Parallels For Mac Change Drive Letter

Summary :

Is one of your drive letters missing? What should you do? How to get the missing drive letters back? This post lists several ways to help you solve the drive letter is missing in Windows issue. For instance, try MiniTool Software to unhide partition.

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Drive Letter Is Missing In Windows

Driver letter missing? I just upgraded to Windows 10. When I open This PC, my drive letters are missing from Windows Explorer. Now, what should we do when drive letter is missing in Windows?

Let’s drive in.

What Is a Drive Letter?

Here, let’s start with what a drive letter is.

A drive letter is a single alphabetic character A through Z that can be assigned to a physical disk partition, floppy disk drive, removable device, CD-ROM, or even a mapping network drive in the computer.

Generally, drive letter A: is allocated to the first floppy disk drive, B: to the second floppy disk drive, and C: to the first disk partition where the running Windows is installed. The remaining drive letters can be assigned to other disk partitions, removable devices and mapping network drives in accordance with actual demands.

Related: Drive letter assignment.

Once a letter is allocated to a disk partition or mapping network drive (letter for removable devices is changeable), we can say it is fixed unless we change or remove it in Disk Management, Diskpart, or some third-party programs.

However, one day we may find these fixed drive letters are missing in either Windows Explorer or Disk Management, which brings much inconvenience or even makes the partition inaccessible.

Therefore, we wrote this post and introduce 5 different situations where drive letter disappears, and at the same time show ways to get the missing letter back.

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Drive Letter Missing from Windows Explorer or My Computer

Generally, after we open the Windows Explorer, we can see the following scenario:

See also: Startup folder on Windows 10 Auto-login without a password Paint on Windows 10 1.) Changing the drive letter of the DVD drive on Windows 10! You can quite easily change the path or the drive letter of the DVD / CD drive via the Disk Management. MacDrive works with Windows running virtually under Mac OS X using Parallels Desktop for Mac or VMware Fusion, with the exception in both cases that the Mac OS X system volume will be inaccessible. In such cases, the Mac OS X system volume is inaccessible because, as with any operating system, Mac OS X requires exclusive access to any volumes.

Every local drive and every removable storage device has its own letter, like C: for the first drive, A: for floppy drive, and E for DVD drive. But one day we suddenly found all drive letters have disappeared. This is very strange, though it brings nearly no influence on system running and data access:

What’s wrong? Where are these drive letters going? How can we get these lost drive letters back in several steps? Let’s deal with these questions one by one.

The most probable reason may be that you or someone have hidden the drive letters via settings in Windows Folder Options. To fix this issue, please take the following steps (take Windows 7 for example):

Go to one of partitions.
Click 'Organize' tab.
Choose 'Folder and search options' from the drop-down menu to get the Folder Options.

Then, select the 'View' tab and scroll down the sliding handle to the middle until the 'Show drive letters' appears. With checking this option and click 'OK,' we can see the missing drive letters in Windows Explorer again.

If you now know the reason for missing drive letter from Windows Explorer or My Computer as well as the solution, it’s time to know why drive letter disappeared from Disk Management.

Drive Letter Disappears in Disk Management

As we know, Disk Management is a Windows snap-in partitioning program designed to help Windows users manage disk and partitions. In Disk Management, every drive should have a drive letter, but sometimes we may find one or some of drives lose their letters like this:

Here we can see the 188.38GB NTFS partition does not have a drive letter. Generally, if a partition is not allocated with a letter in Disk Management, it will be invisible in Windows Explorer:

As a result, we are unable to access files saved in it directly, and all programs relying on the drive letter will be unavailable. Therefore, under this situation, users would be more eager to get the missing drive letter back.

Then, let’s see how.

Steps to Get Missing Drive Letter Back in Disk Management

In Windows Disk Management, the function 'Change Drive Letter and Paths,' which appears in the right-click menu of a partition (Windows calls it volume), can help add, change, and remove drive letter:

If 'Remove' is selected and applied, the letter of the target drive will be removed and disappear in Disk Management, which is one of the reasons for losing drive letter.

On the contrary, by clicking 'Add,' we can assign a letter to the selected drive. Therefore, when a certain drive loses its letter, we can try adding a drive letter in this way. But for successful adding, you may need to pay some attention to the following tip:

Tip: You’d better assign the drive with the original letter. If not, programs relying on the original letter might not work correctly. If the original letter has been taken by new drive, change the letter of the new drive to another available letter and then allocate the released one for the target drive.

In addition, partitions that are hidden via special technologies (set partition type ID to 0x17, for example) are always having no letter.

If a partition is hidden, the function 'Change Drive Letter and Paths' for this partition in Disk Management will be unavailable (grayed out). At this time, the best solution is to unhide the partition by using third party program.

If you failed to assign a letter for your drive in Disk Management, now try using MiniTool Partition Wizard Free edition to unhide partition, which is a freeware for Windows home users.

Partition Wizard Makes Unhide Partitions Easily

Step 1. Run and launch the freeware to get its main interface.

Step 2. Select the hidden partition and click 'Unhide Partition' from the left action panel.

Step 3. Select a letter for the partition and click 'OK.'

Step 4. Click 'Apply' button to apply the change if the missing drive appears in Partition Wizard.

When MiniTool Partition Wizard shows it succeeded in applying the operation, letter of the partition will be visible in Disk Management, and the missing drive will also appear in Windows Explorer.

After getting a basic understanding of the second scenario, next, let’s see the third scenario.

Drive Letter Missing from the List of Available Drive Letters

We have mentioned that it is very easy to add or change drive letter for certain partition in Disk Management. However sometimes you may find a strange situation where a specific letter is not shown in the list of available drive letters and no other device has that letter assigned.

The most probable reason may be that this letter is reserved for a removable device that was removed or is hidden.

Under this situation, if you want to assign the very letter for the specific drive, you may need to make some modifications in Registry. However, as a slight mistake in Registry may cause data loss or system crash, it is very necessary to backup the registry before doing any modification.

Then, launch Regedit, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMMountedDevices, and see if a device is shown as being mounted at the specific drive letter.

Next, right-click the drive letter that you want and choose 'Rename' from the right-click menu to change the letter to any other unused letter, which will free up the selected one.

After reboot, you can add the released letter for your drive. Next, let’s see the fourth reason for losing drive letters.

Drive Letter Disappears after Reboot

When browsing Windows Forum and Windows Seven Forums (2 well known technical forums about Windows), I found a lot of people talking about the problem that drive letters are disappearing after every reboot. Of course, the same issue can be found in other websites or forums since this is a quite common error.

This is my story.

The following screenshot shows the 465GB NTFS partition on Disk 1 has the letter E:

However, after every reboot, the letter will be missing:

If I want to use the partition normally, I have to assign drive letter every time, which is so troublesome.

After lots of searches on Google, I found this error often occurs on Western Digital hard disk, so it may be a bug of WD hard disk. And someone gives the suggestion: fill the disk with zero. MiniTool Partition Wizard, a freeware for Windows home users, can help complete this task in very simple steps.

However, before zero filling the hard disk, we need to backup all desired files, because this will erase both file system and data. For steps to backup a disk, please see Copy Disk. After the backup has been created, we can wipe the disk without any worry.

How to Erase Disk with MiniTool Partition Wizard

Firstly, run and launch the freeware to get its main window.

Here we can see all recognized hard disks. To wipe a disk, please select the target disk and click 'Wipe Disk' feature from the left action pane to get the following interface:

There are 5 wiping methods in total, including Fill Sectors with Zero, Fill Sectors with One, Fill Sectors with Zero & One, DoD 5220.22-M (3 passes), and DoD 5220.28-STD (7 passes). From top to bottom, erasing time increases but the effect is better and better. Then, click 'OK' to go back to the main interface:

Finally, click the 'Apply' button.

Once the disk is erased, we can recreate partitions in either Disk Management or Partition Wizard. The new drive letters would stay in their original place next time you reboot the computer.

Now if you have known how to deal with the issue that drive letter is missing after Windows reboot, let’s see the last situation.

Drive Letter Missing in Map Network Drive

Drive mapping is how operating systems like Windows associate a local drive letter (A through Z) with a shared storage area to another computer over a network. However, these local drive letters may disappear in Windows Explorer without us knowing exact reasons.

After a series of findings, we find 2 possibilities:

When mapping the drive, users do not check the option 'Reconnect at logon.'
Use the Work online without synchronizing changes over a virtual private network (VPN) connection.

Now that reasons are found, solutions are available now. For the first situation, users just need to remap the network drive and check 'Reconnect at login':

For the second situation, please obtain the latest service pack for Windows, or apply Hotfix to the system that is experiencing the problem.

Bottom Line

Is your drive letter missing or lost under Windows? Have you found the exact reason and corresponding solutions? If you have found, can you please share them with us if they are different from those introduced in this post? If you haven’t found good solutions, this post may be useful.

MacDrive 10 Standard Support

Welcome to the MacDrive Support page.

Here you can find answers to some of the most common MacDrive questions, as well as view recent changes to MacDrive. As always, if there is a question you can’t find an answer to, please drop a note to our support team.

Frequently Asked Questions

Mac disk not ‘seen’ by Windows (no drive letter)

STEP 1: General MacDrive checks

If you have just installed MacDrive for the first time, please make sure that you have restarted the computer. If you ignore the restart prompt after installing, Mac disks will not be available until the next reboot. This is because our drivers will need to load at the next time Windows boots.

Please make sure you are using the latest version of MacDrive before proceeding. In many cases, updating to the latest version will take care of the issue you are experiencing.

STEP 2: Check that your drive setup is supported

Disks with multiple partition types: MacDrive will only work with disks containing exclusively Mac-partitions. It will not work with disks containing multiple partition types (e.g. a FAT32 and an HFS+ partition), with the exception of disks created with Boot Camp.

Encryption and Fusion: MacDrive also does not support encrypted disks (e.g. using FileVault), or Fusion drives. Both of these drive types require additional software to be used, and for that reason, require the Mac OS.

STEP 3: Check that Windows recognizes the device correctly

A common cause is failed connectivity on your Windows system.

Please confirm that the drive is visible in the Windows “Disk Management” console. To access the Windows Disk Management console, please do the following:

Right-click on Computer (or This PC, My Computer, depending on Windows version)
Click Manage
Select Disk Management
Use the console on the right portion of the Window to check for the presence of the drive

If your drive is present in “Disk Management” make note of the drive number and proceed to Step 3.

If the drive is not present, please contact the drive vendor for assistance getting your drive recognized as a hardware device on your computer. Mediafour Technical Support is not able to troubleshoot hardware, driver, or connectivity problems, but some issues can be resolved by choosing a different port on your computer, using a different cable, checking for loose connections, connecting directly rather than through an intermediate device (such as a USB hub), or, if your drive allows it, trying a different connection type.

STEP 4: Drive needs repair

Another possible cause is file system corruption. To repair such corruption, please try the following solutions:

– If you have MacDrive 9, you can attempt to repair the drive by going to Start > All Programs > MacDrive 9 > Tools > Repair Mac Disks (or in Windows 8, search the Apps menu for “Repair Mac Disks”), then follow the on-screen instructions to check the disk.

Note: In versions older than MacDrive 9, it is not possible to check a Mac disk unless it is mounted (assigned a drive letter). MacDrive 9 includes a new repair tool which will check for unmounted Mac disks.

If the affected Mac disk does not appear in the list of disks to check, or if you are using MacDrive 8 or prior, we recommend taking the disk to a Mac to check the disk for problems (e.g. Disk Utility included with the Mac OS).

– If the disk is damaged but the corruption is not repairable by the aforementioned utilities consider “Disk Warrior” or “TechTool Pro”. Both are quality, 3rd-party disk repair utilities that may be able to recover the damage file system and the data within.

STEP 5: Contact Support

Please create a technical support ticket with a detailed problem description and information on your computer’s configuration.

Mediafour software activation FAQ

Once you have downloaded and installed your software, you will typically need to activate it using your serial number (if you are not prompted during installation). Before the software is activated, it may function as a free trial.

How do I activate?

MacDrive 9

Please press the Start or Windows button, then go to All Programs > MacDrive > Activate MacDrive, and follow the instructions in order to activate your installation. You can also use the Activate MacDrive option in MacDrive Quick Start available via the taskbar icon, or, you will be prompted when you start your computer.

You can activate through an internet connection right away by entering your serial number. If you do not have internet access, you will automatically be given other options to activate. Follow the steps provided in the activation wizard. You can activate via a website form on another computer, or, activate by phone.

Disk Aware

You will be prompted to activate when opening the application.

You will be prompted to activate when opening the application, after selecting an eligible device.

You can install on one computer at a time per license purchased.

Can I move my license to another computer?

Yes, you can do so by deactivating the software. This uses an Internet connection to unlicense the software and notify our activation server that the software can be reused.

For all about MacDrive deactivation, please read this Knowledgebase article.

For Disk Aware, Ready, Aim, Drop!, and Media SOS, you can deactivate simply by uninstalling while connected to the Internet.

What is the “activation code”?

The activation code is a time sensitive, one use code that is generated as a part of offline activation. If you are being asked for an activation code, follow the on-screen instructions carefully and you will be able to generate one, using either a webform on any web-capable device or by phone. Either method requires a computer ID which is also displayed in the window.

Why does the software say my serial number is invalid?

This means there is something wrong with what you have entered and the software does not recognize it. Please make sure to copy exactly from your order confirmation email.

Usually, the most common mistakes that cause this error are:

Parallels For Mac Change Drive Letter Format

– Entering something other than the serial number, like an order number or SKU. Your serial should be in this format:

MacDrive 9 Pro: MX9EW-R????-?????-?????
MacDrive 9 Standard: MD9EW-R????-?????-?????
MacDrive 8: MD8-??????EWR-?????-???
Disk Aware: DA1EW-R????-?????-?????
Media SOS: MS1EW-R????-?????-?????

– Having a different version installed than you purchased, most commonly trying to activate MacDrive Standard instead of Pro or vice versa, or trying to use a MacDrive 8 serial with MacDrive 9.

– Having extra or missing characters in the serial number, or other typos.

I am getting an error that there was a “licensing failure” or “an activation failure occurred”. What do I do?

That error generally means that, while the software can see your computer is connected to the Internet and it’s trying to use the Internet to activate, there’s something stopping the activation transaction from getting through as expected by the software. Typically, this is a firewall, proxy, or other network security that is the problem, or a temporary problem with your Internet connection.

If you’re not sure what it could be, you can also take the computer off the Internet temporarily to use the webform- or phone-based activation methods instead, which will automatically be offered if you don’t have Internet access when you type in your serial number.

I need more help. What resources are available?

Immediate self help is available through our searchable Knowledgebase and checking our interactive Forums.

If you need the assistance of our support team, please contact us. Please have your serial number when contacting us.

Extending a free trial of Mediafour software

Mediafour Support cannot reactivate free trial versions on a computer once they have expired, nor extend the time of a free trial.

You are welcome to use the free trial version on another computer, or, purchase the software through our web site, or a retail store. Mediafour software products come with a 30-day money back guarantee. If you purchase and decide (for any reason) that you don’t want the software, we’ll promptly refund the purchase price.

GPT and MacDrive

GPT (GUID Partition Table) is a partition type for disks. When formatting Mac-formatted disks, such as HFS+ or HFS+J, in Disk Utility, current versions of the Mac OS typically use GPT as the default partition type.

Fixed disks

MacDrive fully supports GPT partitioning for fixed disks. Fixed disks can include internal hard drives, but can also include portable devices such as external hard drives which connect via USB, FireWire, etc.

No additional software is needed to access a Mac-formatted disk that is GPT partitioned. You can simply connect the disk to your computer, and MacDrive will be able to access the disk and assign it a drive letter.

Removable devices

Removable devices, such as flash drives, cannot be GPT partitioned and work with MacDrive. This is because Windows does not currently support GPT removable devices of any kind, including those formatted NTFS, the most common Windows disk formatting type. A removable device can be identified as it will appear in the “Devices with Removable Storage” area of when viewing available drives (‘Computer’ in Windows 7/Vista, ‘My Computer’ in XP).

MacDrive does, however, support Mac-formatted removables with the partition types of APM (Apple Partition Map) or MBR (Master Boot Record), either of which can be created with Disk Utility.

To create a removable drive that will work with MacDrive, you can use either Disk Utility or the MacDrive Disk Manager. Please make sure to migrate any data from the device as repartitioning it will erase all data.

Disk Utility

Open Disk Utility by opening “Applications” from the Dock, and then “Utilities”. Then, select Disk Utility. Connect the removable device in the left panel. Then, select “Partition”.

Select the drop-down under “Volume Scheme” to select the number of partitions you want (usually, one). Then, select the “Options” button and select an alternate partition scheme, such as Apple Partition Map. Then, press OK, then Apply. You will be asked to confirm the change; press Partition to proceed.

MacDrive Disk Manager

Connect the device in question, then open “Computer” or “My Computer” to view connected devices. Right-click on the removable device and select “Format Mac Disk”, then select “Modify Mac Volumes”. Select the device, and press “Format Volume”, then Format. The result will be a Mac-formatted removable device that can freely be used on Macs, or in Windows with MacDrive.

Devices with multiple partition types (i.e. dual-format)

Dual-formatted hard disks, or devices with multiple different partition types, are not supported. For example, a device with one FAT32 partition and one HFS+ partition, or two HFS+ partitions and an NTFS partition, has multiple partition types. Neither Windows nor MacDrive will be capable of working with a drive configured in this manner.

Devices used with MacDrive can have multiple Mac partitions (HFS+, HFS+J, HFSX, and so on).

This Knowledgebase article does not apply to Mac computers running Boot Camp. The partition configuration of the system hard disk on a Boot Camp system is fully supported.
With MacDrive installed you won’t need to use two different formats (e.g. FAT32 and HFS+) to use your drive on both computers. MacDrive enables your Windows PC to seamlessly work with HFS/HFS+ disks.

Troubleshooting installation failures

If a MacDrive installation fails, the following are some general tips for proceeding:

Ensure that you have downloaded the current version. The trial download will always be the current version, but if you have a disc or are using an archived file, this is a frequent cause of issues.
Close all other open applications.
Restart Windows, then try the installation again without opening other applications.
Temporarily disable resident anti-malware software, such as antivirus and other security software. You can disconnect your network connection during installation if you wish, as the installation process does not require Internet. If installation completes, enable Internet before activating MacDrive.
If the installation appears to stall (the progress bar freezes), make sure there are no popups in the background asking for permissions. Windows UAC, as well as other programs, may require you to respond before installation proceeds.

If you cannot resolve the issue, please contact our support team to continue troubleshooting. Be sure to include as much detail as possible about the installation problem: what you see occur, when the problem happens, and the exact failure behavior (such as the full exact text of any errors you see). Please include your serial number when contacting us.

How to activate

MacDrive 9 can be used for a five day trial period without activating. After that time, the software must be activated in order to continue using the features of MacDrive.

Activating requires a valid MacDrive 9 serial number. If you have not yet purchased MacDrive, please visit our online store to purchase. You can also purchase an upgrade from a prior version of MacDrive.

MacDrive 9 will prompt you to activate, but you can also open the Activation Wizard anytime by going to Start > All Programs > MacDrive 8 > Activate MacDrive 9.

– If you have access to the Internet, simply enter your serial number and select “Activate now through the Internet”.

– If you do not have access to the Internet on this computer, but have access on another computer, you can choose “Show other activation options” and select “Activate on the Mediafour website”. You can use the serial number, along with the computer ID displayed on this screen, to activate on our web site.

There are two activation forms depending on which product and version of Mediafour software you have:

Current Offline Activation (MacDrive 9 Standard and Pro, Media SOS and Disk Aware)

Legacy Offline Activation (MacDrive 8, MacDrive 7, XPlay 3, Ready Aim Drop!)

The activation wizard will always give you the correct link for your version. We recommend using the URL from the activation wizard for that reason. Using the webform, you will receive an activation code that you can use to activate MacDrive.
– If you do not have access to the Internet at all, you can choose “Show other activation options” and select “Activate by phone” and call us using the dialing instructions provided. We are happy to assist you with activation. You may also submit a support ticket and we will send you an activation code via email. Please be sure to include your serial number and computer ID.

– If you continue to have trouble activating, or your serial number is not accepted, please continue to our Knowledgebase article regarding Mediafour software activation problems.

Prior versions

The same steps will work to activate MacDrive 7 and 8. Please note that you will need a serial number for that version; for example, a MacDrive 9 Standard serial number can be only used to activate MacDrive 9 Standard, and will not work to activate other versions, such as MacDrive 9 Pro, MacDrive 8, or MacDrive 7.

Please note that MacDrive 6 (and earlier) and MacDrive 6 CrossStripe Edition (and earlier), cannot be activated from trial versions. You will need the original full installer for these programs.

How to deactivate

In some cases, you may wish to deactivate your MacDrive installation — to unlicense MacDrive and make the license available to be used again. This is particularly useful if you wish to migrate your MacDrive installation to a different computer, or if you’re planning to make major changes (such as hardware changes) that may affect your license. There are two methods that you can use to deactivate MacDrive 9.

Deactivating without uninstalling: In MacDrive 9, you can also deactivate without uninstalling by going to Start > All Programs > MacDrive > Deactivate MacDrive 9. This requires an Internet connection. MacDrive 9 Quick Start also enables you to select Deactivate MacDrive.

During uninstall: MacDrive 9, if activated through the Internet, automatically deactivates during normal uninstallation in the Control Panel. No special steps are required. If no Internet connection is available, the installation will proceed without deactivating MacDrive.

Regardless of which method you use, please be sure to take note of your serial number before uninstalling if you do not have it recorded in another location. Serial numbers can be accessed through Start > All Programs > MacDrive > Help and Support > MacDrive Support Information. If you purchased MacDrive as a download from Mediafour.com, your serial number will also be on your Order Confirmation email.

If you have trouble activating MacDrive again, please continue to our Knowledgebase article regarding Mediafour software activation problems.

Prior versions

MacDrive 8

All versions of MacDrive 8 will attempt to deactivate when uninstalling the software. MacDrive 8.0.6 and 8.0.7 will additionally have the option in the Start menu to deactivate under Start > All Programs > MacDrive 8. To deactivate in MacDrive 8, the activation must have been originally done through automatic Internet activation for automatic deactivation to be possible. Please contact us for assistance.

MacDrive 7

MacDrive 7.2.5 or newer also has the functionality to deactivate automatically during uninstall. To deactivate in MacDrive 7, the activation must have been originally done through automatic Internet activation for automatic deactivation to be possible. Please contact us for assistance (please note that official support for this version has ended, so support can only help with activation, not other tech issues, installers or updates).

Mediafour software activation FAQ

How do I activate?

MacDrive 9

Disk Aware

You will be prompted to activate when opening the application.

You will be prompted to activate when opening the application, after selecting an eligible device.

You can install on one computer at a time per license purchased.

Can I move my license to another computer?

Yes, you can do so by deactivating the software. This uses an Internet connection to unlicense the software and notify our activation server that the software can be reused.

For all about MacDrive deactivation, please read this Knowledgebase article.

For Disk Aware, Ready, Aim, Drop!, and Media SOS, you can deactivate simply by uninstalling while connected to the Internet.

What is the “activation code”?

Why does the software say my serial number is invalid?

This means there is something wrong with what you have entered and the software does not recognize it. Please make sure to copy exactly from your order confirmation email.

Usually, the most common mistakes that cause this error are:

– Entering something other than the serial number, like an order number or SKU. Your serial should be in this format:

MacDrive 9 Pro: MX9EW-R????-?????-?????
MacDrive 9 Standard: MD9EW-R????-?????-?????
MacDrive 8: MD8-??????EWR-?????-???
Disk Aware: DA1EW-R????-?????-?????
Media SOS: MS1EW-R????-?????-?????

– Having a different version installed than you purchased, most commonly trying to activate MacDrive Standard instead of Pro or vice versa, or trying to use a MacDrive 8 serial with MacDrive 9.

– Having extra or missing characters in the serial number, or other typos.

I am getting an error that there was a “licensing failure” or “an activation failure occurred”. What do I do?

I need more help. What resources are available?

Immediate self help is available through our searchable Knowledgebase and checking our interactive Forums.

If you need the assistance of our support team, please contact us. Please have your serial number when contacting us.

Troubleshooting Mediafour software activation problems

Circumstances:
You are having a problem with the Software Activation process for a Mediafour software product.

Cause:
There are four likely causes:

1) You aren’t connected to the Internet while activating, or

2) You are connected to the Internet through a proxy, which is common on business networks, or

3) You have already installed the software on the allowed number of computers (typically just one), or

4) You have replaced enough hardware in your computer that it appears to the activation system that you are now installing the software on a second computer, even though you are not.

Solution(s):

1) Confirm that you have an active Internet connection before attempting to activate the software.

2) Confirm that the activation wizard knows your Internet proxy information, which you can likely get from your system administrator if you are on a business network.

3) If you are using MacDrive 7.2.5 (or newer, including MacDrive 8 and 9) or XPlay 3.1.4 (or newer), and activated through the Internet, uninstalling will also allow you to deactivate automatically if your computer is still connected to the Internet. Please click here for more information.

4) If you are using MacDrive 8.0.6 (or newer, including MacDrive 9), you may deactivate without uninstalling by going to Start > All Programs > MacDrive 8 > Deactivate MacDrive.

5) Purchase additional software for the other computers from shop.mediafour.com.

6) Contact Mediafour Support, explain what has changed in your computer, and provide your product serial number. A Mediafour Support Professional will work with you to get the software activated.

Mac disk not ‘seen’ by Windows (no drive letter)

STEP 1: General MacDrive checks

Please make sure you are using the latest version of MacDrive before proceeding. In many cases, updating to the latest version will take care of the issue you are experiencing.

STEP 2: Check that your drive setup is supported

STEP 3: Check that Windows recognizes the device correctly

A common cause is failed connectivity on your Windows system.

Please confirm that the drive is visible in the Windows “Disk Management” console. To access the Windows Disk Management console, please do the following:

If your drive is present in “Disk Management” make note of the drive number and proceed to Step 3.

STEP 4: Drive needs repair

Another possible cause is file system corruption. To repair such corruption, please try the following solutions:

STEP 5: Contact Support

Please create a technical support ticket with a detailed problem description and information on your computer’s configuration.

GPT and MacDrive

Fixed disks

Removable devices

MacDrive does, however, support Mac-formatted removables with the partition types of APM (Apple Partition Map) or MBR (Master Boot Record), either of which can be created with Disk Utility.

Disk Utility

Open Disk Utility by opening “Applications” from the Dock, and then “Utilities”. Then, select Disk Utility. Connect the removable device in the left panel. Then, select “Partition”.

MacDrive Disk Manager

Devices with multiple partition types (i.e. dual-format)

Devices used with MacDrive can have multiple Mac partitions (HFS+, HFS+J, HFSX, and so on).

How to safely remove drives from the computer

Even though FireWire and USB devices are Plug & Play (i.e. they are ready to use upon being plugged-in), you should not just unplug them. By unplugging a drive with a “hot” connection, you can corrupt data on your hard disk or other storage device. It is important to note that even disconnecting a device improperly one time can cause file system corruption.

You can prevent such problems by clicking the “Unplug/Eject” or “Safely Remove Hardware” icon in the system tray (down by the clock). The icon looks like a gray box with with a green arrow on top.

You’ll then be given a list of removable devices that are currently connected to your computer. Highlight the device you would like to remove and click “Stop”.

Windows should then prompt you that it is safe to disconnect the device. If not, this is an indication that some part of Windows is using resources on the disk. To clear this, reboot your computer and before doing anything else, try the above instructions again.

Access denied when formatting or repairing

Typically, receiving an “access denied” error when attempting to format or repair a Mac disk is due to the disk being in use by another process. Usually, this is because one or more Windows Explorer windows are still open showing the disk or its contents. This includes still having “Computer” open in Windows Explorer.

Other causes include files on the disk still in use by applications or resident software (such as antivirus) using the disk.

To resolve this problem, try closing Windows Explorer windows and open applications. If the problem persists, try disconnecting and reconnecting the drive, or restarting the computer.

Apple RAID support

MacDrive 9 Pro offers support for Apple RAID sets. Specifically, our requirements are:

MacDrive 9 Pro supports RAID volumes made with GPT partitions created using Mac OS X 10.4 and above, and supports striped, mirrored and concatenated disk sets.
MacDrive 9 Pro requires that the complete set be connected regardless of the type of RAID (e.g. mirrored). If not all disks are connected, MacDrive 9 Pro will wait until the complete set is connected in order to mount the set.
MacDrive 9 Pro does not offer support for warm-spares for mirrored sets.
MacDrive 9 Pro cannot mount a RAID of greater than 2TB in Windows XP 32-bit, due to the inherent limitations of this OS.

Frequently Asked Questions

I have MacDrive 9 Standard or MacDrive 8 (or prior). Can I access Apple RAID?

Apple RAID is a feature in MacDrive 9 Pro. If you have MacDrive 8 (or any prior version), or you have MacDrive 9 Standard, you can purchase an upgrade to MacDrive 9 Pro via the online store.

What if I have a set that was created using a version older than OS 10.4?

MacDrive supports version 2 (the current version) of Apple RAID technology, which has been included from OS 10.4 on. RAID sets that are older than this use version 1 of Apple RAID, and are no longer supported in current versions of the Mac OS. For that reason, we do not anticipate offering support for such drive sets. If the RAID is re-created using a more recent version of the Mac OS, you can use it with MacDrive 9 Pro.

I have a Mac-formatted RAID that was not created with Disk Utility. Is it supported?

MacDrive 9 Pro does not support RAIDs created with third-party Mac software. Please read this Knowledge Base article for more information on other types of RAIDs.

I have a RAID that is over 2TB and it won’t mount in Windows XP. Why?

We only offer support for XP 32-bit, which does not support disks larger than 2TB. This limitation extends to sets greater than 2TB you are trying to mount with MacDrive. You can, however, mount larger sets in newer operating systems (e.g. Windows Vista, Windows 7).

Write-behind/CRC (cyclic redundancy check)/Delayed write failed/IO error troubleshooting

The most common cause of these error messages is hardware failure, and/or failed device connectivity.

The first step in troubleshooting is to determine if the device you are using (e.g. External FireWire/USB Hard Drive) works properly when connected via an alternate connection type (if supported by the device). For example, if you are having difficulty using a hard drive via FireWire, try connecting it via USB to determine if the problem is resolved. If your hardware doesn’t have an alternate method of connection, you should contact the hardware vendor for diagnostic software to determine if your hardware is working properly.

Other steps to troubleshoot these error messages include:

Trying a different cable
Connecting the device to another port of the same type
Temporarily disabling any resident software that could interfere with file transfers (e.g. antivirus software)

Compatibility with Windows 8

Is a version of MacDrive available which supports Windows 8?

Yes, support for Windows 8 (32-bit and 64-bit) was released in MacDrive 9.0.0 Standard and Pro.

Windows 8.1 support was added in MacDrive 9.2.0 Standard and Pro, which is a free update for all MacDrive 9 users.

A five day free trial of MacDrive is available if you would like to evaluate it before purchasing.

Does MacDrive 8 support Windows 8?

No, MacDrive 8 (and prior) does not support Windows 8. The latest OS supported by MacDrive 8 is Windows 7. Support for Windows 8 will not be added to MacDrive 8.

Mediafour Technical Support is unable to provide assistance to anyone attempting to use MacDrive 7 with Windows 7.

Is an upgrade to MacDrive 9 available for the MacDrive license I already own?

Yes. If you own a valid license for a prior version of MacDrive, you are eligible to purchase an upgrade to MacDrive 9 at a discounted rate. You will need your serial number to purchase the upgrade, but do not need to have a prior version of MacDrive installed in order to install the upgrade.

Compatibility with Windows 7

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Is a version of MacDrive available which supports Windows 7?

Support for Windows 7 (32-bit and 64-bit) was released in MacDrive 8 and is also included in both MacDrive 9 Standard and MacDrive 9 Pro. A five day free trial of MacDrive is available if you would like to evaluate it before purchasing.

Does MacDrive 7 support Windows 7?

No, MacDrive 7 does not support Windows 7. MacDrive 7 supports only Windows XP, Vista, and Server 2003. Support for Windows 7 will not be added to MacDrive 7.

Mediafour Technical Support is unable to provide assistance to anyone attempting to use MacDrive 7 with Windows 7.

Is an upgrade to MacDrive 9 available for the MacDrive license I already own?

Encryption and FileVault

MacDrive does not support encrypted Mac-formatted drives. If you connect such a drive, you will be prompted to format the drive and it will not mount.

If you have enabled FileVault for your Mac disk and wish to use it with MacDrive, please refer to Apple’s instructions for disabling this:

Compatibility with network drives

MacDrive is not usable in networking and/or network-attached storage scenarios (e.g. Mac-formatted hard drive connected to an Airport base station).

MacDrive works with direct-attached storage (e.g. Mac-formatted hard drive connected via USB). Sharing of Mac disks mounted with MacDrive is not supported.

Parallels & VMware Fusion compatibility

MacDrive works with Windows running virtually under Mac OS X using Parallels Desktop for Mac or VMware Fusion, with the exception in both cases that the Mac OS X system volume will be inaccessible.

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In such cases, the Mac OS X system volume is inaccessible because, as with any operating system, Mac OS X requires exclusive access to any volumes it has mounted.

Please note that you will need to configure your virtualization software to have a particular virtual OS take control of a drive before Windows can use it. This is often in a “Settings” or “Devices” menu. For detailed help with your particular virtualization product and version, please contact the software manufacturer.

Compatibility with Boot Camp drivers and Mac OS 10.9

MacDrive 9 Standard and MacDrive 9 Pro are compatible with Boot Camp drivers from Mac OS 10.9 Mavericks as well as previous versions of Boot Camp, such as from 10.6 Snow Leopard and prior.

The Boot Camp drivers included with Mac OS Mavericks offer read-only support for Mac disks. MacDrive 9 can be installed with Boot Camp’s drivers and has been fully tested in such a scenario.

If MacDrive is installed after Boot Camp drivers are already installed, no special steps are needed. If you are installing Boot Camp drivers after installing MacDrive, either repairing or reinstalling MacDrive will be necessary; you will be prompted by MacDrive when booting Windows in this scenario.

In MacDrive 8, we recommend using 8.0.7 (the most recent release) with OS 10.7 Lion or newer.

Files appear as zero bytes (hard links)

On an HFS+ volume, some Mac software creates “hard links” instead of normal files. Hard links have no content; they are indirect references to regular files. In this way, they are somewhat similar to Windows Explorer shortcuts or Mac OS Finder aliases.

Although the Mac OS Finder shows these hard links as normal files, MacDrive does no support hard links. MacDrive will show hard links as files of size “0KB” (zero bytes).

A hard link can be recognized in MacDrive by right-clicking the file, clicking Properties, and clicking the MacDrive tab. If a file is a hard link, its type will be “hlnk” and its creator will be “hfs+”.

While rare, user-created QuickTime videos are the most commonly seen hard links.

Currently, the only workaround is to make a create a copy of the hard-linked file in Mac OS. This will create a “normal” copy of the file, which is accessible by all versions of MacDrive.On an HFS+ volume, some Mac software createshard linksinstead of normal files.Hard linkshave no content; they are only indirect references to regular files. In this way, they are somewhat similar to Windows Explorer shortcuts or Mac OS Finder aliases.

Although the Mac OS Finder shows these hard links as normal files, MacDrive does not support hard links. MacDrive will show hard links as files of size “0KB” (zero bytes).

While rare, large user-created QuickTime videos are the most commonly-seen hard links.

Currently, the only workaround is to make a create a copy of the hard-linked file in Mac OS. This will create a “normal” copy of the file, which is accessible by all versions of MacDrive.

Aliases, or shortcut files, will also appear as zero bytes, but will also have an original normal file that the alias points to. You can simply open the original file instead of the alias to access it in Windows.

Compatibility with disks larger than 2TB in Windows XP

Windows XP does not support disks greater than 2TB. To use the disk with Windows, you will need to use a compatible operating system that supports disks greater than 2TB (e.g. Windows Vista, Windows 7). This limitation is in Windows XP, and is not something MacDrive is capable of overcoming.

MacDrive has been tested and works properly with disks larger than 2TB under Windows Vista and Windows 7.

Apple RAID support in MacDrive 9 Pro is also limited to 2TB or less in Windows XP.

Compatibility with DMG files

MacDrive 9 offers a feature to “mount” or access the contents of unencrypted DMG files. This feature was implemented in MacDrive 7 (and newer). Prior versions of MacDrive, including MacDrive 6, cannot access DMG files.

Sparse image files are supported in MacDrive 9 Pro (not Standard). MacDrive does not support Sparse bundles, however.

Please note that our support for DMGs and Sparse images is limited to those which are unencrypted. MacDrive does not support encrypted disk images (or disks).

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Troubleshooting installation failures

If a MacDrive installation fails, the following are some general tips for proceeding:

Ensure that you have downloaded the current version. The trial download will always be the current version, but if you have a disc or are using an archived file, this is a frequent cause of issues.
Close all other open applications.
Restart Windows, then try the installation again without opening other applications.
Temporarily disable resident anti-malware software, such as antivirus and other security software. You can disconnect your network connection during installation if you wish, as the installation process does not require Internet. If installation completes, enable Internet before activating MacDrive.
If the installation appears to stall (the progress bar freezes), make sure there are no popups in the background asking for permissions. Windows UAC, as well as other programs, may require you to respond before installation proceeds.

Administrator installation options

There are a variety of custom options you can set when installing MacDrive.

Note: MacDrive 9.0.0 (and newer) only offers support for silent installation without reboot, without activation (as described below).

MacDrive 8
Silent installation with automatic restart:

macdrive_8.0.4.10_en_setup.exe /quiet

Silent installation without automatic restart:

macdrive_8.0.4.10_en_setup.exe /quiet REBOOT=ReallySuppress

Silent installation with automatic restart and automatic activation:

macdrive_8.0.4.10_en_setup.exe /quiet AUTOMATIC_ACTIVATION_SERIAL_NUMBER=MD8-12345EWR-12345-123 (replace with your serial number)

Silent installation without automatic restart and with automatic activation:

macdrive_8.0.4.10_en_setup.exe /quiet REBOOT=ReallySuppress AUTOMATIC_ACTIVATION_SERIAL_NUMBER=MD8-12345EWR-12345-123 (replace with your serial number)

Normal installation with automatic activation:

macdrive_8.0.4.10_en_setup.exe AUTOMATIC_ACTIVATION_SERIAL_NUMBER=MD7-12345EWR-12345-123 (replace with your serial number)

Notes: Replace the filename “macdrive_8.0.4.10_en_setup.exe” with the filename of the MacDrive 8 installer you are using. These instructions are applicable to MacDrive 8.0.4 (and later).

MacDrive 7

Silent installation with automatic restart:

macdrive_7.2.0_en_setup.exe /quiet

Silent installation without automatic restart:

macdrive_7.2.0_en_setup.exe /quiet /norestart

Silent installation with automatic restart and automatic activation:

macdrive_7.2.0_en_setup.exe /quiet AUTOMATIC_ACTIVATION_SERIAL_NUMBER=MD7-12345EWR-12345-123 (replace with your serial number)

Silent installation without automatic restart and with automatic activation:

macdrive_7.2.0_en_setup.exe /quiet /norestart AUTOMATIC_ACTIVATION_SERIAL_NUMBER=MD7-12345EWR-12345-123 (replace with your serial number)

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Normal installation with automatic activation:

macdrive_7.2.0_en_setup.exe AUTOMATIC_ACTIVATION_SERIAL_NUMBER=MD7-12345EWR-12345-123 (replace with your serial number)

Notes: Replace the filename “macdrive_7.2.0_en_setup.exe” with the filename of the MacDrive 7 installer you are using. These instructions are applicable to MacDrive 7.2.0 (and later).

How to retrieve a lost serial number or software installer file

Please login to your account at:

Here you will be see available downloads, recent order and you can view/print invoices. Use the “Store Login” link and login with your username (your email address) and password set when you ordered.

If you have misplaced your password, there are instructions for resetting that as well.

How to create a Mediafour.com online store invoice

Please login to your account at:

Here you can view/print invoices.

If you have misplaced your password, there are instructions for resetting that as well.

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