Fixing Unaccessable file on an External Hdd

Ali Ayad 40 Reputation points
2026-06-03T07:46:06.3733333+00:00

I Have an External HDD With 4TB of data Storage, separated into 2 disk files (f & g)

the F Works Fine But the G isn't Allowing Me to Enter for Some Reason so I Did the Usual changing the Access to Myself Even Though my Access Has nothing wrong & Works Just Fine

I Did some Searching & Google AI Suggested That I Use The CMD Check-up with This Prompt :

"chkdsk G: /f /r"

& I Have Around 1200 Movies On this Drive & Their Subtitle Files, But the CMD Has Given me Around 10 Hours to complete Which is Pretty Long & The HDD Usually Disconnects Itself Every Couple Of Hours, So My Question is Should I Abort it and find another fix cause I Have No Idea

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Devices and drivers
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Answer accepted by question author
DaveM121 936.1K Reputation points Independent Advisor
2026-06-03T08:21:27.2833333+00:00

If you have already started the check disk command, that process has 5 phases (1 - 5) it is not safe to stop that process in phases 1 - 3, you may corrupt the drive, what phase is currently indicated in the command prompt window?

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Answer accepted by question author
Senthil kumar 2,500 Reputation points
2026-06-03T08:03:08.16+00:00

Hi @Ali Ayad

In this case go to command prompt and then go to G: drive just verify are you able to see the files. if able to see your files, then use copy command to copy the files from the drive to your desired drive.

robocopy "G:\Source" "D:\Destination" /E /R:2 /W:1

/E :: copy subdirectories, including Empty ones.

/R:n :: number of Retries on failed copies: default 1 million.

/W:n :: Wait time between retries: default is 30 seconds.

xcopy "G:\Source" "D:\Destination" /E /I /H /Y

/E Copies directories and subdirectories, including empty ones.

/I If destination does not exist and copying more than one file, assumes that destination must be a directory.

/H Copies hidden and system files also.

/Y Suppresses prompting to confirm you want to overwrite an, existing destination file.

Thanks.

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  1. AI answer

    2026-06-03T07:46:36.0666667+00:00

    Do not abort chkdsk solely because of the long estimated time. However, the frequent disconnections are a serious problem and can prevent chkdsk from completing and risk further corruption.

    Key points about chkdsk in this scenario:

    1. What chkdsk G: /f /r does
      • /f fixes logical file system errors.
      • /r locates bad sectors and recovers readable information; it also includes /f and scans the physical surface of the disk.
      • On large HDDs, especially multi‑TB drives, /r can legitimately take many hours because every sector is read.
    2. Why it takes so long on a 4 TB HDD
      • HDDs have mechanical heads that must move to read each sector, so a full surface scan is slow.
      • For large capacity HDDs, /r or /b can take a considerable amount of time even if the drive is mostly empty and has no errors.
    3. Impact of the drive disconnecting
      • If the HDD disconnects during chkdsk, the scan will fail and may leave the volume still corrupted.
      • Interrupting chkdsk is not recommended, but canceling it should not make the volume more corrupt than it was before running it. Running chkdsk again after stabilizing the hardware connection can repair remaining corruption.
    4. Recommended approach
      • First, address the physical issue causing the drive to disconnect (cable, USB port, enclosure, power, or the drive itself). A stable connection is required for chkdsk to complete.
      • Once the connection is stable, run a less intensive check first:
        • chkdsk G: (no parameters) to get a status report without fixing.
        • If errors are reported, run chkdsk G: /f to fix logical errors without the full surface scan.
      • Use /r only if there are signs of physical bad sectors or if /f alone does not restore access.
    5. If chkdsk finishes too quickly or behaves oddly
      • On large drives, if chkdsk completes unusually fast, it can indicate that:
        • The volume was locked or not fully scanned.
        • There is a hardware issue (for example, failing read head).
      • Review the chkdsk log in Event Viewer to see what was actually checked and whether errors were found or fixed.
    6. Exit codes
      • After chkdsk completes, note the exit code:
        • 0: No errors found.
        • 1: Errors found and fixed.
        • 2: Cleanup performed or skipped because /f was not specified.
        • 3: Disk could not be checked or errors not fixed.

    Given the frequent disconnections and the size of the drive, stabilize the hardware connection first, then prefer chkdsk G: /f before using /r. Do not rely on a long /r scan while the drive is intermittently disconnecting.

    References:

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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