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General discussion

Help! USB flash drive suddenly became write-protected

May 10, 2013 8:45AM PDT
Question:

Help! USB flash drive suddenly became write-protected


I have a 64GB USB flash drive that suddenly went "write-protected" (read only). It has no tiny little switch to unprotect it, but seeing as there really wasn't anything critical to be lost, I decided that a simple reformat would fix it up. Unfortunately, W7 can't format it because it's write-protected. The error message says to undo the write protection before formatting (starting to look like an old "Catch-22" scenario). I bought it on eBay from China and can't identify the manufacturer, so there is no help there.

I scoured the Internet to find what I was sure would be a simple solution. I've tried virtually every suggestion and freeware tool that numerous Google searches have proffered. My drive is still unusable and to my surprise, it turns out that there are quite a lot of us out there getting increasingly frustrated with the same problem. Short of smashing the drive with a hammer, I don't see how else to end this dilemma.

Frankly, you are my last resort. Unless some genius out there has a solution that actually works, I'll definitely resort to using a hammer. If it comes to that, I bet I will even smash it with relish. That's how frustrating this seemingly simple problem has become for me.

Anyhow, thanks in advance for any help you can hook me up with.

-- Submitted by: Norm B.

Discussion is locked

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Degauss It
May 24, 2013 12:21PM PDT

You can always use a Degausser on it which most assuredly would unlock it, but it may also render it unusable as it wipes ALL Data off of it.
But that should not be a problem, because you cannot use it now ;^)

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Flash memory is not magnetic.
May 24, 2013 2:23PM PDT

Flash memory works on a different principle than disk storage, which stores information as magnetic orientatiion. Instead, it uses electrical charge stored in a floating structure to modify an MOS transistor's conductance. Therefore, a degausser, which creates a varying magnetic field, will not erase one.

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Degauss It
May 26, 2013 3:19AM PDT

So what would be the point then? May as well just smash it with a hammer eh.

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Keep Calm! I'm a professional. :)
May 24, 2013 12:55PM PDT

So much back and forth in the thread but I skimmed it pretty good and I believe I know what has been tried and what hasn't. Forgive me if I ask you to repeat a solution though.

First, have you gone to the disk management snap-in by right-clicking Computer and choosing Manage then Disk Management? You may just be able to bring the drive back online there by right clicking the partition and clicking Online. Maybe refreshing or formatting from this area will do the trick. It is the first place I would try.

There are several issues that could be causing this problem:

1) I see many people mentioning bad cells or worn out flash. I would consider this the least likely IF the drive is fairly new. Most drives are made in china these days so that is not a big issue.

2) If you are on a network, have used your drive on a networked computer (laptop or desktop) recently or have made changes to your Windows or third party firewall then it could be a policy issue. You can address this problem either in the firewall itself, the registry or using GPEDIT.msc from the run box and disabling the Group Policy that prevents USB access.

Here is some similar reading about group policy and registry settings for USB
A. Manually modify the registry key which is described in following KB article:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/823732

B. Using Group Policy as descrbed in following KB article:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/555324


** 3) You could have an incorrectly written hex value. You can use a hex editor to resolve this issue but be VERY certain you are changing values on the flash drive and not your main drive or you could cause serious issues. You may want to research and learn a little about hex editors before attempting this. http://360degreenetworking.com/?p=94 <<< This link has a little info about how to use a hex editor and another link to one I like to use. The problem mentioned on this link is not the same as yours but the method for fixing the disc is similar. ** This method is probably the most effective because it uses brute force to configure the drive


I think these are the three strongest solutions to try first then get back to us with an update. Thanks.

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RE: Help! USB flash drive suddenly became write-protected
May 24, 2013 12:56PM PDT

Hi Norm,
This might sound strange; however, Windows® OS's can be very finicky, so here's a long shot that has worked for me in the past.
Providing you don't need the data that's on the Flash Drive, try this...
Take the Drive to a friend's computer that's using XP, and try formatting it with the XP system.
This happened to me with similar circumstances about 3 months ago; the XP system seems to format things slightly differently to WIN7 (well that's what I found out), and I was able to format the Flash Drive, and it was totally useable afterwards.
Ensure that you connect the Flash Drive to the XP computer before its booted; allow XP to "Find new Hardware". Once done, Right click on the USB Drive Icon, (from inside 'My Computer') and format it...Hey Presto, XP allowed it to be formatted!
Give this a try (if you haven't already) and let us all know the outcome.

Kind Regards,
Dave T. (chauffeur2)

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USB Ports
May 24, 2013 1:01PM PDT

Have you tried using your USB drive on another computer? If it works on other computers but not your own, then there is a chance that Windows has disabled your USB ports. I just found a free utility that unlocks and locks USB ports. you can get it at http://www.intelliadmin.com. Hope this helps.

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USB Ports
May 26, 2013 3:28AM PDT

My USB ports are fine. All my other USB hardware works np.

thanks anyway

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HP Flash Format tool
May 24, 2013 1:07PM PDT

Go to HP and download their flash drive format tool. Format the thumb drive and see if that works. It always works for me when a flash drive messes up

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Don't buy a hammer from eBay!!!
May 24, 2013 1:28PM PDT

Hi, I noticed that no one suggested to test the drive on another XP computer in case Win7 is incompatible or too fussy with with this model of drive.

Now days gadgets are manufactured in a very fast pace and it is not always simple to deal with Firmware bugs. I think that your drive is not a mature product and thus crashed or defective (as mentioned by others). People who used USB drives on smart TVs would probably node their heads - YES our USB drive also crashed with all sort of "errors".

On a positive note, my best advise is to move on. Get a reputable USB drive and back it up because all gadgets can fail. If you decide to buy a heavy hammer to smash this drive, please don't buy it on eBay as it might come from the same manufacturer!

Good luck.

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Try to check atribute of device.
May 24, 2013 1:40PM PDT

Some viruses also cause to change the 'attribute of folder/file' to 'read only', you may try to check it.

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Try to check atribute of device.
May 26, 2013 3:40AM PDT

Both virus and malware scans show np. Thanks anyway.

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do you have an xbox???
May 24, 2013 2:13PM PDT

If you have an xbox 360 you can fomat it in there and it should get rid of it that worked for me with my flash drive.

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do you have an xbox???
May 26, 2013 4:35AM PDT

Hmmmm, interesting but no..... I don't have one. Why do you think xbox could fix it if virtually every other tool tried so far can't?

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The solution is very simple,
May 24, 2013 3:15PM PDT

The solution is very simple,
1) Backup all your data on your computer
2) Go to best buy and by a new USB stick
3) Transfer all your data.

Your time is worth more than the $10.00 you will spend on new flash drive.

The time that you would have invested trying to find a solution, sent it with a loved one. Take your parents out to dinner or take your child out and play ball with them.

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The solution is very simple,
May 26, 2013 4:11AM PDT

Your solution is too practical. Don't you like a challenge? Do you really want to let a simple stupid 64G flash drive beat ya without at least giving it a good fight?

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SD cards
May 24, 2013 3:44PM PDT

My sd cards have all become write protect only, and it was driven my twin brother nuts. Could not add pics or music to them . Here's what I done to solve it . Wait for it , Put it in a mp3 or any device other than a card reader and , wait for it , it now can add or remove files on it . Try it and see if it works for a sd card only . The Dave . E=mc2

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SD cards
May 26, 2013 5:43AM PDT

You want me to try and plug my flash drive into an sd card reader????

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Reformat the card
May 24, 2013 3:59PM PDT

I have been successful using Gparted. D/L the iso and burn to a cd/dvd reboot your ps usung Gparted and you are ready.

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Reformat the card
May 26, 2013 6:03AM PDT

Card??? What card..... my problem is with a usb flash drive.

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Could it possibly be in "READYBOOST"
May 24, 2013 4:06PM PDT

Could your flash drive possibly be in "READYBOOST" mode and set for 100% of available space?

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Could it possibly be in "READYBOOST"
May 26, 2013 4:31AM PDT

It isn't but thanks for the thought.

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One possible solution:
May 24, 2013 4:36PM PDT

Hi:

Even though you got the flash drive from ebay. You said that it does not have write protect switch on the body of the drive. Here is something that you might try, if you have not already done so. Plug in the flash drive into a USB port on your computer. Then in windows 7 click the start menu button and click computer. If you have the computer icon on your desktop screen, you can click it, click computer and a window should open that shows you the drives that are on your computer.

Right click on the flash drive and a menu should open, click properties on that menu. The properties dialog box for the flash drive should open. Look under general tab and see if you see a write protect setting. If so, if it is checked, uncheck it and click apply or ok to close the properties box. If you click apply, the properties box will not close until you click the ok button.

Now if you do not see a write protect setting under the general tab, look under all of the other tabs. As somewhere in the properties dialog under one of the tabs, there should be a write protect setting. If so, if it is check, uncheck it and click apply. The thing is that you do not want the write protect setting enabled. After you have disabled the write protect, try accessing and writing to the drive and see what happens.

Now if the write protect is not enabled in the properties dialog box and the drive is still write protected, then the drive could be bad or there is something wrong with it. If my suggestion, does not help, then I don't know what else that you could do or try to solve your problem.

That's it for now. Take care till later.
B4N Joel (aka joetom57)

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One possible solution:
May 26, 2013 6:42AM PDT

Thanks but trust me.......... there's no write protect setting for me to play with. I think your right that there may be something wrong with it. Thanks for the input.

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(NT) download easus partion program and your usb flash will work
May 24, 2013 7:46PM PDT
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easus partition proggy
May 25, 2013 2:07AM PDT

Hey there,

Been there, don that........ no joy :-}

Thanks anyway, cheers.

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Nope.....HP Format tool
May 24, 2013 8:27PM PDT

I dug out one of the transcend 8gb flash drives just to try the HP Format Tool. Wont work....just tells me that the drive is write protected Sad

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Nope.....HP Format tool
May 26, 2013 6:34AM PDT

I hear ya................ the same happened to me........... twice.

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Flash drive locked
May 24, 2013 11:24PM PDT

Norm, I had the same issue last year. Being an IT, I purchase large, flash drives on sale, for my work. One of them had me locked out, & could not access my data at all. I tried a few things, & finally got inside to see my data was there, but only the names of the programs, no installed files. I knew then I bought a bad drive & had to throw it away. I always back up all my drives so my data was saved. Now I only purchase drives with a good warranty & get my drive replaced. Hope you replace that drive with a better one this time.

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Here's what I'd try
May 25, 2013 12:03AM PDT

Here's what I'd try, besides the mac bit, I'd download Universal USB Installer which is made for setting up flash drives to be able to boot like a cd, you can download any bootable iso like Kaspersky Rescue Disk, and using the installer make your flash drive bootable. Go through the steps and one of the final steps is to format the drive. during the process a cmd type window will come up. I believe this will work. Once your usb stick is made to be bootable it should work. If either my idea or the Mac idea doesn't work, I'm sorry, it appears that for whatever reason your usb flash drive is shot. which makes it so much worse because yours is 64GB I understand why you are so upset. If you aren't able to get it to work, and decide to destroy it. Please put a video on youtube and provide a link. I'm sorry you aren't able to figure out the manufacturer.

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Here's what I'd try
May 26, 2013 6:29AM PDT

Thanks.......... it starting to look like you may be right. I'm not sure I want to youtube the actual smashing. I've already spent way much more time than I ever thought would be needed for this problem. Also, youtube might xxx my video of it due to extreme violence and language I plan on using during the actual event.