Disk 1 Unknown, Not Initialized - Western Digital
Have you ever received the message "Disk 1 Unknown, Not Initialized" when plugging your Western Digital external hard drive? If the answer is yes, you are in the right place. You can solve your disk unknown or not initialized error with these solutions:
Workable Solutions |
Step-by-step Troubleshooting |
Fix 1. Initialize WD Disk |
Download EaseUS Partition Master. Connect the hard drive or SSD to PC...Full steps |
Fix 2. Create a New Partition |
Right-click "This PC" and choose "Manage" > "Disk Management"...Full steps |
Fix 3. Recover WD Partition |
Connect the USB, SD card or external hard drive on which you lost partition to your computer...Full steps |
Fix 4. Check Disk Connection |
Connect your WD external hard drive to another USB port on your computer...Full steps |
Fix 5. Update WD Driver |
Right-click on "This PC" and choose "Properties". Click "Device Manager"...Full steps |
Fix 6. Use Manual Repair |
You can contact Western Digital technical support or find an expert...Full steps |
Cases of WD Hard Drive Not Initialized
Most people are bothered with disk not initialized or I/O device error. Here are two cases from some forums:
Case 1. WD 1TB external hard drive becomes not initialized in PC, help!
"Hi there, do you know how to fix the problem that WD hard drive cannot be detected on my PC. The WD external hard drive becomes Unknown and Not Initialized in Disk Management. What can I do? Please let me know if you have any recommended methods or solutions to fix the WD external HDD not initialized error. Thanks."
Case 2. WD hard drive displays unknown with I/O error in Windows 10
"Do you know how to fix the issue and make unknown WD hard drive detectable again and get rid of the I/O device error on it? My computer cannot recognize my WD hard drive suddenly, and it keeps pops up an error message with an I/O device error. It even shows as Unknown in Disk Management. I'm using Windows 10, and if you know any methods to solve this issue, please let me know. Thank you."
Your situation will have different solutions to the problem "disk not initialized" on your computer.
![disk not initialized error situations]()
Solution 1. Initialize the WD HDD or External Hard Drive
Applies to: Disk not initialized and shows unallocated space
The very first thing you need to do is initialize your hard drive or external devices. It is the quickest and easiest way to fix disk 1 unknown, not initialized error. You can use Disk Management to initialize the disk or use a tool. The easy-to-use partition manager software - EaseUS Partition Master is my recommendation. This software is fully compatible with all Windows systems, and you can directly follow to fix WD HDD/external hard drive not initialized error now.
Your Reliable Choice - EaseUS Partition Master
- Transfer free disk space from one drive to another directly.
- Resize/move, merge, clone partition, and check file system error.
- Clone disk, convert to MBR/GPT, convert to dynamic/basic, and even wipe data.
- Migrate OS, increase partition space, and more
Step 1: Download the software
Download EaseUS Partition Master. Connect the hard drive or SSD to PC.
Step 2: Initialize your HDD/SSD
Right-click the target HDD or SSD and select "Initialize to MBR" or "Initialize to GPT" accordingly.
Fig 1. Initialize to MBR:
Fig 2. Initialize to GPT:
Step 3: Apply the operation
A pending operation of initializing disk to MBR or GPT disk will be added. Execute the operation and click "Apply".
Solution 2. Fix Disk Unknown by Creating a New Partition
Applies to: Disk not initialized and shows unallocated space
Another way to solve the WD disk unknown or not initialized error is by creating a new partition. You can create a new partition with EaseUS Partition Master or with Disk Management. Here are the steps to create a new partition with Disk Management:
Step 1. Right-click "This PC" and choose "Manage" > "Disk Management".
Step 2. Right-click the unallocated space and choose "New Simple Volume..."
Step 3. In New Simple Volume Wizard, click "Next" to continue.
Step 4. Follow the wizard to specify the volume size, assign a drive letter to the volume, and format the partition to the wanted file system.
![create a new partition to fix disk unknown error]()
Solution 3. Fix WD Not Initialized by Recovering Partition
Applies to: Disk not initialized and shows unallocated space
In Disk Management, if you find disk shows unallocated space, just try to make partition recovery. To make it, you need an effective partition recovery software - EaseUS Partition Master. As I have mentioned in Solution 1, this software can not only initialize the disk but also recover lost partition.
Steps to recover lost partition:
Step 1: Connect the external storage device to PC
Connect the USB, SD card or external hard drive on which you lost partition to your computer.
Step 2: Launch EaseUS Partition Master
On the main interface, click on "Partition Recovery".
Step 3: Select the storage device to scan the lost partition
Select the SD card, USB or external hard drive on which you deleted or lost partition and click "Scan".
And wait till the scanning process completes.
Step 4: Select and restore lost partition.
1. Double-click the found partition, marked as Deleted with the previous Label, to check its content, and then click "Proceed" to continue.
2. Click "Recover Now" to restore the lost partition and data on your SD card, USB or external hard drive.
3. Click the "Execute Operation" button and click "Apply" to restore lost partition on the target storage device.
If Disk Management can't show any information on neither this hard drive nor its disk capacity, the hard drive might be blocked by the "external hard disk not initialized I/O" error. Then, you should follow the solutions below.
Solution 4. Check Western Digital Disk Connection
Applies to: Disk unknown, not initialized, no disk space
If you are faced with this error, you should check the connection as soon as possible. The connection issue can cause serious problems. To check the connection:
Step 1. Connect your WD external hard drive to another USB port on your computer.
Step 2. Use the original cable to connect your hard drive
Step 3. Use another cable to connect your WD hard disk
Step 4. Connect your WD hard drive to another computer
Solution 5. Update WD Driver to Fix Not Initialized Error
Applies to: Disk unknown, not initialized, no disk space
If your device driver is out of date, you can also encounter WD not initialized error. You can update a device driver by the following steps:
Step 1. Right-click on "This PC" and choose "Properties".
Step 2. Click "Device Manager" then expand "Disk drives". Find and right-click the problematic WD disk and select "Update driver".
Step 3. Click "automatically search for driver software online".
Step 4. Wait for the driver to be updated, then reboot your computer.
![update western digital disk driver]()
Solution 6. Ask Manual Repair for Help
The last choice is to turn to manual repair. You can contact Western Digital technical support or find an expert to repair it. Or try EaseUS 1 on 1 Remote Assistance Service. This service allows you to schedule a remote desktop session with a dedicated support engineer. You can have a try.
Conclusion
When you encounter the error of "Disk 1 Unknown, Not Initialized" Western Digital, never hesitate to read this post. You can get the full guide and solve your problem quickly.