Fixed File History Drive Is Disconnected

Amy Dennis

Jan 27, 2024 • Filed to: Take Data Backup • Proven solutions

File History is an important application integrated into Windows, which makes backups of your files with a customized frequency. This software is useful because it keeps the information of a computer safe, thanks to it you can recover files lost or affected files by malware or viruses. File History is linked to a drive (or partition), which will be the destination of the secure copy, so if it has problems, the backup process will be hindered; Here I will show you how to diagnose the possible causes of the origin of the problems, as well as various and practical ways to solve them.

Part 1: Fixed File History Drive Is Disconnected

Q: Yesterday File History stopped working. My hard drive is having problems, would you help me to find a solution?

If your File History drive (which is where File History backs up) has problems, File History will not detect it (even though it is connected to your computer) and the backup will automatically stop. Considering how important it must be to have your files backed up, this error should be solved in the shortest amount of time possible, since your information may be at risk in case there is malware or files are accidentally deleted.

Part 2: The Error. File History Drive Is Disconnected

If your File History Drive is shown disconnected in the application, it means there is a connection or detection error on your computer. Which can be due to multiple factors. Before going into details, you should know if your drive is worn, previously had problems, or have been using it for many years. All these factors can facilitate common errors in your drive, since, like any device, it has a useful life, and the longer it passes, the more common it is that it presents malfunctions, either in power, writing, or reading.

If you discard this possibility mentioned, in the next part you will see possible causes of why your File History Drive is shown as disconnected.

Part 3: Why Is History Drive Disconnected In Windows 10?

The reasons why File History Drive is displayed disconnected in Windows 10 can be various. Next, I will mention the most common:

1. The external hard drive is indeed disconnected: External hard drives are delicate devices that, when faced with any minimum movement, can make them disconnect, even though at first glance you may not be aware. Always keep your external hard drive on a flat surface and where it is free of movements and obstacles to avoid disconnection.
2. The backup drive may be failing, or the file system is corrupted: Another probable reason is that your drive fails due to some malware or virus, which may have left a corrupt file. This hinders the proper functioning of the operating system and, therefore, the File History drive. Keep your antivirus or Windows Defender updated to prevent malware or viruses from causing your computer to have operating problems.
3. You have made some changes to your drive: Sometimes we make changes to the drives, including the File History one. Some programs, such as antivirus, make some adjustments or add files that can modify your drive, so it is not uncommon that there is software that can make changes that at some point may affect the recognition of your drive and that therefore it may be seen as disconnected.
4. Another user may have restricted your permission to access this drive: When the computer is shared with several users (and if they have a different account), there may be occasions when one of them restricts permissions to access the File History Drive, without the intention of doing so. If this is the case, you can tell the person with whom you share your computer to see if it restricted your permission to access the drive where File History performs the backup.

Part 4: Methods to Solve File History Disconnected

Method 1: Reconnect File History drive and restart the backup

If your File History drive was disconnected, you only have to reconnect it (make sure the cable is well connected and if it is an external disk, place it in a place where it does not move) and restart the backup.

Method 2: Check and fix hard drive errors

If your File History drive has errors, you should check what kind of problems it has. Sometimes there are corrupted files that can be corrected, malware, and viruses that can be removed or quarantined. However, if your hard drive has more complex errors, you will have to take it to a specialized technician and you could consider buying a new one.

Method 3: Clean up File History configuration files

Occasionally, the File History settings may be altered due to an error, this may cause the drive to no longer to be recognized and therefore the backups to stop. For this, what you must do is delete the configuration files of File History and then make a new one.

Below, you will see the steps to achieve it:

Step 1: Delete File History Configuration files

Go to the folder destination of File History Configuration files which is this one:

"X:\Username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\FileHistory\Configuration," then select all the files and delete them.

Note: "X" is just an example of the character of the File History drive.

Step 2: Open File History

To open File History, click on the Windows icon and write "backup", then click on "Backup settings" to open the tool.

Step 3: Add drive to back up your files

Click on the grey square with the "+" next to "Add a drive", wait for the drive or drives where you want to back up your data. Then just click on the drive you want Windows to make the backup.

Step 4: Customize settings

Click on "More options" to customize settings such as backup frequencies, the folders you want to back up, and the time you want to keep them.

Method 4: Create a shared folder to save File History backup

To avoid relying on a drive and reduce problems you may have, you can choose to use a shared folder by selecting a network location. This will be more comfortable and at the same time safer.

To activate a network location to your File History, just follow these simple steps:

Step 1: Open File History

To open File History, click on the Windows icon and write "backup", then click on "Backup settings" to open the tool.

Step 2: Go to "advanced settings"

Once you have opened the tool, click on "More options" and then on "See advanced settings."

Step 3: Open the configuration to add a network location

In this window click on "Select a network location."

Step 4: Add a network location

Click on "Show all network locations," then you will see a list of available drives, click on the one where you want File History to make the backups, after that click on "Add network location," select the location of your backups and confirm clicking on "OK."

Step 5: Turn on File History on your network drive

Just click on "Turn On" and the backup will begin automatically.

Part 5: How to Back Up Files with AOMEI Backupper?

Although File History is a functional tool, it is very basic and may not be enough for your needs. In addition to this, it has a greater probability of failing if there is a small configuration error in your drive or if there is a problem (even not serious) in your operating system.

If what you want is a more secure and professional option, AOMEI Backupper is the answer of what you are looking for, since it is a very practical and safe software, in which you can customize your backups in various ways, in addition to being very reliable and you will not experience undesirable problems with it.

Next, I will show you how to back up your data using this software:

Step 1: Go to "File Backup"

Once the tool is open, go to the "Backup" section (Located in the left panel of the window). Now click on the option "File Backup."

Step 2: Assign a name to your task

Before going further. It's advisable to name each backup task to help you to distinguish each backup process from other ones. You can do this by clicking on the "Task name" edit icon.

Step 3: Select the folder to backup

At this point, you can select an entire folder or just a file to backup by choosing one of the options that are displayed in the middle of the wind

Step 4: Customize the filter settings

If you have a Pro license, you will be able to set filter preferences to make your experience much more efficient.

Step 5: Set a target location

Once you've edited the filter preferences, you must select a target location to store the backup of your files. To do this, you have to click on the "folder" icon in the highlighted section.

Step 6: Start the backup process

If all the preferences have been set up, you will have to click on the "Start Backup" button. As you have seen, the AOMEI Backupper tool it's pretty simple to use and allows you to make any kind of backup process with great ease.

Conclusion

Nowadays, backing up information from computers has become a necessary and primary task; for this reason, users need a tool or software to do this task. File History is the native Windows tool for making backups, however, it is very basic and covers very simple needs, besides it can show the backup drive as "disconnected" for many reasons that do not seem logical; therefore, you can take AOMEI Backupper is an excellent option, which is professional software that you can trust to make your backups simply and practically.