Western Digital’s external Hard disk drivers are one of the best. The My Passport variant has gained much popularity across the globe. Recently, the users of the popular variant are facing a serious issue. It’s WD Passport not showing up on their PC. It seems that you are facing the same issue. Several other reviews state that the issue is taking place especially on Windows 10 and 11. 

There are several reasons behind this issue. And, some of them are faulty USB cables, glitches within the system, HHD sector errors, issues in the drive paths, and many more. Most probably you have all the important data in the drive. Thus, you have to deal with the problem so that you don’t lose all the data. 

Things to Do

Make sure that your system OS is updated to its latest version. On the other hand, you must have more than one HDD USB cable. Both of them must be original and manufactured by Western Digital. Never use any duplicate cable, else it can damage the drive permanently. 

Resolving WD Passport Not Showing Up

Here are some of the best possible solutions that will make your system detect the WD My Passport on your system. Go through all the methods carefully and perform them accordingly. 

Method 1: Use an Alternate USB Cable

As mentioned earlier, you need more than one original WD USB cable for testing purposes. This will show whether the existing cable is faulty or not. If not, then the cable might be functional but there are some other reasons. Proceed to the next method. 

Method 2: Troubleshoot the System 

Connect the WD external drive to your computer. Open Settings and click on Update and Security. From the left-hand side of the screen, you will see a list of options. Select Troubleshoot and click on the Run the Troubleshooter button. The process might take a few minutes. As the external drive is connected, the system will also troubleshoot the drive. When the troubleshooting is complete, hopefully, the WD Passport not showing up will be resolved. 

Method 3: Update all the Drivers

It seems that the installed drivers on your system are not updated for a long time. That is why the WD Passport not showing up. You can update the drivers in three different ways. The first one is the Windows update, this process is time-consuming. The second one is via Device Manager. You have to right-click on every driver plug-ins and update them. This process is also consuming. And, the last one is via a third-party application. It will detect all the outdated drivers and update all of them. When done, connect the external disk drive and check whether it is being detected by the system or not. 

Method 4: Make Changes in Path and Drive Letter

The system’s disk management will help you to assign a new drive letter. In addition to that, it will also help you to make necessary changes in the WD HDD path. Hopefully, this will resolve the WD Passport not showing up on your computer. Open the Run and type “Disk Management”. You will witness the dedicated system’s internal as well as the WD external HDD. 

Furthermore, there will be a drive named System Reserved. Ignore this, it is of no use to you. Select the external drive and right-click on the Disk Management window. Choose “Change drive letter and paths”. Click on Add and assign the necessary drive letter. In case, a drive letter is already assigned, click on Change. Lastly, select OK to finish. Hopefully, your external drive will show up. 

Method 5: Check the WD HDD Partition

There are several third-party applications that will help you in checking the hard disk partition. You can download one of them and check whether there are any errors in the sector. Every HDD and SSD manufacturing organization has a specialized app that takes care of your HDD. Hopefully, WD also has one. Navigate to the official website of Western Digital. Visit the support center and you will get the app based on the OS you use. 

Other Issues

Sectors in the HDD can be corrupted due to some obvious reasons. The sectors are nothing but single and multi-dimensional arrays. These arrays hold data in the form of 0s and 1s. Somehow, if you mishandle the drive, the internal round-shaped disc can get damaged. Thus, WD Passport not showing up can take place. 

When none of the above methods works, the only thing left is to take the drive to its authorized service center. Make sure you take all the accessories that came along with the WD HDD.

If the WD external drive is still within the international warranty, then the service will be free of cost. In case, the professionals detect any physical damage, then you might have to pay extra charges for repair. If your data is at risk, you can assure that more than 80% of your personal data will be recovered. 

Frequently Asked Questions:

Why can’t I see my WD Passport?

propose that you examine how the drive is registered in Disk Management. Uninstalling and reinstalling the WD My Passport from Device Manager is another optionIf you have spare USB cord, you might also use it to connect the HDD.

Why is my WD Passport not working Mac?

After you’ve tried connecting your WD Passport drive into another port and it still doesn’t work. It’s possible that all your Mac needs is reboot– complete shutdown. Go to the top left corner of your screen. Select Shutdown from the Apple menu by clicking on the Apple logo.