How to Open Hard Drive Without Formatting in Windows?
Summary: In this post, you will learn how to open hard drive without formatting in Windows 11, 10, 8 and 7. Read the post and follow the steps. To avoid data loss, keep this utility on your Windows system.
The Microsoft Windows OS enables users to attach an external hard drive and perform read-write operations. But before using the raw hard disk, you need to format the external hard drive. It is a very simple and easy case. You can easily format the disk because you didn’t store anything on it.
But suppose you are trying to open an old hard drive. And it restricts you to opening an external hard drive and asks you to format it first. It is a life-lasting situation for the users. Because the data is crucial. So, here is the solution for how to open my external hard drive without formatting.
If you are unable to open your hard drive, then there is a chance of hard drive corruption. There are multiple reasons for corruption. In this post, I am not going to explain the reasons. Follow the methods listed below and easily access data on the hard drive without formatting.
Note: If you have purchased a new hard disk, then you have to format the disk and assign a drive letter.
Methods to Open Hard Drive Without Formatting
The repair method may differ in different cases. The issue can occur for various reasons. The solution is also different for the different causes of this error. Find all possible solutions for how to open an external hard drive without formatting it in Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, etc.
Method 1: Open Hard Drive Without Formatting in Windows via CMD
Here you will find a set of commands that you need to run on the Windows command prompt. Perform the steps carefully, because the wrong step can create a serious problem and lead to data loss.
- Open the Command Prompt (Admin) on your system. (Press the Win + X key for Windows 10)
- Here type chkdsk G: /f /r /x (Here G is the drive letter; replace it with your drive letter)
In this command, the different letters show different options. Let’s know
- G: – it is a drive letter that you can change according to your drive letter.
- /f: – It provides instructions to chkdsk for fixing encountered errors in Windows.
- /r: – it provides information about bad sectors on the hard drive.
- /x: – It is used to dismount the hard drive before proceeding with the above steps.
Method 2: Open An External Hard Drive After Formatting It
If the hard drive is corrupted and restricts you from opening it, then you can fix this issue by formatting. But remember that by doing this, all stored data will be erased. So, I will not recommend you try this solution. If you want to format, then follow the steps:
- Locate the drive partition and right-click on it.
- Hit Format from the opened list.
- Select the file system (recommended: NTFS).
- Click on OK Here, a warning message will appear. First read the message; if you agree, then hit OK.
- At the end, hit the close button.
Note: After performing all the steps, you will find a resultant partition that is empty. Now you can open the drive partition easily. If you have a backup of previous data, then you can transfer that here. If you lost your files and don’t have a backup, then move to the below solution.
Quick Guide to Avoid Data Loss!
As we all know, data is quite important. So I will not recommend you perform any silly method. First, secure your data; after that, do whatever you want. If you want to open your external hard drive without formatting, then download the Hard Disk Recovery Wizard and install it on your Windows system. It will recover all corrupted files and folders.
It will recover corrupted files from external hard disk without losing any information. Save the recovered files on the different hard drives. And then format the infected one. You will find all the features and complete guides for this tool at the dedicated link.
Also read: How to Recover Corrupted Files from External Hard Disk?
Open Hard Drive Without Formatting in Windows: How Does It Work?
If you are looking for a solution for how to open an external hard drive without formatting it in Windows 11, 10, 8, or 7, it doesn’t matter if you want to access data on a hard drive without formatting the internal or external hard disk. This solution will work in every situation, even recovering formatted data from a hard drive. Apart from this, the tool is an all-in-one solution for hard drive lost files restoration.
1: Download and install it on Windows.
2: Click the Scan” or Scan Format” tab to recover files from the hard drive.
3: Preview all the recovered data on the dashboard.
4: Press the Save option to save the recovered files to your hard drive.
Conclusion
You reached here, which means your query, How can I open hard drive without formatting in Windows 11, 10, 8, 7? is resolved. I listed all possible ways to tackle how to open my external hard drive without formatting in Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, etc. But method 3 is the best for all types of hard drive issues. If you have any doubt, then simply contact
Commonly asked Question
Q: How do I open a hard drive without formatting it?
Ans: If you can’t access your hard drive via File Explorer, you can scan it using data recovery software and recover your data that way.
Q: I have a 3.5 TB hard drive. Can your drive handle disks this size?
Ans: Yes, regardless of the size of the system hard drive. This free product works perfectly with internal or external hard drives of any size.
