xbox app not recognizing external storage

Hello, My name is Jesse. I'm an Independent Advisor and a member of the Microsoft community and I'd love to assist you today.

- Open Windows 10 File Explorer (Windows + E), locate and right-click on the USB drive, select "Format".

- Set the NTFS as the target file system, tick "Quick Format" and click "Start" to start the formatting.

- When the process completes, click "OK" to confirm.

Afterwards try to use it again.

When you connect a compatible external storage drive, Xbox One will prompt you to format the drive and walk you through setting it up to store games and apps.

The basic requirements for storing games and apps on an external drive are:

Has capacity of 256 GB or more, and

Uses USB 3.0.

Devices that don’t meet these requirements will be treated as media storage, such as for music or video. If you have a storage device that does meet these requirements for game and app storage, you can cancel the format to use it as a media device.

If your console doesn’t recognize your external drive, see:

support.xbox.com/.../console-doesnt-detect-external-storage

To use external storage with Xbox One games and apps, your hard drive must:

• Hold 128 GB or more
• Connect via USB 3.0

When you first connect, Xbox will prompt you to format your device. You can use it for Xbox games and apps, or for personal media such as pictures, music, and video. (Xbox will treat devices that don’t meet the above requirements as media storage.)

If your Xbox doesn’t recognize your external drive, see Troubleshoot external storage detection on Xbox One.

Note Xbox will recognize only two external drives at one time.

If you cancel formatting when you connect a storage device, you can set it up later:

1. Press the Xbox button to open the guide and select System > Settings > System > Storage.
2. Select your device, and then select Format for games & apps.

have you tried the steps listed here?

support.xbox.com/.../console-doesnt-detect-external-storage

In the meantime here is a link on how to get your pc to recognize the drive to reformat it.

www.hgst.com/.../my-external-hard-drive-not-recognized-my-computer

Hi there EvanZook,

Thanks for reaching out here in Xbox Forums. I understand there is a question with formatting an external hard drive. Unfortunately, formatting an external hard drive will remove what is saved on the HD.

When you first connect, Xbox will prompt you to format your device. You can use it for Xbox games and apps, or for personal media such as pictures, music, and video. (Xbox will treat devices that don’t meet the above requirements as media storage.)

If your Xbox doesn’t recognize your external drive, see Troubleshoot external storage detection on Xbox One.

Note Xbox will recognize only two external drives at one time.

If you cancel formatting when you connect a storage device, you can set it up later:

1. Press the Xbox button to open the guide and select System >
   Settings > System > Storage.
2. Select your device, and then select Format for games & apps.

Hope this helps.