How to Set External Hard Drive Permissions in Windows [Step-by-Step]

If you’re looking to change external hard drive permissions settings, you’re in the right place.

With that, you can adjust how users access, modify, or take ownership of files, especially useful when you’re denied access or encounter You have been denied permission to access this folder errors.

So, follow the steps below to access and change hard drive permissions in Windows.

How do I change permissions on my external hard drive?

1. Take ownership of your external hard drive

1. Right-click on your external hard drive.
2. Choose Properties from the contextual menu.
3. Click on Security and go to Edit.

   

4. A dialogue box will appear as Permissions for a new volume (E :).
5. Click on the Add button and add a new user name. After that, click OK.
6. Permission section will open. Click on Full Control and tap OK.

2. Use Command Prompt

1. Connect your external hard drive to your PC.
2. Right-click Start and open Command Prompt (Admin).
3. In the command line, type the following command (assuming that your external drive has letter E: assigned):
   takeown /f e:\ /r

   

4. Reboot your PC and look for changes.

In case you’re getting external hard drive permission denied message on Windows 10, try using this method.

3. Format the external hard drive

1. Right-click on External Hard drive and select Format partition.

   

2.  A pop-up window will appear. Now select NTFS and click OK.
3. Go back to the main interface and authorize your setup. Click Apply and click OK.

Now your external hard drive will be formatted, and you can gain complete access. Moreover, you could transfer previously recovered files and folders in it.

These solutions are the most effective methods to help you change external hard drive permissions on Windows 10.

In case the problems are still there, we have a great guide on Need administrator permission to change attributes that might be able to help you.

These methods should help you change external hard drive permissions on Windows 10. If you’re still having issues, check out these guides: if your WD external hard drive isn’t showing up, refer to our article on fixing WD drives not recognized.

If your drive is missing after a Windows 11 update, try the solutions in our guide on recovering missing drives after updates. For cases where Windows 11 isn’t recognizing your external drive, see our article on fixing detection issues.

What method worked for you? Share it with us in the comments below.