Mac can no longer see an external drive - can this be re-instated?

[Jurek]

In the course of trying to install Leopard today on my Mac, it crashed. More specifically, it just turned itself off - no warning, nothing.

It had got to the point of the installation where I had selected English as its main language and was given the option or 'Continue' or read 'More information', I selected the latter, and that was that - it went off.

Since which time (I wasn't able to install Leopard, and so continue to run OSX 10.4.11) it is unable to 'see' or mount my external, usb connected,  HD (My Book 1Tb).

I have since found out that I should've disconnected this drive whilst attempting to upgrade the OS.
I have also since found out that due to the unexpected shut-down the chances are that the directories of the external drive are all over the parish - and thus cannot be found or mounted.

I've looked at the USB tab in System Profiler - but the baby ferris wheel just turns ad infinitum
I've also launched Disk Utilities but the baby ferris wheel does the same.

Having disconnected the external drive - both System Profiler and Disk Utilities show my internal HD as they should.


Is there any way of re-instating the external drive? - I'm not worried about the data on there at all - I'm happy to erase / re-format / or do whatever it takes to make the Mac see it.

Or ought I be looking at investing in a new external drive?

TIA

Jurek

[Jurek]

Thanks for that.

Unfortunately when the wheel of fortune is (endlessly) rotating in Disk Utilities while it tries to find the drives, I am unable to carry out any commands either from the drop-down menus or the icons in the DU window.

In fact, I have to use Force Quit to get out of DU.

Without being able to see it on screen, how do I go about re-formatting the external drive.

J

[Jurek]

Shazzaaamm!

I re-connected the external drive and ran System Profiler and clicked the USB button, and taken a phonecall or two, and when I returned on my desktop was the external drive!

It is also now showing up in Disk Utilities.

All would appear to be well (other than I'm still having trouble installing Leopard).

I have no idea why this is so - part of me thinks I've no need to know.


Edit - I've re-started the machine just to confirm that it all still works - and it does!
Now - about that OS upgrade..........

[Jaded]

When you have booted up with the Install disk, choose the language, then you should have a fairly standard Menu bay. Choose Utilities (I think) and you will have Disk Utility as a choice. Repair permissions and Repair Disk on the Had disk of the machine, then when that has finished, quit Disk Utility ands you should get taken back to the installer.


I'd recommend doing an Archive and Install (it's in the options in the Leopard installer - I'm sorry but in my befuddled state I can't remember exactly where)

You should end up with a newly installed system, with docs, prefs, apps transferred over, but a folder called "Previous System Folder" that you can go through at your leisure afterwards to see if the were any problems that weren't carried over to the new system.

[Valiant]

It's cos you questioned Mac. You shouldn't need more info damnit. :p

To get the option that Jaded refers too, you'll have to click on the options/customise button just after you select the HD to install too. Upgrading can have issues sometimes so always worth doing an archive and install but sadly that means reinstalling your apps again. But there are some apps out that that'll take off your current apps and then install them back without issue and with all your settings intact. Can't for the life of remember what it was called though.

[Jaded]

Archive and Install should take across all apps that work with the new OS.

[Valiant]

Ah that's great to know, must be a change on the latest discs as I've not noticed before, but then maybe that's the point