Are you able to check the encryption status of the drive? In command prompt, type manage-bde -status
If you can get the status, I would suggest turning off the encryption so that way if needed you can get your files off the drive. The command for that (should be in Command Prompt Administrator mode) is manage-bde -off (driveletter) (driveletter being like D: ).
You may need to unlock it first, which is manage-bde -unlock (driveletter) -password
This will prompt you for the password.
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If it hangs on that while it's checking your external drive, then I would suggest contacting Western Digital to see what they say on how to check the drive with the encryption on.
As a side note, I would suggest using your desktop (computer) to be your working space, and make a second save to a different location like your external, that way you have 2 copies of your files. If you have the ability to, I would also recommend using an online storage like OneDrive, DropBox, etc so in the event you have a computer crash (or external drive) then your files can be recovered from the online storage.
If you can get the status, I would suggest turning off the encryption so that way if needed you can get your files off the drive. The command for that (should be in Command Prompt Administrator mode) is manage-bde -off (driveletter) (driveletter being like D: ).
You may need to unlock it first, which is manage-bde -unlock (driveletter) -password
This will prompt you for the password.
If it hangs on that while it's checking your external drive, then I would suggest contacting Western Digital to see what they say on how to check the drive with the encryption on.
As a side note, I would suggest using your desktop (computer) to be your working space, and make a second save to a different location like your external, that way you have 2 copies of your files. If you have the ability to, I would also recommend using an online storage like OneDrive, DropBox, etc so in the event you have a computer crash (or external drive) then your files can be recovered from the online storage.
