What should I do if the files on my external drive are corrupt or missing?

Typically all new drives are formatted as ExFAT. The ExFat format provides the most flexibility with connecting with different types of computers. However, we have had a number of reports from customers having issues with corrupted files while working with their external SSD drives. We have anecdotal evidence that the options below will work to avoid this issue.

Reformat your SSD to APFS.

We would recommend, if possible, that you reformat your drive to APFS.

APFS is optimized for SSD storage and increased data integrity, among other capabilities.

Please note that this will DELETE ALL YOUR MEDIA OFF OF THE DRIVE.

iOS/iPadOS devices do not have the ability to format external storage devices. This can only be done on a Mac laptop or desktop computer.

Here are instructions from Apple Support on how to format an external drive in OS X

https://support.apple.com/guide/disk-utility/erase-and-reformat-a-storage-device-dskutl14079/mac

If you’re not able to reformat your SSD, we recommend following these steps when disconnecting your SSD from your iPad. We cannot guarantee that this will protect from losing or corrupting files, but it might help.

1. Close LumaFusion by swiping slowly up from the bottom to bring up the app switcher, then swipe up on the LumaFusion screenshot).
2. Tap the Sleep/Wake button. The iPad goes to sleep; the screen goes black and is locked.
3. Unplug your SSD