Fix Corrupted Pendrive

If your USB flash drive is showing signs of damage, it’s time to get help. This guide will show you how to repair a corrupted USB flash drive.

Why pen drive or SD card get corrupted?

Pen drives or SD cards are compact, portable storage devices that are convenient for transferring and backing up data. However, they may become corrupt due to factors such as physical damage, file system corruption, an increase in bad sectors, inappropriate insertions or removals, virus or malware infections, and interruptions during formatting.

Top Methods to Fix Corrupted USB Drive

Is it possible to recover files from corrupted USB drive without software?

Yes, files can be recovered from a corrupted USB drive without using special software in some cases. The built-in utilities of operating systems can often repair common file system errors. For instance, Windows users have access to a tool called CHKDSK (Check Disk), which can be operated from the Command Prompt.

Here is how you can use it:

1. Connect the corrupted flash drive to your computer.
2. Open Command Prompt or Windows Terminal as an administrator.
3. Type in the following command: chkdsk X: /f (replace X with the drive letter assigned to your USB drive).
4. Press Enter and wait for the CHKDSK utility to finish scanning and repairing the drive.

This command can detect and fix errors on the disk. However, it might fail to retrieve all lost files, especially in high corruption cases, and thus using specialised data recovery software is always recommended.

1. Diskpart

Diskpart is a built-in windows command-line tool, primarily for managing disk partitions. Here’s how you can use this to revive your corrupted pen-drive:

• Start by launching the command prompt window
• After that, type in: diskpart, and press ‘Enter’
• Next, to display all the connected drives to your computer, key in: list disk, and press ‘Enter’
• Identify your pen-drive’s disk number
• To select your pen-drive, input: select disk [replace this with your pen-drive’s disk number], and press Enter
• Clean your pen-drive by typing: clean, and then hit ‘Enter’
• To create a new partition on the pen-drive, key in: create partition primary, and hit ‘Enter’
• Format the partition to NTFS by typing in: format fs=ntfs quick, and press ‘Enter’
• Assign your chosen drive letter to the partition by inputting: assign letter [replace this with yourchosen drive letter], and hit ‘Enter’.
• Finally, to exit diskpart, type: exit and hit ‘Enter’.

2. Attrib Command

There’s another command, called the ‘Attrib’ command, which can alter the attributes of files and folders. To fix a corrupt pen-drive using ‘Attrib’, these are the simple commands you should follow:

• Type and enter this command: attrib -r -h [replace this with your drive letter]:*.* /s /d
• Follow it up with this command: attrib +h [replace this with your drive letter]:. /s /d

3. System File Checker (SFC)

SFC is a useful command-line tool that scans for and repairs corrupted system files. Follow these steps to fix corrupted pen-drives:

• Begin by opening the command prompt window.
• Type in the following command and press ‘Enter’: sfc /scannow
• The SFC tool will then scan your computer for corrupted system files and attempt to repair them.
• Finally, once the scan is complete, you can close the command prompt window.

Remember, always ensure to back up data before attempting any of these methods, as they tend to wipe off all the data stored on the pen-drive. If these processes seem daunting or you’re not comfortable using the command prompt, there are numerous third-party applications available that can walk you through the process of restoring your corrupt pen-drives back to full functionality.

How to fix Undetectable USB Flash Drive?

If your USB Flash Drive is undetectable, it could be due to a variety of issues including outdated drivers, incorrect drive letter, or issues with your USB port or connection. Here are some solutions to this problem:

1. Update the Drive Drivers: Updating your drivers could fix the issue, especially if it’s caused by outdated drivers. Open ‘Device Manager’, locate your USB drive, right-click it, and then select ‘Update Driver’. Follow the prompts to install any available updates.
2. Allocate USB Drives and Create a New Volume: If the USB is not allocated in Disk Management, it won’t be detected. To fix this, go to ‘Disk Management’, right-click on your unrecognized USB, and choose ‘New Simple Volume’. Then, follow the prompts to allocate the USB drive.
3. Change The Drive Letter: Sometimes, your computer might overlook the USB drive due to drive letter issues. Change it by right-clicking the USB drive in ‘Disk Management’ and choosing ‘Change Drive Letter and Paths’. Click on ‘Change’, assign a new letter to the drive, and then click on ‘OK’.
4. Check The USB Port: If the USB port is malfunctioning, your computer may fail to detect your flash drive. Try plugging it into a different port to see if that resolves the problem.

If none of the above fixes work, your USB might have a serious hardware issue. You might need to consider professional help to fix it. Taking it to a nearby device repair center for manual repair could help restore its accessibility.

Identifying Common USB Flash Drive Problems

Windows is Unable to Format the Drive Error

When dealing with a corrupt or unreadable flash drive, a common issue you may encounter is that Windows cannot format the drive. This error usually pops up when the system file is broken or lost, making it impossible for Windows to recognize the device’s file system and perform the formatting process. Furthermore, the error can occur due to the presence of bad sectors on the flash drive or if it is write-protected. It indicates a severe issue with the flash drive and requires an advanced solution such as using a dedicated USB repair tool or checking the drive for errors with Windows built-in tools.

Undetectable USB Flash Drive Error

An undetectable USB Flash Drive error occurs when Windows is unable to recognize your USB device. Often the result can be due to a corrupted file system, physical damage to the device, or issues with the USB ports on your computer. It may also occur due to a damaged or outdated USB drive.

When this error arises, your computer will display the message “USB Device not Recognized”. It means the computer no longer detects the USB drive, making it impossible to access any data stored within. Proper diagnosis and troubleshooting using dedicated software or driver updates can often solve this problem.

“Please Insert Disk into Removable Disk” Error

The “Please Insert Disk into Removable Disk” error usually appears when your computer fails to recognize a USB drive that is already plugged in. This can be the result of a physically damaged drive, including broken stems or connectors, a dead drive, or corrupted device software. Additionally, the error can pop up if the drive has a virus that prevents it from accessing stored data or if there’s an issue with the NAND memory chips. When these chips are corrupted, the flash drive becomes unreadable and often displays a disk capacity of 0MB.

Also, this error message can be a sign that the drive needs to be reformatted and the file system restored to a compatible format, such as FAT32, to be recognized by a computer. Proper correction of this error will significantly depend on understanding and addressing the underlying cause.