Read, what to do if a USB flash drive, memory card or any other type of storage medium is not working properly. Cleaning the disk and its partitions using the “Clean” command and the Diskpart tool is one of the ways to solve problems. This way you can solve problems with a drive that cannot be formatted or whose capacity is displayed incorrectly.
This trick will also delete partitions that cannot be deleted built-in Windows tool such as Disk Management. This process will completely remove the disk partition table, allowing you to write it again.
Attention: This process will completely erase the entire disk, so be careful about the safety of your files. Also make sure that correct disk, otherwise you may accidentally delete data from the wrong drive.
Content:
Run Command Prompt as Administrator
To get started, run Command Prompt as an administrator. On Windows 10 or 8.1, just click right click Click on the Start menu and select “Command Prompt (Admin).”
On Windows 7, search for "Command Prompt" in the Start menu. Right-click and select “Run as Administrator”.
Diskpart
To clean up the disk, use the Diskpart command. Before continuing, make sure that the desired USB drive, memory card, or other device you are about to clean is connected to the computer.
To run the diskpart tool, enter the appropriate command in the Command Prompt window and press Enter:
Diskpart
Display a list of disks installed on your computer by entering the following command:
list disk
Review the results of the command and determine the disk number that needs to be cleaned.
Be careful! If the wrong disk number is selected, it will be erased and important data may be lost.
In the screenshot below you can see that Disk 0 has a capacity of 111 GB, and Disk 1 has a capacity of 15 GB. We know that we need a 15 GB disk. So Disk 1 is a USB disk, and Disk 0 is internal HDD computer.
Once the disk number has been determined, enter the following command, replacing the # sign with the disk number.
Attention: Be very careful. If an incorrect drive number is specified, all data on the wrong drive will be deleted.
select disk #
The diskpart command selected the specified disk. Now all actions will be performed with it. For complete cleaning partition table, type the following command and press Enter.
Attention: This command will delete everything on the specified disk! Make sure you have copies of all important data before proceeding.
Clean
If everything is done correctly, you will see “disk cleanup completed successfully.” Close the command prompt.
Creating partitions and formatting a disk
Now, using the built-in Windows Disk Management tool, you can create partitions on the disk and format it. You can also use the diskpart command for this, but using the Disk Management tool is much easier.
To launch the Disk Management tool in Windows 10 or 8.1, right-click on the Start menu button and select “Disk Management”.
Now you will see that the disk you were working with has no partitions. Right-click on the unallocated area and select “Create Simple Volume” to create a partition on the disk and format it with the desired file system. By default, Windows will create one partition the size of the entire disk.
If the described method does not work, for example, the disk has been cleaned, but it cannot be partitioned or formatted, or diskpart does not detect it, then the disk is physically damaged and will no longer be able to function normally. But the disk cleanup function via diskpart is a solution that can bring back to life disks that at first glance look absolutely hopeless.
If, despite repeated warnings, you still erase the wrong disk (and this happens VERY often), do not be discouraged. Data from it can still be recovered. A data recovery tool from Hetman Software – Hetman Partition Recovery – is perfect for this.
One of the problems that users may encounter is multiple partitions on a flash drive or other USB drive, in the presence of which Windows sees only the first partition (thereby getting less available space on USB). This can happen after formatting with some programs or devices (when formatting the drive not on a computer); sometimes the problem can be caused, for example, by creating a boot drive on a large flash drive or external hard drive.
At the same time, it is not possible to delete partitions on a flash drive using the disk management utility in Windows 7, 8 and Windows 10 before the Creators Update: all items related to working on them (“Delete volume”, “Shrink volume”, etc.) are simply inactive. This manual contains details about deleting partitions on a USB drive, depending on installed version system, there is also a video guide at the end on the procedure.
In Windows 7, 8 and Windows 10 earlier versions, actions on partitions on a flash drive are not available in the Disk Management utility, and therefore you will have to resort to using DISKPART in the command line.
In order to delete all partitions on the flash drive (the data will also be deleted, take care of their safety), run the command line as an administrator.
In Windows 10, start typing “Command Prompt” in the taskbar search, then right-click on the result and select “Run as Administrator”, in Windows 8.1 you can press the Win + X keys and select the desired item, and in Windows 7 Find Command Prompt in the Start menu, right-click on it and select Run as Administrator.
After that, enter the following commands in order, pressing Enter after each of them (the screenshot below the list of commands shows the entire process of performing the task of removing partitions from USB):
- diskpart
- list disk
- Find your flash drive in the list of disks, we will need its number N. Do not confuse it with other drives (as a result of the described actions, the data will be deleted).
- select disk N(where N is the flash drive number)
- clean(the command will delete all partitions on the flash drive. You can delete them one by one using list partition, select partition and delete partition).
- From now on there are no partitions on the USB, and you can format it with standard using Windows, resulting in one main partition. But you can continue to use DISKPART, all the commands below create one active partition and format it in FAT32.
- create partition primary
- select partition 1
- active
- format fs=fat32 quick
- assign
- exit
At this point, all actions to delete partitions on the flash drive are completed, one partition is created and a letter is assigned to the drive - you can use the full amount of memory available on the USB.
Finally, there is a video instruction if anything is not clear.
A wide variety of problems can arise when working with USB drives. If you have deleted a partition of your flash drive, then before using this device you must perform a volume recovery procedure.
You will need
- - Partition Manager;
- - Acronis Disk Director.
Instructions
Today, flash drives and removable memory cards have a fairly large capacity and are used almost everywhere. Unfortunately, they are more susceptible to physical damage than internal drives and hard drives, but they can equally suffer from software glitches. So it turns out that when you try to connect the device to the computer, the system displays a message stating that the volume’s file system is damaged or not recognized. How to fix such failures will now be described.
Why is my USB flash drive not recognized? Possible reasons
The most likely reasons why the operating system cannot recognize a drive or its file system can be divided into two large categories: physical damage and software failures.
Physical reasons associated with malfunctions of microcontrollers, external and internal damage, overheating or hypothermia, and many other negative factors will not be considered. In this case, you will simply have to throw away the USB flash drive. Even replacing a microcontroller will cost much more than a new flash drive or memory card. Sometimes there may be malfunctions in the operation of USB ports, but here the solution is obvious: you just need to connect the flash drive to another port.
Therefore, we will focus on software failures. Among the most likely reasons that the volume file system is not recognized upon connection, and if it is visible, it is not possible to work with it), the following are highlighted:
- exposure to viruses;
- software failures in the microcontroller;
- incorrect or incomplete formatting;
- incorrect removal of the device from the port;
- power surges;
- unsupported file system;
- outdated device drivers;
- mismatch between USB flash drive and port standards.
Concerning last point, the problem is that the flash drive USB standard 3.0 connects to port 2.0. This problem can be solved by simply reconnecting to the desired port.
Signs of damage to a removable device
Determining that a removable device is inoperative is quite simple. If connected, the system begins to issue warnings that the location is inaccessible, the file system of the volume is not recognized, a proposal is made to format the device, etc.
Along the way, it is worth noting that the drive itself may or may not be visible. In the first case, fixing the problem is somewhat easier. In the second, you will have to use additional utilities.
When a warning about an inaccessible location is issued, the reason may also be that the flash drive or removable card is assigned an incorrect volume label (drive letter), for example, X instead of F. In this situation, you just need to change it, having first used the disk management section, where the right Click on the device to select the appropriate command.
RAW format: what is it?
In the usual sense, such a structure is a modified format that, with most known operating systems simply incompatible. Therefore, a notification appears on the screen stating that the volume’s file system is not recognized (although the RAW format flash drive is visible, the files on it are not visible, even if you enable the display of hidden objects).
Changing the format is most often associated with software failures due to incorrect formatting, improper shutdown of the device, and exposure to viruses. However, you can convert the format into a readable one quite simply, which will be discussed a little later.
Main directions in problem solving
If the volume's file system cannot be recognized, there may be several solutions to correct the situation, depending on the cause of the failure:
- converting the format to any other compatible with the system;
- removal of viruses and threats;
- quick or full formatting;
- If you need to recover data, you need to use special utilities.
Just in case, you can make sure that the device has suitable driver. This can be done in the standard “Device Manager”, which can be accessed either from the “Control Panel”, or called by the command devmgmt.msc from the “Run” console.
Generally, if a device is not working or not working properly, it will be marked yellow. In this case, you should either update the driver (command from context menu) from the system's own database, or install it manually from removable media, or apply an automatic update using programs like Driver Booster(of course, with the flash drive turned on). Sometimes it may be necessary to update the driver of the USB controller itself.
Simple testing and recovery
Now let's consider a situation where the volume's file system is not recognized (the memory card is visible in the system) from the point of view of a regular disk. For removable drives you can use standard commands to check their status, which were originally intended for hard drives. This is about
To perform this operation, you need to call command console(cmd) from the “Run” menu (Win + R), and then write in it the line chkdsk X /f, where X is the letter assigned to the flash drive (most often it is F). Even if the drive is in RAW format, this procedure works in terms of restoring the file system or converting it to NTFS.
Virus check
Some viruses can change the structure of the file system of removable drives (and not only) on purpose. In this case, a message will also be displayed notifying you that the volume's file system is not recognized. The SD flash drive, however, will be visible in the system. This simplifies the task.
The most in a simple way The solution to the situation that has arisen is to check it completely. You can use standard or portable utilities. But here, unfortunately, there is no complete guarantee of “cure” for the device. This is due to the presence on the media of a seemingly standard autorun file, autorun.inf, which in some cases may be hidden (to see it, you need to set the display of hidden objects in the view menu of the standard “Explorer”).
If possible, it must be removed manually, but most often it is protected from such procedures. Here you should use the command line again.
Removing components from the command line
So, the system reports that the volume’s file system is not recognized (the flash drive is detected in the system). For example, let’s assume that the flash drive volume label has the letter Z. To delete the desired file, write the following commands sequentially, after each of them press the Enter key:
- cd F:/;
- attrib -a -s -h -r autorun.inf;
- del autorun.inf.
Only in this case is it guaranteed complete removal of this object, since even actions in Explorer due to its close integration with Windows viruses may set some restrictions, and command line works using the principles of DOS systems.
Fixing the file system by formatting
Now another example, when an SD card is inserted into the card reader (the file system of the volume is not recognized, but the system “sees” the device, even if it does not display formatting messages).
In principle, you can look at its format in the section, but why do this if the only problem is that information cannot be written to it? The easiest way is to format it.
Many users mistakenly believe that the easiest option is to quickly clear the table of contents. Absolutely false! Even if you install something from the drop-down list for your preferred system (FAT32 NTFS, etc.), there is no guarantee that it will be possible to work with it. Therefore, it is better to perform a full formatting. This will take more time, but after that the user will receive a clean drive, as they say, from scratch. And there will definitely be no problems with him. But this method is applicable only if the device does not have important information which cannot be destroyed.
Is it possible to recover information on a damaged device?
For many, the issue of information recovery is a clear criterion in favor of choosing special utilities that are capable of not only restoring boot sectors and recordings on devices of any type, but also to retrieve information that was previously present on them, which for some reason became inaccessible.
It is possible to recover data. But such advertised programs as Recuva, when the same removable media not visible in the system, useless. This is where professional utilities come to the rescue. Next we will look at two of them: the TestDisk application and the unique R.Saver program (both utilities are portable).
Recovery using the TestDisk utility
Now let’s look at the situation when the file system of the volume is not recognized (the flash drive is not visible even in Explorer, although we’ll immediately say that the solution below can be used for removable memory cards of any standard.
The program is free and does not require installation. True, many may be upset by the lack of a Russian-language interface and operation in DOS mode. But the utility is very powerful, because it is capable of first restoring the file system, and then the necessary information.
We launch the utility, in the window that appears, select the Create item. Next, a list of all available disks will appear, including a flash drive invisible to the system. As a rule, in the list it is designated as Disk /dev/sdc with an indication of the capacity (in addition, there may be a description like Generic-Multi-Card). If there is no description, you can determine that this is the flash drive you are looking for simply by its size or disk letter.
Next, we activate the analysis process (Proceed), after which we select Intel Partition in the partition table. Next, go to the extended file system (Advanced item), press the enter key, and then at the bottom of the window use the recovery command (Undelete). We wait for the scanning process to complete, and then red lines appear in the window, corresponding to all deleted files. Don’t be surprised that even those files that you don’t remember about at all can be found here (the program finds them with ease).
Now use the arrows to move through the list, select the desired object and press the C key to restore. Next, select the directory in which the files will be saved and press “Enter.” After selecting the folder, press C again. Once the recovery is complete, you will be notified that the copy is ready.
Universal program R.Saver
Finally, there is one more utility that can be used if the file system is not recognized (the flash drive is visible or not visible in the system - it doesn’t matter). It is best suited for recovering sectors and data on SD cards.
After starting the application, select the flash drive and start the scanning process (we agree with sector-by-sector scanning). Next, the procedure for restoring sectors (file system reconstruction) and the information contained in them begins (this may take quite a long time).
In the list of detected objects, select the ones you need, indicate the destination folder on the hard drive and confirm the selection with the appropriate button. Once completed, you can work with the flash drive without problems.
Instead of an afterword
As you can see, in some cases, troubleshooting processes can be quite labor-intensive (this applies to simultaneously restoring the file system of the drive and the data on it). However, if such procedures are not required, a flash drive or removable memory card can be used quite simply. Which method do you prefer? This is something everyone decides for themselves, based on the current situation.
If, when you connect a flash drive to your computer, the media does not open through Windows Explorer, and a notification appears on the screen about the need to format, then you are faced with file system damage. Instead of the usual NTFS and FAT32, the flash drive now uses the RAW format, in which the contents of the removable disk become inaccessible.
Bug fix
There are no intelligent converters from RAW to NTFS or FAT32 that can independently assess the degree of damage to the file system. Restoring the file system is only possible through formatting, as a result of which all data recorded on the flash drive will be lost.
Take your time to click the “Format Now” button. First you need to extract the necessary information from the flash drive. Will help you do this free program to recover R.Saver files. If you format the drive first, it will be much more difficult to recover the data.
File recovery
The R.Saver program can work with flash drives whose file systems have been deleted, so you can easily extract the necessary data from the media. But before performing a restore, make sure that the drive is recognized in the system:
RAW appears when the drive sector responsible for correct file system detection is damaged. The error is corrected by formatting, so let’s perform data recovery using the R.Saver program to avoid file loss:
Once the copying process is complete, your selected data will be saved in the specified folder. In addition to R.Saver, you can use programs such as GetDataBack, TestDisk, PC Inspector File Recovery, Mini Tool to recover information Power Data Recovery. During tests, all of the utilities listed above showed excellent results when working with flash drives with a damaged file system.
Drive recovery
When necessary files extracted from the flash drive and saved on another medium, you can begin to correct the error. You can’t do without formatting: to eliminate software glitch, you need to completely clean the drive and format it to NTFS or FAT32.