Mac computer, the drive will soon appear on the desktop or hide in the Finder, letting you access, view, and manage data on it. Did you come across the situation that no matter how many times you try to connect the USB drive with a Mac computer, the USB drive is not showing up anywhere? Why this time Mac won't recognize a connected USB you may wonder. Though not a usual thing, the issue of an external hard drive or flash drive not showing up on Mac happens sometimes. What should you do in this circumstance? What are the effective solutions to make your USB drive show up again?
This page basically covers all the possible fixes for USB not showing up on Mac, which also applies to the similar issues of other storage devices like an external hard drive not showing up on Mac, flash drive not showing up on Mac, SD card not showing up on Mac, etc. Take a quick glance at the main content and directly jump to the part you're most interested in.
10 Fixes for USB Not Showing Up on Mac
The reasons behind the problem of a USB device not showing up are various, including the USB port is not working, USB drive corruption, virus infection, macOS faulty, etc. So, to figure out the effective solutions for your own case, you need to take time to have some basic check, exclude the irrelevant issues, identify the potential risk, and finally solve it!
Fix 1. Change the USB-to-Mac connection way
Have you tried to restart your Mac once or twice? Before taking further measures, don't forget the most efficient way to tackle commonplace hardware glitches that arises from time to time. If this operating system restarting fails to solve the current problem, move on to check the physical connectivity issue step by step.
Step 1. Plug the USB drive out from the not working USB port and change to the other USB port. Try all the available USB ports on your Mac.
Step 2. Did you use a USB connection cable or a USB-C adapter? If yes, take the USB drive out, and directly plug it in the USB port.
Step 3. Is there the other Mac computer available to you? If yes, try to connect the USB drive to this computer. Is it showing up normally?
Step 4. For SD card owners, the common way to connect an SD card to a Mac needs a card reader. If changing the USB ports did not work, try to change a card reader for a new round of tests.
The four steps of troubleshooting a USB drive not showing up on Mac are very basic, however, quite helpful in most cases. Each step can help us exclude the issues of a bad/loose connection, a not working USB port, a lack of power, and other superficial phenomenons.
No Drives Icon Mac DesktopFix 2. Change settings for Mac detecting an external hard disk on the desktop
Occasionally, your Mac has already recognized the USB flash drive but not shown it on the desktop. Thus, you should go to Finder > Preferences > General and make sure the 'External disks' option is ticked. Then you'll see the USB flash drive showing up on Mac desktop.
Fix 3. Change settings for Mac recognize an external hard disk in the Finder
Finder is the other access for us to check a connected external drive on Mac. If your flash drive or external hard drive is not showing up there, go to Finder > Preferences > Sidebar, and under Locations, you need to tick the option 'External disks'. New mac mojave. By selecting this option, we can make sure that the connected external USB hard drive or flash drive will normally show up in the Finder.
Fix 4. Check the USB drive in System Information
When you cannot find the USB drive on the desktop or in the Finder, try to look for it in the System Information section, which is usually a hidden place for average Mac users.
Step 1. Go to Applications > Utilities > System Information.
Step 2. Check if the system detects the USB drive. Click 'USB' on the left panel, and you can also check the USB flash drive information.
![]() Fix 5. Reset USB ports on Mac to detect a USB drive
Step 1. Restart Mac computer, press the Command +Option+P+R keys until the Apple logo appears.
Step 2. Press Command+Option+Esc keys to close all applications that are not responding.
Step 3. Plug the USB which is not showing up to your Mac computer. If it doesn't show up, click Apple icon and select 'Sleep'.
Step 4. Wake up the computer after a few seconds by pressing any key.
Step 5. Shut down the Mac, unplug the power cord, reattach it after 15 seconds.
If this doesn't work, we should suspect the corruption issue at this moment. Don't give up and try to do some repair by yourself.
Fix 6. Repair USB flash drive with First Aid if it doesn't show up
Step 1. Go to Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility.
Step 3. Select the USB drive and click 'Unmount' at the top toolbar, unplug the USB and plug it back in 10-15 seconds.
Fix 7. Check and fix errors in a not recognized USB with Terminal
Step 1. Open Terminal in Utilities, type:diskutil list and press Return.
Step 2. Find the disk number of your USB flash drive, type: diskutil info disk2 and press Return. (Replace 2 with the disk number of your USB flash drive.)
Step 3. Type: diskutil eject disk 2 and press Return.
Step 4. Type: diskutil list and press Return.When the USB disappear from the Terminal list, close the window.
Step 5. Close Terminal and open Console to inspect your drive errors.
Step 6. Click 'Errors and Faults' to check if there are any errors.
Step 7. Reconnect your USB flash drive back to Mac, if no error shows up, your USB flash drive is safe.
Fix 8. Save data and reformat the not showing USB drive
Disk reformatting basically solves many hard drive issues, including the not showing up USB, particularly the time when you are able to see the USB icon but files are not showing. USB drive showing empty makes no sense, so you have to reformat the disk and make it usable again.
Note that reformatting will erase data. As long as the data matters, you need to follow the standard procedure to ensure zero data loss. [1] Download EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac, the professional Mac data recovery software, to perform a full USB drive data recovery. [2] Reformat the USB drive in Disk Utility.
To format the USB drive in Disk Utility:
Step 1. Go to Utilities and open Disk Utility.
Step 2. Select the not showing up USB flash drive in the Disk Utility sidebar.
Step 3. Click Erase on the top.
Step 4. Finish the necessary information (name, format, and scheme) to format the USB flash drive.
Fix 9. Update your macOS and firmware
Did your Mac's OS keep updating all the time? Chances are that your Mac won't recognize a USB drive, especially after a macOS update. This time, take a close look at the settings whether your Mac is up-to-date. Equally, firmware updates address a variety of hardware issues and the functionality of the USB ports could well be one of them. So, keep your software and firmware up to date will likely make the USB drive show up as normal again.
Fix 10. Send the USB drive to a repair center
Nowadays even the branded USB flash drives are not expensive. If you've tried all the suggested troubleshooting methods, the USB drive is still not showing up on Mac, you have to accept the truth that it's severely damaged and beyond your ability to repair it.
Mac won't recognize a badly damaged flash drive or external hard drive since there is no way to show it up, even temporarily, which makes the data recovery difficult. The last chance for you to rescue data is to send the broken USB drive to a specialized data recovery service center nearby, and let the professionals try their best. You need to prepare for the manual data recovery cost, which is noticeably higher than the software data recovery. Hence, always try the cost-effective plan of using EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard to scan the USB drive for the first attempt.
Step 1. Correctly connect your USB flash drive to your Mac. Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac. Start selecting the flash drive and click 'Scan' to let the software search lost files on it.
Step 2. After a quick scan and deep scan, all files will be presented in the left panel in the scan results.
Step 3. Select files you want to recover and click the 'Recover Now' button. Don't save the recoverable files to the USB drive itself in case of data overwriting.
There are times when your Mac desktop files or icons disappear all of a sudden. Sometimes, you may find everything on my desktop disappeared on Mac. This page guides you to turn the icons back on, restore icons missing on Mac immediately. Learn how to restore missing desktop files and icons on Mac with EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac and other manual methods on your own.
When the desktop files and drive icons disappear on your Mac, stay calm. Accordingly, due to macOS or Mac OS X update, personal settings, and careless operations, you may find Mac desktop files and icons not sowing.
Follow through the two parts below to display your disappeared Mac desktop icons and restore the lost files with ease:
Everything on My Mac Desktop Disappeared, Help
Don't worry if you are having a similar case as listed here, you can continue reading and find the right solution to make your Mac desktop icon showing and restore all missing files on your own.
Case 1 - Everything on my desktop disappeared on Mac computer, need help!
'Hello, after saving a .xls file on my desktop, all my desktop files and folders disappeared! Impossible to find them, also my bin was empty too, nothing to find or delete. Also, I didn't do any back up in the past to restore. What's worse, some drive icons are also missing! Those files and folders are really important as they are work-related. What should I try? Please, urgent help is needed. Thanks!'
Case 2 - Mac desktop files not showing, seemed lost, after macOS update.
'Does someone know how to bring the lost desktop files back after macOS update? My desktop files not showing after macOS update, how do I do? Do I still have a chance to restore them?'
Why Did Everything on My Desktop Disappear on Mac?
At times you might notice that files and icons from your Mac desktop are missing or they have just disappeared. Here are the normal reasons:
It is really shocking especially for those who have stored important files, folders, and icons on the Mac desktop. However, before you assume that they are permanently gone from your Mac desktop, refer the following points to see if you can restore disappeared files and icons from the desktop.
Part 1. Show and Retrieve Missing Mac Icons
It is easy to find missing Windows icons. But when it comes to Mac, most people become confused. It's the Finder that controls the display of Mac desktop and all of its icons, including drive icons of storage devices.
Usually, when you install macOS or upgrade Mac OS X, it renders the desktop without the drive icons by default. Sometimes, misoperations cause desktop icons missing from the desktop.
Luckily, you can show the disappeared Mac desktop icons by using either of the following methods.
Method 1. Show Missing Mac iCons using Finder
By changing the Finder's default settings, you can effectively make the desktop display the missing icons again.
Step 1. Click on the desktop or open a Finder window.
Step 2. From the menu bar, select 'Finder Preferences'.
Step 3. In the Finder Preferences window that opens, click the 'General tab'.
Malware download mac. You'll see a list of devices that can have their associated icon displayed on your desktop.
Step 4. Place a checkmark next to the items you wish to display on the desktop.
After this, close the Finder Preferences window. The selected items will display on the desktop again.
Method 2. Retrieve Disappeared Mac Desktop iCons from Times Machine Backup
Pre-condition: You have created a Time Machine backup of your Mac desktop before the icons and files missed.
When you lost desktop settings, you can also try to bring them back by running Time Machine backup recovery. It will bring you back to the date before Mac desktop icons disappearing.
Let's see how to retrieve the disappeared Mac desktop icons:
Step 1.Connect the external Time Machine backup disk to Mac. Enter 'Time Machine' from the Time Machine menu.
Step 2. Use the timeline or up and down arrow browse and select the backup point.
Step 3.Press 'Space' bar to preview and see whether it's the one you want.
Step 4.;Click 'Restore' to restore the selected file.
After this, you can view and check items like icons saved on your Mac desktop again, including the missing files.
Part 2. Recover Missing Desktop Files/Folders on Mac
There are several ways that can help to find the missing files from the Mac desktop. Check out the workable methods and follow to restore desktop files on Mac now.
Note that the former method is presented, the more effective it will be.
Quick Fix. Check If the Desktop Files Are Hidden
Mac has a built-in application called Terminal. Using this application, you can search, delete, or modify files and folders. You can also use it to check if desktop files are hidden or missing.
Here are the steps:
Step 1. Go to Mac terminal on Mac.
Step 2. Type defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles true and press Return.
Step 3. Type killall Finder and hit Return.
This will close Mac Terminal and shows those hidden files on your Mac desktop. If this technique doesn't work, recover files from the empty Mac desktop with Mac desktop files recovery software.
Method 1. Restore Mac Desktop Files/Folders Using Mac Desktop File Recovery Software
Applies to: All levels of Mac users to restore missing Mac desktop files and folders.
Work on: Latest macOS 10.15.5 (Catalina)/10.15.4 and even older Mac OS X, like 10.9.
When your saved items lost on Mac desktop, professional Mac data recovery software - EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac can scan the hard drive to scan and find disappeared files from Mac Desktop. It can smoothly restore disappeared files from Mac desktop without any difficulties.
Many users have used this application to recover 200+ files, Keynotes, Pages documents, AbiWord files, MS Office files, archive files, PDF documents from Mac desktop. Download this effective desktop file recovery software and get the desktop files back.
Moreover, if you only need to recover a few files less than 2GB, you may try the free version of EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac. It works exactly the same as the pro version.
Steps to Restore Missing/Lost Mac Desktop Files
Step 1. Select the disk location (it can be an internal HDD/SSD or a removable storage device) where you lost data and files. Click the 'Scan' button.
Step 2. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac will immediately scan your selected disk volume and display the scanning results on the left pane.
Step 3. In the scan results, select the file(s) and click the 'Recover Now' button to have them back.
After this, you can save the found files back to your Mac desktop and use them again.
Method 2. Restore Lost Mac Desktop Files via iCloud Backup
Applies to: iCloud users who have set up iCloud to Sync Mac files, restore missing Mac desktop files from iCloud backup.
Works on: All Mac computers with iCloud backup.
If you have synced Mac files to your iCloud, you can immediately bring the lost or missing desktop files like documents back via your iCloud account.
Here are the steps:
Step 1. Go to iCloud.com and sign in with your account and password.
Step 2. Click iCloud Settings and scroll to the bottom, click 'Restore Files' under the Advanced section.
Step 3. Tick the boxes of your lost files on Mac, and click 'Restore'.
Method 3. Restore Not Showing Mac Files via Time Machine Backup
Applies to: Restore lost Mac files via Time Machine backup.
Works on: All Mac computers.
Being similar to iCloud backup recovery, if you have created a backup of your Mac files to a Time Machine backup disk, you can also immediately bring them back on your Mac desktop.
For a detailed guide, you can revert to Method 2 in Part 1 for help.
Method 4. Use Stacks to Find Missing Desktop Files on Mac
Applies to: Re-organize and make Mac desktop files show up.
No Drives Icon Mac Pro
Works on: macOS Catalina, Mojave, etc.
If you are using the latest macOS on your computer, such as macOS Catalina, Mojave, you can use Stacks on your computer to automatically organize your desktop files by file type.
When you lose or missing files on the Mac desktop, try Stacks. It may surprise you.
Step 1. On Mac desktop, right-click an empty space to bring up the Context Menu.
Step 2. Uncheck 'Use Stacks'.
Step 3. Repeat Step 1 again, and check 'Use Stacks' this time.
After this, you may find the missing files back on your desktop again.
Method 5. Restore Missing Mac Desktop Files from Trash
Applies to: All levels of Mac users to bring deleted files saved on Mac desktop from Trash.
Works on: All macOS and Mac OS X platforms.
When you lost files on Mac desktop, you may mistakenly drag them into the Trash bin. Then you can try to find them in the Trash.
Here are the steps:
Step 1. Open Trash Bin on Mac desktop, find the files that you lost.
No Drives Icon Mac App
Step 2. Drag the files you want to recover back to the desktop.
Or you can right-click on the file and select 'Put Back'.
Conclusion
On this page, we explained why do the desktop icons and saved items disappeared on Mac, and also covered several practical methods to help you find and restore the missing icons on Mac desktop.
To make everything work fine on your Mac, you need first display Mac icons using methods in Part 1. Then you can apply file recovery tips such as to let EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac help and retrieve Mac desktop files.
After finishing all the operations, your jobs are done. You can use your Mac icons and files again.
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