Files and Folders Not Showing on External Devices


  1. Posts : 3
    Windows 10 Professional
       #1

    Files and Folders Not Showing on External Devices


    Hello, I have this issue where the files and folders on an external device (such as an external HDD and USB) are not showing up, yet the device is visible. I only started getting this issue after I connected my USB to another computer which makes me think a virus caused this. Here's where I am at:

    The drive in question is the "STEAM GAMES (F:)" drive. It shows up in explorer as shown:
    Files and Folders Not Showing on External Devices-k6fzp.png

    And when opened, this is what's inside the F drive:
    Files and Folders Not Showing on External Devices-k6fbk.png

    By showing hidden files and not hiding protected operating system files, this is what shows:
    Files and Folders Not Showing on External Devices-k6fcq.png

    What I've tried:
    • The command "attrib -h -s -r -a /s /d F:\*.*" returns this:
    • Files and Folders Not Showing on External Devices-k6fhv.png
    • Full system scan using Anti-MalwareBytes and Avast! reveals nothing.
    • Running RKill, UsbFix, RogueKiller, and iExplore.exe does not fix the problem.


    I had the same problem with a USB before and had to format it to get it to work. I would rather not format this drive because it contains a lot of data but I may if desperate enough. Please help me. Thanks.

    More images (changed the drive letter to S but that didn't help):
    Files and Folders Not Showing on External Devices-k6gpf.pngFiles and Folders Not Showing on External Devices-k6gq4.png
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 3
    Windows 10 Professional
    Thread Starter
       #2

    Ok, so I found the fix to my problem. I decided to run a "chkdsk /r" command and surprisingly, it fixed the problem! However, if anyone can help me find out what went wrong so that I prevent it from happening again, that would be great. Below is the screenshot of the check disk running and even I (somewhat tech savvy person) can see it found quite a few errors. Can someone please help me understand what check disk did and what was the problem?

    Files and Folders Not Showing on External Devices-d8k6y.png
      My Computer


 

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