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SamanthaK's avatar
SamanthaK
Follower
Dec 28, 2020

External Hard Drive Connection Issues

I have an external hard drive connected to the USB port on my router that I use primarily to store music but am having connectivity issues between my computer and the hard drive.  While I am actively using the hard drive, it works okay.  But if I step away from the computer or switch over to doing something on the computer that doesn't use the hard drive, it often loses the connection.  Sometimes whenever I reestablish the connection, some of the folders on the hard drive appear to be empty.  This can be fixed by unplugging the hard drive and then plugging it back in.  I am open to buying new hardware (router and/or external hard drive) but am not sure it is a hardware issue.  And I'm not overally techie so please try to explain as simply as you can.    

 

Router:  Netgear R7000

Firmware: V1.0.3.80_1.1.38

 

External Hard Drive: MyBook Essentials 1 TB

 

Computer:  MacBook Pro running latest OS (Big Sur Version 11.1)

1 Reply

  • antinode's avatar
    antinode
    Guru
    Dec 28, 2020

    > Router: Netgear R7000
    > Firmware: V1.0.3.80_1.1.38

     

       That's about six years old.  You might try one or more of the two
    dozen (or so) newer versions.

     

       Visit http://netgear.com/support , put in your model number, and look
    for Downloads.  (For older versions, under Firmware and Software
    Downloads, look for "View Previous Versions".)  Find the kit(s).
    Download the kit(s) you want.  Read the "Release Notes" file for
    instructions.  (In the User Manual, look for "firmware", and,
    especially, for a topic like "Manually Upload Firmware to the Router".)
    When that fails because of a deficient User Manual, try:

     

          https://kb.netgear.com/23960
          https://kb.netgear.com/31573