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USB flash drive write protection

Discussion in 'Storage and Networking' started by maxhar, Dec 28, 2004.

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  1. kimsland Ex-TechSpotter Posts: 18,353

    Obviously this thread gets viewed a lot (must be Google searches or something :confused: )

    Anyway, because no one wants to create a => New Thread; I'll just post some general info here! (Something is bound to work!)

    Advanced troubleshooting tips for general USB problems in Windows XP
    http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;310575

    The Care and Feeding of USB Storage Devices in XP
    http://aumha.net/viewtopic.php?f=62&t=28888

    USB Guides
    http://www.usbman.com/USB_Guides.htm

    Solved: Drive Letters Cannot Be Assigned to Flash / USB Drives Under Windows XP
    http://www.techspot.com/vb/showthread.php?p=337977#post337977

    Flash drive recovery procedures
    http://www.techspot.com/vb/topic45834.html

    Western Digital external hard drive problem
    http://www.techspot.com/vb/topic116656.html

    How to remove Virus from USB Drives
    http://www.whoismadhur.com/2008/01/26/how-to-remove-virus-from-usb-drives/

    Format an unresponsive USB Drive :grinthumb
    http://www.techspot.com/vb/showthread.php?p=687891#post687891

    Troubleshoot: Windows Won't Recognize USB Hard Drive / Fix Unassigned Drive Letter :grinthumb
    http://www.techspot.com/vb/showthread.php?t=122125


    It would be nice to know which one worked for you ;)
  2. maenam Newcomer, in training

    YOU are a legend mate 4hrs scrolling through useless help topics, i knew it was a windows error and now the answer, all my control settings for groups 1 3 4 were set to 1 not 0!!!! all 5 of the usb sticks i have bought now work

    THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    ps. i have XP SP3 and only needed to change control settings didnt save anything
  3. Itamar Chavez C Newcomer, in training

    Hello all the people at forum

    Hello
    To day I get big help from your community about problem in my PC ,
    The problem is : not have permit for to write in pendrive and external storage disk .but in your forum I found the solution, thanks very much.
    Now I am part the community of course one baby in this but have big curiosity and learn quick.
    have all very good day, afternoon, morning or night!!!


    Take care
    Itamar
  4. xehqter Newcomer, in training Posts: 85

    I wrote an article a few weeks back describing different types of flash drive failures and a few quick fixes to try. People experiencing flash drive issues may find it useful.

    How Flash Drives Fail
  5. jackonline Newcomer, in training

    thank you very much FATBIRD actually i googled for this problem and reached very near to the soluttion you gave but i found that controlset001 etc. are also to be changed....thnx once again
  6. eyezkills Newcomer, in training

    Need help!

    I have this 4GBToshiba Transmemory USB Device. I used it last Wednesday. I was copying stuffs like songs and games and trying to save it on my USB then all the while a copywrite protected popped up. It said I need to remove the copywrite protection or use a new disk. I can't delete my old files too nor can format the device itself. Also I can't put new files again.

    I tried fatbird's solution but I can't find the StorageDevicePolicies...


    Please help me... I just borrowed it and I'd be so dead if the owner will learn I ruined her USB.


    please! thanks a lot!
     
  7. ShowPlay Newcomer, in training

    "Write protection" is actually an old Windows limitation

    If you are copying your files in the root folder, Windows has an arbitrary and archaic limit of about 128 files.

    To overcome that, simply create a folder and copy your files there instead -- voilà!
    No more limit...

    Well, were you expecting quality from Microsoft ?
  8. long20k Newcomer, in training

    Fix for USB Card Reader With SD-to-Micro Adapter

    If you are getting a "write protect" message while trying to access a USB card reader/writer with an SD-to-Micro adapter in it, suggest you look carefully on each edge of the adapter. You may see a previously unnoticed (and tiny) slide switch.

    My Sandisk Micro-to-SD Adapter has such a switch, although I didn't see it two months ago when putting a 2GB micro into the adapter and then putting the adapter into the USB card reader/writer.

    Everything was ok until a couple of days ago. Then the "write protected" error appeared. Looking closely, the adapter did have a slide switch with a very small tab. It also became clear that the very act of removing and then reinserting the adapter into the reader would often push the tab backward enough to enable the write-protect mode.

    Using magnifying goggles, I carefully applied small drop of nail polish behind the tab. This proved enough to hold the switch in place. Please be careful. The tolerances are so small that too much nail polish could create its own problem.
  9. nanysut Newcomer, in training

  10. alswee Newcomer, in training

    Suggestion

    Hi guys, go to this website if interested to buy a write-protect thumbdrive: google it for a webpage called holonomicwheel.com

    I've used it and it works great.
  11. lucifer98 Newcomer, in training

    The same problem

    Hi,

    I just won a Duracell USB Stick 960 MB...It worked for 2 days...But yesterday I tried to format my Memory Stick and it sais I need to remove protection...What protection???...I tried to remove the protection with the solutions posted recently...maybe not recent :D:)but can someone help me please
  12. lucifer98 Newcomer, in training

    For information:Duracell isn't a model of USB stick...I just won it from batteries Duracell...I dn't know what model is it:D!
  13. kimsland Ex-TechSpotter Posts: 18,353

    You need to try the things already mentioned in this Topic, before posting here

    If you have tried everything, then throw it away, or go back to "batteries Duracell" or wherever you won it, and say it doesn't work.
    Hopefully they give you a bigger one than 1 gig, really unheard of these days
  14. bringmeinplz Newcomer, in training

    Okay, I have read through just about the whole thread and the same thing: "Cannot format (or whatever) - disk is protected remove write protected or use another disk". I have Windows XP Professional SP3, I'm using a 1 GB flash drive my Grandfather gave me from his work, which is at BMW so it says BMW on it, I do not see a switch for write protection.I have 3 others that aren't write protected and they are the same thing!!! This really pisses me off! Please help!
  15. GHORI9888 Newcomer, in training

    Write protected pen drive format

    Thanks buddy

    run
    cmd
    cd\
    chkdsk
    /f
    than after eject your pen drive and insret again
    than format your pen drive
    than you go
    now your pen drive is ready to use

    enjoy
    have gr8 work with you pen...............
    It work
  16. Generalkilmall Newcomer, in training

    The Easy fix

    The fix worked great ! Thanks Fatbird :grinthumb



    QUOTE=fatbird;198590]OK – after an hour or so of faffing around :knock: , I think that I have found a possible solution :p . The problem seems to be something to do with Microsoft’s SP2 :dead: !
    Here’s what worked for me (sorry for the *****’s Guide approach, but I used to :hotbounce hate it :hotbounce when I used forums and couldn’t understand what the technobabble meant!):


    - Start > Run > type ‘regedit’ (without the speachmarks) > Enter
    - Single-click on ‘My Computer’ > File > Export > save it to the Desktop (Always best to have a backup!!)
    - Go to the following:

    My Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\StorageDevicePolicies
    *There seems to be some spaces here in 'StorageDevicePolicies' in the text above, there shouldn't be, OK*
    - Double click on the string ‘WriteProtect’ and change the ‘Value Data’ box to ‘0’
    - Then: File > Export > save somewhere useful as something like ‘StorageDevicePolicies001.reg’
    - You also need to do this for the strings in any folders called ‘ControlSet***’ (* = any Digit, i.e. 001, 002) – for example: Everything is the same, just change ‘CurrentControlSet’ to ‘ControlSet***’

    My Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Control\StorageDevicePolicies
    *There seems to be some spaces here in 'StorageDevicePolicies' in the text above, there shouldn't be, OK*
    - Save these to the same place as before as ‘StorageDevicePolicies00*’

    The saves are in case it reverts at a later date, just double click (saying ‘yes’ to importing these to the registry) on all of the files and it will all work again!
    [/QUOTE]
  17. r4ndieL Newcomer, in training

    Thx buddy...

    it's surely work....thats cool :cool:
  18. scsl2004 Newcomer, in training

    Remove Flash Drive Write Protect.

    Dear Guys
    Flash Drive write protect problem (Kingstone)

    Make low level format

    Download formatter
    mediafire.com/?zqnzmmh2nt2

    You can successfully format it.

    Faruk
  19. erli Newcomer, in training

    Resolved write protect format

    i have been using all the methods in this forum without results.
    i googled for this problem and i founded a small program that did the trick. it format my flash drive in write protection mode ( without switch)

    try this small program

    **h*t*t*p://w*w*w.apacer.com/en/support/downloads/Repair_v2.9.1.1.zip**

    free of charge
  20. SS99 Newcomer, in training

    Awesome!!!!!!, I tried all of everything else and this actually worked, saved my 16gb usb drive from the trash, and money having to buy another one. I can't believe the manufacturers don't have a program like this to help their customers, guess they want you to buy another one after warranties expires.