My WD Elements external HD will no longer back up to my MacBook Pro. It has been working fine since last August. This issue has happened since the drive was accidentally disconnected from the MacBook without being properly “ejected”. Currently it will no longer display in Finder so I can’t show you an image of the message I get when I try to run Disk Utility/First Aid.
- Sometimes the disk will show up in Finder and sometimes it will not (but not for the last few days).
- When it does show up and I perform First Aid in Disk Utility, it cannot complete the process.
- When it does display in Finder and Time Machine attempts to back up, the back up fails, then Time Machine will display a message saying that the disk has been removed without being ejected properly (which it hasn’t – it is still plugged in) and will automatically eject it by itself.
- The light comes on the disk when I plug it in. I have also plugged it into another power source and the light comes on.
- The external HD vibrates when it is plugged in, which suggests that the external HD is working.
- I have used a different cable with the same results.
- I was last able to do a back up on Feb 3rd.
- I only have one working USB port on this MacBook so I cannot use another one but I can plug other devices into that port and they work successfully (e.g. phone charger)
- The message "The identity of the backup disk “Elements” has changed since the previous backup . . .” appears even when the disk is not connected to the MacBook.
The one piece of good news is: I have now plugged it into an old MacBook and it successfully backed up that MacBook using Time Machine.
So, it seems that the external HD does work and the issue is to do with the connection between this MacBook and the external HD.
Do you have any suggestions of what I might do to repair the issue with the MacBook not recognizing the external HD? Thanks for your help.
