I have an external HDD that's a 500GB

I understand the frustration you're facing with your external hard drive and the error messages you're encountering. Losing access to important documents can be quite worrisome. I'll do my best to help you out in a friendly and supportive tone.

The error messages you mentioned, "Windows can't access the disk" and "A device which doesn't exist was specified," indicate that your operating system is having trouble recognizing or accessing the external hard drive. This can be caused by various factors, such as a faulty connection, a corrupt file system, or hardware issues.

Here are a few steps you can try to troubleshoot and potentially regain access to your external hard drive:

1. Check the connection: Start by ensuring that the USB cable connecting your external hard drive to your computer is securely plugged in. Try using a different USB port or even a different USB cable if available, as a faulty connection could be the cause of the issue.

2. Restart your computer: Sometimes, a simple restart can resolve temporary glitches or conflicts. Try restarting your computer and reconnecting the external hard drive to see if it gets recognized.

3. Test on a different computer: Connect the external hard drive to a different computer to see if it can be detected there. This will help determine if the issue is specific to your computer or if there's a problem with the external hard drive itself.

4. Device Manager: Open the Device Manager on your computer and check if the external hard drive is listed under the Disk Drives or Universal Serial Bus Controllers section. If you find any yellow exclamation marks or red crosses next to the device, it may indicate a driver issue. In such cases, try updating or reinstalling the drivers for the external hard drive.

5. Disk Management: Open the Disk Management utility in Windows to see if the external hard drive appears there. Right-click on the Start button, select "Disk Management," and look for the external hard drive. If it appears but shows as unallocated or with a different status, it may require partitioning or formatting to make it accessible again. However, proceed with caution as formatting will erase all data on the drive.

6. Data recovery software: If all else fails and you're unable to regain access to the external hard drive, you might need to consider using data recovery software. There are several reputable tools available that can help recover data from inaccessible drives. These software options can often retrieve files even if the drive is not accessible through normal means. Try once Stellar Data Recovery software.

In situations where important documents are at stake, it's generally recommended to consult with professional data recovery services. They possess the expertise and specialized tools to recover data from faulty or damaged storage devices.

I hope these suggestions help you regain access to your external hard drive and retrieve your important documents. Remember to back up your data regularly in the future to avoid such stressful situations. If you have any further questions or need more assistance, feel free to ask. Best of luck, and I hope you recover your data successfully!

Here are a few steps that could help resolve this problem:

Assuring the external HDD is properly connected and the cables securely plugged in.

Check if the HDD works by connecting it to another USB port on your computer or connecting it directly to another one, to rule out any possibility that its issue lies within either its host device or USB connection port.

Test the HDD using different USB cables if possible in order to identify potential cable-related problems and ensure its optimal operation.

If none of the steps outlined above resolve your HDD access problems, try switching operating systems or employing disk management tools like Diskpart to determine whether they recognize and can access it.