Options for an external HD that won't mount

1

Hey folks! A while back I purchased a Lacie external HD from Apple and put a whole bunch of archival files on it. It’s formatted ExFAT. I used an intel MBP, unsure which OS.

I’m now on an M1 iMac using Monterey, and I can’t mount it. I get an error when trying to mount via Disk Utility and also when running First Aid.

Untitled 2
Untitled 2744×648 55.9 KB

Untitled 4
Untitled 42092×1200 228 KB

I downloaded Disk Drill, and it’s currently on minute 4 of an estimated 445 hours of deep scanning, though it may take longer as it keeps disconnecting and reconnecting. Any ideas (up to and including services that might be able to repair it)?

2

Fun. :slight_smile: My initial suggestions:

  • Try a different cable
  • Mount on a PC and pull the data off
  • sudo pkill -f fsck and remount (the process may be stuck)
3

These have both worked for me in the past.

I have also take drives out of the enclosure and used a hard drive docking station. But this is a last resort option.

Good luck!

4

Or if not comfortable with the terminal, just reboot.

I would try to ensure that whatever you use doesn’t write to the disk. Perhaps it can recover files and copy them to your internal disk, a USB thumbdrive, etc.

As I recall, you use Backblaze; is there a chance BB backed it up?