Conventional USB-drives and removable cards are so firmly entrenched in our lives that many users increasingly prefer to store information precisely with the help of such devices. But sometimes it becomes necessary to format them, for example due to damage or software failures. Since SD cards are one of the most common today, we ’ll look at why the micro-SD flash drive is not formatted and how to fix this problem. As techniques, several basic methods will be given. But if they do not help, you can say goodbye to the device.
Micro SD flash drive is not formatted: what to do first?
If such situations occur, before deciding in favor of a specific method for their correction, the root cause of the failure should be clarified.
The simplest and most common case is the situation when the micro-SD flash drive is not formatted (the device is protected, and the system simply does not start the formatting process). Everything is simple here: apparently, on the adapter for the card, the write-lock lever is moved to the on position. But this is the simplest thing that can be.
It also happens that the device is busy with some processes, which makes formatting impossible. In the simplest case, the drive just needs to be removed from the card reader and inserted again to repeat the operation. Sometimes the use of the “Task Manager” can help, in which you need to display all services, hide Microsoft processes and stop all others, and then try to format again. Perhaps this will work.
It is much worse when it turns out that the drive has file system corruption or physical problems. Here you will have to use other methods, some of which may seem quite complicated.
What to do if standard formatting does not work?
If after applying the standard method of calling the procedure from the "Explorer", the micro-USB flash drive is not formatted, you can try to start the process using the disk management section .
Access to it can be obtained through the "Run" console, where the diskmgmt.msc command is written. In the location window of all currently connected devices, we find the card (in most cases it will be located at the very bottom of the list), and then through the right-click menu we call the formatting command. Sometimes this helps (but not always).
Using special utilities
Again, the micro-SD flash drive is not formatted, and the system displays a message about the impossibility of completing the procedure? Alternatively, you can use programs that allow low-level formatting.
One of the most popular is considered to be a simple free SDFormatter utility. In the start window after starting the program in the drop-down list of devices, select the drive letter, and then click the properties button at the bottom right.
In the new window, in the formatting type, specify Full (Full Erase), and a bit lower activate the setting of automatic sector alignment (ON value). We return to the previous window and start formatting. In most cases, this helps. Again, not always. What to do if the micro-SD flash drive is not formatted even after such measures? It’s necessary to use what is called “heavy artillery”.
Hidden features of Windows-systems
First, we call the command line with admin rights from the Run (Win + R) console and write diskpart there, then enter the list disk command and find the device in the list (you can determine the map by volume). At this stage, you need to remember the device number in the list, otherwise you can destroy the data in other sections.
Now in line is the line select disk Y (Y is the disk number set above). After it is a line for cleaning the attributes of reading attributes disk clear readonly. After successful execution of the process, we check the attributes using the string attributes disk. If it is indicated that only the read attribute is missing, exit the console by writing the exit command.
How to restore a flash drive (micro-SD is not formatted)?
In some cases, you can try to recover an inoperable card before formatting. In this case, the restoration will affect not only the information previously contained on it, but also the file system.
There are plenty of programs for this, but the R.Saver application is considered the most powerful utility. The algorithm of actions in it is very simple: first you need to select your device, and then click only one button to start the analysis and recovery process. Further, the program will perform all actions without user intervention, however, this process can take up to several hours. It all depends on the degree of damage to the drive and its capacity. When the recovery is completed, formatting can be done without problems.
If nothing helps
If such actions didn’t have a result, and the micro-SD flash drive is not formatted again, you will have to use the last tool - flashing the controller.
To do this, you need to find out the unique identifiers DEV and VEN, which can be done in the “Device Manager” through the properties menu on the details tab, where the device ID is selected from the drop-down list (for completeness, it is better to use the longest line in the list), or use the program for this like UsbFlashInfo.
After that, you will have to visit the resource of the equipment manufacturer and download the latest firmware version from the numbers found, and then start the process itself through the downloaded executable file. In principle, you can find the firmware on other sites as well, but for security reasons it is better to refer to the manufacturer’s resource. At the end of the process, formatting should start as usual.
Finally, if none of the above helps, alas, you can say goodbye to the card, since it will no longer work. But, as practice shows, even with damaged microcontrollers, you can reanimate the card, and with the use of flashing tools and R.Saver program, you can also restore data.