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I have a WD 500GB external hard drive. It was working normally a couple days ago. I was using it minutes before it stopped working. It was working on one computer and then when I plugged it into another computer I got nothing. Now when I plug it into any computer it shows up as being plugged in, but not under "My Computer". When I go to disk manager it says the drive must be formatted.

I tried running a trial version of another recovery software WD recommended, but got an error, including one about mismatched geometry. That is when I found TestDisk. I downloaded it and ran it, but my external drive doesn't appear, only my internal drive. I wanted to see if I could try and fix the geometry. Anyone know why it might not be showing up in TestDisk?

So, I got the files professionally recovered. A lot cheaper to do where I am now than back in the states. When I got the drive back I plugged it into my laptop to find that it was working normally! Then it accidentally came unplugged and has been converted to RAW. I am not worried about losing the files as 100% of it was recovered and is safe. I was wondering how to repair the RAW issue. I was hoping to use it to transfer a few big things to my computers at school.

Hi bnchin,

Really great you have your files back!

First of all, I'd suggest you download the WD Data Lifeguard Diagnostic tool (http://support.wdc.com/product/download ... 10&lang=en ) and run both Quick and Extended test in order to check the health status of the drive.

Repairing the RAW issue doesn't always work, nevertheless it doesn't hurt to try reformatting and repartitioning the drive. Here you'll find instructions on how to do it: http://wdc.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/3865

Hope this helps