Configure for shared external drive

I'm using Parallels 10 with Yosemite and Win 7. What is the proper way to configure parallels to automatically share the external drive? Sometimes when I switch from Yosemite to Windows and try to access the external drive I get an message that says it cannot find the drive. I then have been physically disconnecting the usb and connecting it again. There must be a better way.

Thanks

 

Hi Snooz48,
Using SmartMount, you can set Parallels Desktop to automatically mount Mac storage devices and volumes to Windows. That way, you can access the contents from both Mac OS X and Windows.
Please follow the steps below to enable SmartMount Tool:

1. Open virtual machine window (Do not click Start).
2. Open virtual machine configuration http://kb.parallels.com/117287 > switch to Options tab > Sharing.
3. Tick SmartMount checkbox.