The icon on the flash drive does not light up. Necessary OS updates for operation. If the disk is visible in Disk Management, but it is not allocated

Restoring USB flash drives has its own characteristics. The good news is that these devices, unlike SD cards, are repairable. Therefore, if you cannot exchange a flash drive under warranty, why not take advantage of the 60-70% chance to have it repaired.

The article will discuss various cases, typical problems associated with flash drive failure, and options for solving them.

Recover data or repair a flash drive?

These are not the same thing, although the concepts are interrelated.

The main task that the repair solves is to restore the functionality of the flash drive so that it:

• detected as a storage device in Disk Management,
• was correctly defined in Explorer,
• read and wrote data.

As a result of repairing a USB flash drive, it is easy to lose all the data on it, while it will be available for writing and reading.

File recovery is only possible on a working USB flash drive.

The main reasons for failure of a USB flash drive

How to understand that a USB flash drive needs repair:

• When a flash drive is connected, the LED on its case does not light up;
• The device is not recognized on another computer/laptop;
• The flash drive is detected as an unidentified usb device.

Damaging a USB drive is as easy as shelling pears. Like any physical device, flash memory is subject to external influences (shock, thermal effects, water ingress, etc.). In addition, there are a number of software errors due to which the flash drive does not work.

The contacts of the USB connector are damaged

Often, the problem lies in a damaged contact between the controller and the USB connector.

How to check. To check the flash drive for this problem, test it on another computer. Alternatively, insert another flash drive (if available) into the USB port of the same computer.

If other flash drives can be read on a PC without problems, the problem is probably in the current storage medium.

If you are unable to read data from a flash drive only on this computer, the problem may be in the USB sockets of the motherboard of your PC or laptop.

How to fix.

1. Here is a link to a third-party guide on how to repair a USB connector: DIY USB connector repair on a laptop.
2. If you don’t want to fiddle with wires, it’s better to send your PC or flash drive with a broken USB port for repair. The approximate cost of USB replacement is $20–50.

Hardware/mechanical problem: controller damaged

Most often, everything depends on the flash drive controller, which is the main link in the operation of the drive. The controller contains important microcircuits, and disconnecting a contact or burning out a leg will make data recovery on a flash drive very problematic.

How to fix a flash drive.

1. Replace the controller yourself (which is unrealistic at home).
2. Take the USB drive to a service center - but repairing the flash memory will cost a lot of money. You will not find a controller for a USB flash drive on sale. The laboratory can find a donor flash drive and “transplant” the faulty controller.
3. If the data stored on a flash drive is vital and you would like to recover it, the laboratory can use an expensive hardware and software system to retrieve the data bypassing the hardware controller.

You can find out the cost of services directly from specialists at a company that repairs flash drives in your city. It can start from $30 and go up to $500 - 1000.

Reflashing a damaged flash drive

The USB flash drive contains firmware - microcode with service data. If the USB firmware is damaged, the USB flash drive will inevitably stop working.

How to fix. Such a flash drive cannot be formatted using ordinary universal software like SDFormatter; it will require complete “trephination” - flashing. To do this, you will need a proprietary utility from the manufacturer.

However, you can reflash the flash drive only by finding out the name of the controller. The difficulty is that manufacturers, as a rule, use different types and models of controllers and can implement not only their own, but also other people’s developments. Therefore, it is not always possible to immediately determine the type of flash memory controller.

Fortunately, there are special programs that allow you to determine the VID&PID* type for Transcend, Silicon Power, etc. drives; We will list them with a link to the installers.

(* VID – manufacturer identifier, PID – device identifier.)

After the warranty repair, all the photos on the smartphone and on the SD card disappeared.

Answer. A very vague question. What was the warranty repair - a mobile device or a memory card? All your claims against the performers are governed by your contract.

As for data recovery on an SD card, use specialized applications, which, in fact, are what this site is dedicated to.

A 2GB flash card from an old Nokia phone, the phone sees the flash drive perfectly, the tablet and other phones do not see it. My equipment sees other people's flash cards.

Answer. If other flash cards do not open on your, as you say, old Nokia, it is most likely because the phone simply does not support new technologies. Review the documentation and specifications for your device. Perhaps it's time to upgrade your hardware?

My 32GB micro flash drive broke in half. How can I recover information on this flash drive? Please tell me where and who can help me, how to fix the flash drive?

Answer. Alas, this flash drive cannot be repaired or at least somehow reanimated. If the firmware on your flash drive crashed, then you could give it some chance of recovery. As for physical damage, it all depends on the damage. If the flash memory chips are intact, you can read the data through a PC 3000 Flash reader, etc.

The only possible solution (if the files are not particularly important) is to purchase a new microSD card.

The flash drive does not open, does not appear as a removable disk, and does not appear in the device manager. Physical impact is excluded, because There are three such flash drives, different people worked with them.

Answer. You haven't specified the type of memory you are working with. In any case, if a flash drive or SD card does not open, I would advise checking the operation of the flash card on other devices. Test it on other phones or devices that you can connect it to. If it is an SD card, try connecting it to your PC via a card reader.

Check if the connected device is detected in Device Manager. If yes, use any disk partitioning program or standard Windows tools, or proprietary software available on the flash drive developer’s website to format the flash drive in NTFS or FAT.

While formatting the flash drive (transcend), the flash drive was pulled out from the PC. It was clear that it would no longer work, a check confirmed this. The computer does not detect the flash drive, the indicator blinks all the time, it is not in “my computer”, it is in the device manager, it says that it works fine, it is defined as a storage device. Help me restore the transcend flash drive!

Answer. The file table on your flash drive is probably damaged. You can still restore the operation of a flash drive if you create a partition on it and format it. You can revive a flash drive, as already mentioned, using specialized utilities like Acronis Disc Director, etc., but it is best to use the TestDisk application to partition and restore a transcend flash drive.

The flash drive was encrypted in TrueCrypt, I reinstalled the OS, mounted the flash drive, the files were displayed, but when I tried to open them, it gave me an error - access denied. Tell me, is it possible to save information if the flash drive is not detected after encryption?

Answer. You will need a client program to work with Truecrypt. Alas, the truecrypt.org website is currently unavailable, and the project itself is closed. So try to find the application somewhere on the Internet. After this, when opening files, you will be required to enter a password to access your files.

The flash drive is reset and the system requires formatting the flash drive, but I need to save very important and expensive files. Help!

Answer. Under no circumstances agree to format your flash drive! Instead, use data recovery software and try to recover the missing partition on your storage device. You can safely copy all the saved information to your hard drive and then search among these rubble for exactly what you need.

There is a JetFlash Transcend 8GB flash drive. No longer determined by the system. I formatted it with JetFlash Online Recovery and it deleted all data from the flash drive. Is it now possible to recover the Transcend flash drive, that is, the data on it?

Answer. The Unformat program is suitable for restoring a Transcend flash drive. The chances of recovery depend on the depth of formatting. Anyway, use the deep scan option. Alternatively, try Recuva with a similar scanning option.

Typically, the suspects in this case are software failures, incorrect operating system settings, outdated drivers, malfunctions of computer USB ports, adapters, or the drives themselves.

Depending on the reasons, the problem manifests itself differently in each case. It happens that the computer does not react at all to a flash drive or hard drive. In other situations, the sound of connecting a new device is heard, but the drive icon does not appear in Explorer. And sometimes the computer simply freezes immediately after contact with the USB device.

What to do if your Windows computer does not see a flash drive or external hard drive

First, figure out what exactly the problem is with: the computer, the adapter (if the connection is via a cable) or the drive. Try connecting the USB device through other ports. If this does not help and you are using a cable, try replacing it with a spare one. If unsuccessful, check whether the drive opens on other computers.

If the device works on another PC or you do not have the opportunity to check it

Connect your hard drive or flash drive to your computer and follow these steps in order. If the first does not help, move on to the next and so on.

If the other PC also does not see the drive or all of the above tips did not help

In this case, most likely the problem is in the drive itself.

If you have a flash drive rather than a hard drive, you can use special utilities to fix software errors. Such software can usually be found on the manufacturer's website. For example, the JetFlash Online Recovery program is for Transcend drives. And USB Flash Drive Online Recovery is for ADATA brand flash drives. But keep in mind that during the recovery process, these utilities erase all data from flash drives.

If none of the above helped, then the problem is probably a physical malfunction of the hard drive or flash drive. Then it is better to show the device to a specialist or return it to the store under warranty.

What to do if Mac does not see a flash drive or external hard drive

On Apple computers, the verification procedure is slightly different, but follows approximately the same algorithm. We will assume that you have already tried restarting the computer, disconnecting and connecting the flash drive, and also made sure that the connection is reliable. If this does not help, you need to do the following:

Open the built-in disk tool (Programs → Utilities → Disk Utility) and check if the problematic flash drive is displayed there. If the drive is still visible, try it by clicking the “Erase” button and reconnect it. Keep in mind that all data from the flash drive will be permanently deleted.

Mac diagnostic software provides detailed information about all software and hardware components on your computer, including USB devices. Open the Apple menu, then hold down the Option key, click "System Information" and go to the USB section in the menu that opens.

If the flash drive is there, then the problem lies in the software and you can try to restore the disk by referring to the manufacturer’s recommendations. If there is no information about the flash drive, then the matter is a physical malfunction, and you should contact a store or service center if repairs make sense.

There can be many reasons why a computer or laptop does not see a flash drive. And it’s quite difficult to determine what’s wrong. After all, the reason may be related to both the PC and the USB device itself. There is only one way out in this case: try all possible options.

And to make this task easier for you, below are 8 recommendations on how to fix this problem. The tips are universal and are suitable for all PCs and laptops running Windows XP, 7, 8 or 10.

If the flash drive is not recognized by the computer, then first of all check whether it works at all? The easiest way is to connect it to another laptop or PC.

Look at the USB device LED (available on all modern models). If it does not light up, then the flash drive is probably no longer working. Although you could simply extract it incorrectly. In this case, I recommend reading.

Checking USB ports

The second reason why the flash drive is not recognized by the computer is that you connect it to a non-working USB connector. Even if it worked yesterday, it still needs to be checked. To do this, connect another device to the same port - a mouse, printer, smartphone. Or you can connect a USB flash drive to the connector on the rear panel.

Configuration update

If the flash drive is not displayed on Windows 7, 8 or 10, go to “Device Manager” (it can be opened through Start - Control Panel).

After that:

Installing a utility from Microsoft

After this, you need to open the settings (“USB Configuration”). Since there are many BIOS versions, the path will be different in each case. For example, in the screenshot below, the required item is in the “Advanced” section.

Open it and check that next to “USB Controller” the “Enabled” option is indicated. If this is not the case, select the appropriate item.

Changing the device letter

To fix this error:

Driver Update

If the flash drive is not recognized on the laptop, the reason may be outdated drivers. In this case, they need to be updated. Easiest to use (they do everything automatically).

By the way, if you have an old PC, then flash drives with a capacity of 32 GB or more will not be displayed on it.

The first thing you need to pay attention to if the computer does not see the flash drive is the serviceability of the flash drive itself, as well as the serviceability of the USB connector. If everything is working properly, then a special light indicator should blink at the flash drive/port (depending on the drive model and input).

Malnutrition

Very often, a flash drive is not recognized by the computer if it is connected to a port located on the front of the computer (we are talking about stationary computers, the case of which has space for flash drives in the front). Sometimes these connectors simply do not connect to power, or they simply do not receive the required amount of power. Then it’s best to remove the flash drive and try connecting it from the back.

It also happens that a flash drive does not work if there is not enough general power supply. This happens when the USB in the computer is overloaded. There is also the possibility that the power supply is not working properly. In extremely rare cases, the computer does not read the flash drive due to the fact that it has a very large capacity. But this is the exception rather than the rule.

Flash drive not working

If everything is fine with the computer, you need to pay attention to the flash drive. In order to check its serviceability, you just need to connect it to another computer. If it doesn’t work there either, then this indicates a malfunction. In such cases, it can be taken for diagnostics and repair, but this is done only in rare cases when the data on it is important to the user. The fact is that repairs and diagnostics will cost much more than the cost of the drive.

BIOS Settings

Sometimes the problem is hidden in the operating system and BIOS settings. This happens in situations where there is no USB support in the BIOS or it is not enabled.

The system assigned a occupied letter to the flash drive

A very common problem is that the flash drive has been assigned the same letter that, for example, the drive or local disk already has. To fix this problem you need to:

1. Go to the Control Panel;
2. Open Administration, and then computer management;
3. After this, you need to go to disk management;
4. After this, you need to right-click on the flash drive identifier and click on “Change drive letter”;
5. Then everything is simple - you need to select an unoccupied button, click OK and exit the control panel.

Driver problems

The computer does not see the flash drive due to the lack of a USB driver. In order to check this, you need to follow several steps:

1. Open the "Control Panel", and there - Device Manager;
2. Next, you need to detect the flash drive, but this is not difficult to do. If the computer does not have a driver for the flash drive, it will be highlighted with a question mark;
3. If there are any, you need to remove the device and then install it again.

Sometimes the OS does not see the flash drive due to the lack of the necessary drivers. DPS or Everest will help you find the missing ones.

Viruses

In some cases, the correct operation of a flash drive can be affected by viruses hidden in the OS. Then it is strongly recommended to scan your computer using specialized anti-virus software.

What to do if the computer does not see the flash drive? Removable drives and HDDs should be extremely easy to use. But sometimes it happens that after connecting an external USB device to a personal computer running the Windows operating system, it is absolutely not recognized. If the computer does not see the flash card, this may be caused by problems with the partitions on the removable drive, using the wrong file system, faulty connectors, outdated drivers, or other reasons.

Below in the text, as well as at the end of the article, you can watch a video why the computer does not see the removable disk. Perhaps you will learn or understand more from it than from the article.

If the PC does not see the flash drive through “My Computer,” then, in the worst case, this may mean that the removable drive has failed and can no longer be restored. Pocket flash drives and large external HDDs work on identical principles, so the tips listed below apply to both types of devices.

What to do if the laptop does not see the flash drive? First of all, you need to find out whether the drive is visible in the disk management manager. Windows Explorer should automatically detect a removable device when it is connected via USB. Insert the disk into the slot. In some cases, to activate an external device, you must press a special button or lever on it. Heavy removable HDDs, unlike flash drives, can even be connected to the mains using a separate power cable, so the computer may not see the external drive if it is turned off.

Now you need to open the Disk Management tool. To do this, press the key combination Win + R, enter diskmgmt.msc in the line that appears and confirm with Enter. Now we can see the external drive in the management window. It should appear here even if it has no partitions.

If you see a device here that is unreadable, then you can immediately start formatting it so that Windows Explorer and various devices can access it. If the netbook does not detect the flash drive, then move on to the next section, in which we will try to determine why the drive is not recognized.

Now we need to somehow get Windows Explorer to recognize the external drive. It may not be recognized due to a hardware problem related to the computer's USB port. Other possible reasons may be incorrectly installed drivers or physical damage to the flash drive.

What to do when the computer does not see the flash drive? First, you need to disconnect the drive from one USB port and try connecting it to another. If the removable disk works in the new slot, this means that the problem was a malfunction of the previous one. In case you are using a USB extension cable, try disconnecting it and connecting the flash drive directly to your computer. Such cables sometimes cannot provide the removable device with enough power to operate.

Driver problems

If Windows 7 does not see the flash drive in Disk Management, even after you have connected it to another connector on the laptop, then the problem may be with the flash drive itself or with the PC. If there is another computer nearby, you should try connecting the drive to it to see if it detects it. If a flash drive refuses to work on several computers, then it has most likely become obsolete and must be disposed of. But before making such a sad conclusion, you definitely need to check whether the removable device appears in the disk management window on other computers.

If the drive works on other PCs, or you do not have additional computers at hand that can be used, you need to check that the installed drivers are up to date. This is done using the device manager. To open it, press the key combination Win + R, enter devmgmt.msc in the line that opens and confirm with Enter.

In the list of devices that appears, you need to carefully check all drives for the presence of an icon in the form of a yellow exclamation mark. If you were able to detect such a symbol, then the problem lies with the drivers. Right-click on the device with the yellow exclamation mark, select “Properties” and look at the error message. It should help you solve the problem, as you can copy it into a Google search to find reviews from other users who have encountered a similar problem.

Problems like these can be difficult to fix. If the computer does not see the drive relatively recently, you can try running System Restore. But the best way is to use the Update Driver button to install the latest version of the required software. You can try clicking “Roll Back Driver” in the hope that its previous version will work. You can also use the “Delete” button to make the external device disappear from the system’s field of view until the computer is restarted. It also happens that when Windows is restarted, the flash drive suddenly becomes working.

Partitioning and formatting

If the computer does not recognize the USB flash drive, then the disk management tool can be used to fix partition and file system problems. If you see that the disk is partitioned and full of unallocated space, then you can create a new partition on it. Thanks to this, Windows and other operating systems will be able to work with a flash drive.

Right-click inside the unallocated space, select “New Simple Partition” and follow the further instructions of the program. If the drive is divided into parts, but still does not appear, you need to check whether a specific drive letter is assigned to it. Typically this should happen automatically, but in some cases manual entry may be necessary. Right-click on the removable disk partition, select “Change letter” and enter any free letter. For example, you can write “G:”, and in the future the drive on the computer will be called that way.

If the disk is partitioned, but XP does not see the flash drive, then it is not a fact that the partition was done using the correct file system. For example, a flash drive can be formatted using ext4 for Linux (Linux) or HFS Plus from Mac (Mac). In this case, Windows 10 does not see the flash drive because it is not familiar with such a system. You need to reformat the drive using NTFS or FAT32. Thanks to this, Windows will be able to recognize the flash memory. To reconfigure a partition, right-click on it, click “Format” and select the desired file system.

Please note that this will delete all files on the drive. It makes sense to first connect the flash drive to your Linux or Mac device to copy the data. If you can't connect a removable drive to devices such as a DVD player or TV, the reason may be the NTFS file system. The above technique only works with FAT32.