Home > Questions

How to fix a flash drive not showing up on Mac desktop?

I have a flash drive that I've used for a long time to carry data between my home computer and my work computer. Suddenly it isn't showing up on the desktop of my MacBook Pro running the latest version of Yosemite. It does appear under devices in a Finder window, but not on the desktop. I have restarted my computer, not just let it wake up from sleep, but that doesn't change anything. Any suggestions for how to get it to re-appear? Thanks!

Best Answered by

iBoysoft author Anna Yuan

Anna Yuan

Answered on Thursday, March 9, 2023

First, check your Finder Preferences. Open Mac Finder, and click on Finder from the top-left corner status menu bar. Select Preferences > General, under Show these items on the desktop, and tick the box next to External disks. Now, check if your USB storage device is showing on your Mac desktop.

If the USB flash drive is still not visible on the Mac desktop, check if it mounts in Disk Utility. Go to the Disk Utility, if the disk name is greyed out in Disk Utility, manually mount it by clicking on the "Mount" button at the upper menu bar. Now you should see the USB flash drive appear on the Mac desktop.

Problem still exist? Try using Disk Utility First Aid to repair it since the flash drive may suffer corruption. If First Aid failed to fix the USB flash drive not showing up on the Mac desktop issue, the last resort you can try is to reformat it.

But reformatting will wipe all data off the flash drive! Therefore it's recommended to recover files from the flash drive with a data recovery tool first, here we recommend iBoysoft Data Recovery - a professional USB drive data recovery software. 

This intuitive macOS program can scan the corrupted/damaged flash drive and search for any lost files, then you can preview the scanned results and recover all the files you want. After successfully recovering data from a USB flash drive that's not showing up on a Mac desktop, it is time to format the USB drive on Mac. Reconnecting the flash drive again, it should show up on the Mac desktop correctly now.

People Also Ask

Read More Questions

Read More Advice From iBoysoft's Computer Experts

Finder sidebar missing

Finder Sidebar Is Missing, Why & How to Get It Back

Guide to restore the Finder sidebar that's missing, including the Finder sidebar not showing Favorites, locations, etc. Why Finder sidebar missing?

News Tips

usb flash drive not showing up on Mac

Fix USB Flash Drive not Showing up on Mac [Solved]

Troubleshoot and fix Mac not recognizing USB flash drive, flash drive not showing up on Mac desktop, in Finder or Disk Utility.

How to Tips

Time Machine cannot find backup disk

Time Machine Can't Find Backup Disk, How to Fix? (2022)

Fix Time Machine on your Mac that can't find and connect to your backup disk. Reasons for your Time Machine can't find your backup disk.

How to Tips