Yes, I think I did something stupid. As administrator on my laptop I attempted to set security permissions for business related materials on my external hard drive. I right clicked on the directory in "My Computer" and hit properties. I then selected the security tab and edited permissions by changing Full Control to deny. I assumed that as the admin I would still have full control but as it turns out I am completely locked out of my external now. I attempted to go back and undo this by going back through properties again, however, the security tab is now missing making it impossible. If anybody has a solution it would be so greatly appreciated. Thanks.