Where to find other volumes on your Mac

Other volumes — external drives, secondary internal drives, or network storage — appear in the Finder sidebar on the left. Open Finder (the blue and white face icon in your dock) and look under "Locations". Any connected drive shows up there with its own name. Click it once to open it.

If a drive does not appear in the sidebar, it may be hidden in your Finder settings. Go to Finder menu > Settings > Sidebar, then check the box next to "External disks" and "Hard disks". This makes all connected volumes visible.

For drives that are plugged in but not showing anywhere, open Disk Utility (Applications > Utilities > Disk Utility). You will see every drive your Mac recognizes, even if it is not mounted or formatted yet. If a drive appears in Disk Utility but nowhere else, it may need to be mounted or repaired before you can use it.

Key Takeaways

  • Connected drives appear in the Finder sidebar under "Locations" — click one to open it and see its contents.
  • If a drive is not showing in Finder, enable "External disks" and "Hard disks" in Finder Settings > Sidebar.
  • Disk Utility shows every drive your Mac recognizes, including ones that are not yet mounted or usable.
  • You can drag files between volumes in Finder the same way you move files between folders on your main drive.
  • Ejecting a drive safely before unplugging it prevents data loss and file corruption.

Moving and copying files between volumes

Once a volume is open in Finder, you can move or copy files to it exactly as you would on your main drive. Drag a file from one window to another, or use copy (Command+C) and paste (Command+V). The difference is that dragging between two different volumes moves the file, while dragging within the same volume moves it. If you want to copy instead of move, hold Option while dragging.

A faster way to move large amounts of data is to open two Finder windows side by side. Click File > New Finder Window, then arrange them so you can see both. Put your main drive in one window and the external drive in the other. Now you can drag files directly between them without switching back and forth.

Pay attention to how much space you have. Click the drive name in Finder, then press Command+I to open the Info window. It shows total capacity and how much space is used. If the drive is nearly full, moving large files to it may fail partway through.

Mounting and unmounting drives

A drive that is physically connected but not showing in Finder is usually unmounted. This sometimes happens with external drives after sleep, or with secondary internal drives that were not set to mount automatically. To mount it, open Disk Utility, find the drive in the list on the left, and click the Mount button at the top. The drive should then appear in your Finder sidebar.

To unmount a drive without unplugging it, right-click its name in the Finder sidebar and select "Eject". Or select it and press Command+E. This safely closes all files on that drive so you can unplug it without risking corruption. If you unplug a drive while it is still mounted, your Mac may lose data or damage the drive's file system.

If a drive will not mount or keeps unmounting on its own, it may have a file system problem. Disk Utility can sometimes repair it. Select the drive, click First Aid, and let it run. If First Aid finds errors it cannot fix, the drive may need professional recovery or replacement.

Understanding drive formats and compatibility

A drive's format determines whether your Mac can read it, write to it, or use it at all. The most common formats are APFS (Apple's modern format), Mac OS Extended (the older Mac format), exFAT (readable by Mac and Windows), and NTFS (Windows format, read-only on Mac without extra software).

If you plug in an external drive and Finder shows it but you cannot copy files to it, the drive is probably formatted for Windows (NTFS) or is set to read-only. You can reformat it to APFS or exFAT in Disk Utility, but this erases everything on it. Select the drive, click Erase, choose a format, and confirm. APFS is fastest on modern Macs; exFAT works on both Mac and Windows.

Some older external drives come formatted as FAT32, which has a 4 GB file size limit — you cannot copy a single file larger than 4 GB to it. If you hit this limit, you need to reformat the drive or split the file. For drives you share between Mac and Windows, exFAT is usually the best choice because both systems can read and write to it.

Accessing network drives and shared folders

Network drives and shared folders from other computers appear in Finder under "Locations" if they are set up correctly. If you do not see one, you can connect manually. In Finder, press Command+K to open "Connect to Server". Type the network address (usually something like smb://computername or afp://192.168.1.100) and click Connect. Enter your username and password if prompted.

Once connected, the network drive appears in your sidebar and behaves like any other volume — you can open it, copy files to and from it, and eject it when done. Network drives are slower than local drives because data travels over your network, so large file transfers take longer. If the connection drops, Finder will show an error when you try to access files.

If you frequently use the same network drive, you can set it to connect automatically. After connecting once, the drive stays in your sidebar. You can also add it to your login items so it connects every time you start your Mac. Go to System Settings > General > Login Items, click the plus button, and select the network drive.

Troubleshooting drives that do not appear

If a drive is plugged in but not showing anywhere, start with the simplest fixes. Try a different USB cable or port — some ports are faster or more reliable than others. Restart your Mac. Sometimes a drive needs a moment to be recognized, especially after waking from sleep.

If the drive still does not appear, open Disk Utility and look for it in the list on the left. If it is there, try clicking it and selecting Mount. If it is not there at all, your Mac is not recognizing the drive at all — this usually means a hardware problem with the drive or cable, or a problem with the drive's file system that prevents recognition.

For drives that appear in Disk Utility but cannot be mounted, First Aid may help. Select the drive and click First Aid to scan for errors. If First Aid reports that the drive is damaged beyond repair, you may need to reformat it (erasing all data) or have it professionally recovered if the data is critical.

Safely ejecting drives before unplugging

Always eject a drive before unplugging it. Right-click the drive name in Finder and select "Eject", or select it and press Command+E. Wait for the drive to disappear from your sidebar — this means all files are closed and it is safe to unplug. If you unplug while the drive is still mounted, your Mac may be writing to it, and interrupting that write can corrupt files or damage the drive.

If a drive will not eject because a file on it is open, close that file first. Check all open applications — sometimes a backup program or media player has a file open without you realizing it. Once the file is closed, try ejecting again.

External drives with their own power cables should stay plugged in until after you eject them. Some drives need power to safely close their file systems. Unplug the data cable first (after ejecting), then unplug the power cable a few seconds later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my external drive show up in Disk Utility but not in Finder?

The drive is probably unmounted. Open Disk Utility, select the drive, and click Mount. If it still does not appear in Finder after mounting, check Finder Settings > Sidebar and make sure "External disks" is checked. If the drive mounts but when ready unmounts, it may have a file system problem — try First Aid in Disk Utility.

Can I use the same external drive on both my Mac and a Windows computer?

Yes, if you format it as exFAT. Both Mac and Windows can read and write to exFAT drives. APFS and Mac OS Extended are Mac-only; NTFS is Windows-only (Mac can read but not write). Reformat the drive in Disk Utility and choose exFAT as the format.

What happens if I unplug a drive without ejecting it?

Your Mac may be writing to the drive when you unplug it, which can corrupt files or damage the drive's file system. Always eject first by right-clicking the drive in Finder and selecting "Eject", then wait for it to disappear from the sidebar before unplugging.

How do I know if a drive is failing?

Signs include the drive not mounting, disappearing and reappearing randomly, making unusual clicking or grinding sounds, or First Aid reporting errors it cannot fix. If you see these signs, back up any important files when ready and consider replacing the drive.

Can I access a drive that is inside another computer on my network?

Yes, if that computer has file sharing enabled. Use Command+K in Finder to connect to the other computer's address, enter your username and password, and select the shared folder. The drive will appear in your sidebar as long as the other computer is on and file sharing is enabled.