Windows 7 does not want to format microsd. What to do if Windows cannot complete formatting the flash drive. About system “RAW troubles”

Nothing lasts forever - this rule applies not only to a computer or laptop, but also to any other devices, such as USB drives, which over time begin to fail and work completely incorrectly. In such a situation, it is enough to format it, but if you are reading these lines now, then this can only mean one thing - your flash drive is not formatted and you do not know what to do in such a situation.

I hasten to inform you that it is too early to throw her out with a hopeless face; it is possible and quite possible to correct the problem. Of course, this is not always possible, but you can still try. Now I will tell you about several ways. I want to say right away that the most interesting thing is at the end of the article, so I recommend reading to the end. It will be interesting…

First of all, decide for yourself whether the information stored on the flash drive is extremely important for you, because below I will describe utilities that can restore your files in whole or in part, depending on your luck (depending on the severity of the problem). There are other programs that are much faster to use, but they will completely destroy all the data that was recorded on the USB drive. So decide on this, but for the future here is some good advice for you - never store important information on one disk drive. This applies not only to flash drives, but also to hard drives, regular DVDs, etc.

Nowadays there are a variety of services on the Internet that allow you to store any files for free. These also include file hosting services, but there are also services in which trust increases from the first word - for example, Google. It provides its users with a free service called Google Documents.

You can also use Yandex. Disc - ohm. I have been using this service to exchange information for about a year now and, in principle, I am completely satisfied with it. If you haven't registered yet, do so now. Link . If you have any difficulties using this resource, write in the comments, I will write instructions.

This was a short digression, now let's get down to business.

Restoring the flash drive

Many who have encountered a problem when a flash drive cannot be formatted are wondering, what will happen to my data on the flash drive? Therefore, it is worth talking about this. The information below will also be useful for users who cannot format their flash drive.

As I said above, first we’ll talk about how to format a flash drive and save at least some of the files that were recorded there. The simplest and most common method does not involve downloading additional programs and in most cases is very effective. Through the "Start" menu, go to "Control Panel", then - "System and Security" - "Administration" - "Computer Management" - "Disk Management".

Now we are looking for the letter that identifies our flash drive in the computer.

You can also go to the Computer and look there.

Let's start checking the flash drive for errors. Go to “Start” - “Run”, enter cmd and press "Enter". Or use the hot keys “Win” + “R”.

In the window that opens, you need to enter the command, indicate which storage medium you want to check and specify the parameters.

This is what the complete command looks like when you enter it: chkdsk G: /f /r

Once you have entered it, press Enter. After which you will have to wait a little. If the utility takes a long time to think, then you should not close it, wait until it finishes checking.

In the screenshot above, see what it will look like for you.

If you are very lucky, the utility will correct errors in the flash drive and thereby the system will recognize the flash drive and then you will be able to copy precious data to your hard drive or other storage medium. Next, I recommend formatting the flash drive, after which you can use it again. But luck may turn away from you - then we cannot do without the help of third-party software and dancing with a small tambourine.

I will not explain in detail how to use each software, since the article will stretch to 30-40 pages, and maybe more. I will give examples and tell you their main functions.

Data Recovery Software

The most common and high-quality data recovery utility, in my opinion, is EasyRecovery. The program also has the ability to test potential hardware problems, analyze file structure and much more.

You should not exclude the possibility of data recovery even if you have formatted the flash drive. Let's say some programs are built on the principle: format, and only then try to restore the data. If you find such a program, it is better to save it for last.

By the way, for skeptics, there is an article on the blog with a video where you can clearly see how I did data recovery when I formatted the flash drive: “”.

There are, of course, a lot of other recovery software products, but I won’t dwell here. Yes, if you need to format or restore data, try different programs anyway. If one doesn’t help, then the other should help – that’s exactly what you should think about. Otherwise, it’s easier to throw it away, because it may take a lot of time to restore or format.

Formatting a flash drive

Now there is another way out of the situation - completely formatting the flash drive, in which case there is a possibility of saving it, but at the cost of destroying the files.

To begin with, I can recommend you the program HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool. You can download the program. After starting the program, select in Device - your flash drive. If there is a serious problem with the flash drive, then it may not be there. In this situation, go to another program, because this one will no longer help you.

Next, select the File system: NTFS or FAT32. In Format options, first check the “Quick Format” box and try to format the flash drive by clicking “Start”. If any error appears, try unchecking the “Quick Format” checkbox and repeat pressing the “Start” button.

Program EzRecover. The program will be useful when your flash drive not only cannot be formatted and it is not clear what to do, but even worse - it is also displayed incorrectly in “My Computer”, or the system tells you that its total memory capacity is less than a megabyte, which in XXI century, even theoretically it cannot be. This program is intuitive, you can definitely handle it.

I can also suggest JetFlash Recovery Tool as a backup option. It will completely format your drive, put it in order, “patch it up,” so to speak, but erase all the information.

There are actually a lot of such programs! You have to look for their names on the Internet.

Deeper analysis and solution to the problem

I left the most difficult, but also the most interesting for last. We will need a site that has a lot of information on various problems related to flash drives. Link .

Now go to the menu on the right to the page “ Detect VID&PID".

Now download any program to find out the VID and PID of your flash drive. In this way you will recognize the manufacturer and identify the controller. Above I looked at programs that are suitable for different flash drive manufacturers, but now you will look for a program that works exactly with your flash drive.

All these programs work the same way, when you download the program, connect the USB flash drive to your computer and run the program. In it you should find information about VID and PID. If the program could not show this data, then try downloading another one. For example, you can try ChipGenius.

Let's look at an example of how one such program works. So, I downloaded the program, launch it, and click “Get information about the flash drive” at the top.

After which information regarding this flash drive will appear. I specifically highlighted the data in the screenshot below so that you pay attention to them or remember them, since we will need them now.

Now we need to find out what program works with this flash drive. To do this, go to the site I mentioned above and click “iFlash”.

Enter VID and PID, then click “Search”.

I want to say right away that there is small, but not pleasant news. These programs can make mistakes, that is, the data that you now see may not all be correct. Sometimes, in order to recognize the controller, you need to disassemble it and look very carefully for the presence of different inscriptions. But you do this as a last resort, if nothing works out.

Got a little distracted. Now we will decide what program you need. Having found out the data about the flash drive, now look in the list which program is suitable for working with the flash drive. Use the search, as a manual search may take more than one minute.

If the program is not in the list (last column), then you will have to search on the Internet. Also, flash drive manufacturers have programs for working with flash drives, in short, the search will help you 😉.
After downloading, run the program. As you understand, I won’t go on to tell you how to use it with 1000’s of programs. Basic principle: insert a USB flash drive (sometimes you need to install a driver - you will be asked when opening or installing the program). The program should find your flash drive, and then you do everything on an intuitive level. If that doesn’t work, then go to the site where you downloaded it and use a search to try to find an article (instructions) on how to use it. Also try searching on Google or Yandex.

Important! After all operations, you need to remove the utility (if it was installed on the computer) with the driver. If you leave it, then in the future there may be a problem with identifying other USB devices.

If you dropped or hit a flash drive

Very often, by accident, any user drops flash drives and sometimes due to the fall, the flash drive may stop working. If there were any falls and you remembered them, then you can disassemble the flash drive and visually look for the presence of disconnected or fallen off parts. I've already had problems with flash drives twice when the contacts were sealed off.

By the way, such a problem was on one of my flash drives, no programs helped bring it to life. To disassemble the flash drive, you will need a knife or flat-head screwdriver. For more expensive flash drives that are made of iron, you will need a shaped screwdriver. There are no specific instructions on how to disassemble them, because they are all different. There are flash drives that cannot be disassembled; you have to completely break the plastic, although this is not strange, because the prices for flash drives are not too high compared to 2-3 years ago. But this is rare; usually this procedure goes well.

Some users will immediately start looking for a soldering iron or dragging a needle with pliers in order to connect the soldered contact, but first you can check whether this problem is actually the main reason why the flash drive does not work. First, connect the soldered contact, insert the flash drive into the USB connector and see if it works. If the flash drive is identified, then you need to run for a soldering iron 😉 . If it doesn’t work, we return to the very top of the article and start reading again, because the programs could not work with flash media due to poor contact, and now this nuance has been corrected.

That's basically all. What to do is up to you to decide. I wish you good luck with all the drives and the data on them. May nothing ever be deleted or lost from you!

Every computer owner has experience working with USB flash drives and SD cards. It is not uncommon to resort to formatting them. The built-in Windows tools for performing this operation have a popular problem when the system displays an error - “Windows cannot complete formatting.” Moreover, it can occur in all versions of Windows. This article provides detailed guidance on what to do if such an error occurs and how to restore the functionality of removable media.

Important! If you format the device, then after this process not a single file will be saved on it, so it is recommended that before starting the procedure, you first save all data from a flash drive or sd to another medium or in computer memory.

Using standard Windows tools

Formatting a flash drive or SD card can be done through Windows Disk Management. If Windows is unable to complete formatting a flash drive, SD card or microSD, then it is recommended to first use the following step-by-step instructions:


Using the Command Line

If for some reason the method through is not successful, then you can format it using the command line, but this requires running it as an administrator. The step-by-step instructions are as follows:


Using Third Party Software

If Windows cannot complete formatting, then using third-party software, for example, HP USB DiskStorage FormatTool, can help format the device or micro SD.

This application is characterized by significant versatility and successfully “digests” any type of media from the entire range of variety of manufacturers. The utility is also freely distributed on the Internet and does not require purchase. You just need to copy it into the computer’s memory and immediately launch it, because... installation of the program is not required.

To format a flash drive or SD, you need to do the following:

  1. Open the application with administrator rights;
  2. Then install the device (SD or flash drive) into the appropriate slot;
  3. Next, select FAT32 or NTFS;
  4. Then enter the name of the carrier (some name at the discretion of the user);
  5. It is recommended to check the box "quick format";
  6. Click on the “Start” button;
  7. Wait for the process to complete.

Universal method

The device itself usually contains information about the manufacturer of the flash drive or sd, as well as their parameters: USB 2.0 or 3.0. And they all have a controller with which any user can do low-level formatting.

To find out the type of controller there are 2 categories: PID and VID. With their help, it will not be difficult to acquire the necessary application to format the media. It is recommended to use the CheckUDisk application.

It will help you find out PID and VID. Then you need to find a program that can format the device, for example, on the page http://flashboot.ru/iflash/ or using any of the Internet search engines. Then, using the found software, format the flash drive.

The algorithm of what needs to be done is as follows:

  1. Open the program “CheckUDisk”;
  2. In the list, find the device you want to restore and select it;
  3. All the required information will appear;
  4. Having found out the PID and VID, you need to download the application to restore the device. The easiest way to do this is on the page: http://flashboot.ru/iflash/;
  5. Before performing low-level formatting with the found program, be sure to remove all other flash drives from the ports.

Using an application that is suitable for a specific flash drive or SD card allows you to restore the functionality of the vast majority of devices.

An ordinary flash drive, as a device for quickly storing information, is sometimes simply irreplaceable for its traditional purpose. At the same time, despite its operational pickiness and undeniable practicality, a USB drive or other type of Flash device can still fail its owner. The fairly common problem “Windows cannot complete formatting” is a prime example of this. As a result, such an error occurs and how to fix it - read this article.

General introduction

We will not list the reasons that push the user to take such drastic measures as completely clearing any Flash drive of the data stored on it. In our case, the problem raised (“Windows cannot complete formatting”) will be considered the result of a failed attempt to erase everything on a flash drive, i.e., a removable storage medium of any type. Secondly, within the framework of this article, the reader will be given a practical answer to the question of how to restore a damaged file system. By the way, most often the failure of the operating system to re-partition or re-partition the disk space of an information storage device of one type or another is caused precisely because of a malfunction of the latter.

Write protection

In this case, the stated problem with the flash drive (“formatting cannot be completed”) can be resolved quite simply:

  • Press the Win + R key combination.
  • Next, in the “Run” field, enter: cmd.
  • At the Shell, enter DISCPART.
  • In the next line, after the “>” symbol, you must specify a specific command: list disks.

  • After the list of active drives is displayed on the screen, you need to determine which digital item your removable (problematic) drive corresponds to.
  • Enter the command select disk X, where X is the serial number of your flash drive.
  • Finally, we write: attributes disk clear readonly.

If after applying all the above, the result remains unchanged and Windows is unable to complete the formatting, then resort to the next recovery option.

What to do if the file system is damaged?

If a removable drive connected to a PC is recognized by the system, but its contents remain a “digital secret” for you, and the formatting situation being highlighted ends up with the same annoying error, try a few simple steps:

  • In the search bar of the start menu, enter the command: diskmgmt.msc.
  • After you press the Enter key, the Disk Management window will appear on the screen.
  • As a rule, the “capricious” flash drive is displayed at the very bottom of the service console. Right-click on it and select “Delete Volume” from the drop-down list.

  • Agree that information from the Flash drive will be erased: click the “Yes” button in the service window that appears.
  • After the disk area of ​​the “reanimated” flash drive is designated by the system as “Not distributed,” again call the context menu in which you should activate the “Create simple volume” item.

We are sure that the problematic situation when Windows cannot complete formatting a flash drive or memory card will be resolved after you make a new disk space layout.

About system “RAW troubles”

It often happens that as a result of a software failure in the OS, a removable drive partially fails. That is, the flash drive, still visible through operating tools, completely refuses to obey the user’s commands. This kind of “non-perception” of the OS can be explained by the fact that the file system of the Flash device is incompatible with Windows. In other words, the problem disk has a layout that is incomprehensible to the operating environment. The error: “Windows cannot complete formatting” is inevitable if you want to carry out the operation we specify with a flash drive or memory card that was used on a computer running Mac OS or Linux. However, everything can be fixed if you implement the above recovery algorithm. However, in some cases it is necessary to perform a number of additional steps.

  • Enter the Disk Management console work area.
  • By pointing the marker at the flash drive, right-click to open the context menu and select “Change drive letter or...”.
  • Next, click on the “Delete” button and confirm your actions by activating the corresponding key.

After you start the process of creating a simple volume known to you, in the “File system” checkbox, specify the value FAT32 - this is the most acceptable option for almost all flash drives. Otherwise, everything is simple: click the “Next” button and “system problems” such as “Windows cannot complete formatting” will be eliminated. Otherwise, you will not be able to do without using specialized software.

When all the described methods do not help, but a flash drive is so needed!

In addition to standard tools for restoring Flash drives, there are many other software tools. But there is one nuance here. As you know, there are a huge number of different modifications of portable storage devices on the market, and each manufacturer strives to endow their products with primary uniqueness.

It is not difficult to guess that the most correctly working recovery software is exclusively proprietary software, “tailored” for certain branded models. This should be remembered, since careless and thoughtless use of, so to speak, non-original utilities can have a detrimental effect on the further performance of a removable memory device.

Final part

So, now you know the answer to the question that previously seemed difficult to solve: “Windows cannot complete formatting” - what to do? As practice shows, a standard OS tool can handle tasks of this kind quite competently. This may disappoint you, but the answer to the question of how to choose the most suitable software for flash drive recovery will not be considered within the scope of this article. However, you can easily find comprehensive information regarding this particular problem on your own; fortunately, there are plenty of resources on relevant topics. All the best to you and the readability of your removable memory device!

Greetings, dear reader! Remember where we store our favorite and dearest photos and videos? Right! On little helpers, microsd. Everything about them is good, both price and volume. Only one thing is bad. Often an error message pops up on your computer when formatting. Then the question very acutely arises: “The memory card is not formatted, what should I do?” Let's figure it out because you still need to know. After all, we use microdrives in smartphones, cameras, recorders, and readers.

Formatting a memory card removes all old files from it, detects damage and eliminates them. Before formatting, be sure to back up important files on your computer.

Standard Formatting

The first method of formatting a memory card that any user uses is formatting on a PC.

  • In the “My Computer” menu, select the memory card and right-click on it
  • In the context menu that appears, select “Format”
  • Select the appropriate file system type
  • Click on “Start”
  • Wait for the process to finish

Attention! By default, the computer uses the FAT32 file system. It works correctly with the 32 GB micro SD format. A larger volume of 64GB is formatted in a different file system, exFAT.

This is where the first difficulties may arise when the computer writes

Windows cannot complete formatting.

What to do in this case?

Use other methods for flashing the card.

Formatting via the command line

Work in this way begins through the Start menu. Select “Run”. Perform the following manipulations with the dropped console:

  1. Enter the command diskpart, activate enter
  2. Enter the list disk command, activate enter and select a disk based on the size of our flash drive
  3. Enter select disk and disk number, activate enter
  4. Enter attributes disk clear readonly and enter. At this stage the drive will be unlocked
  5. Type clean and enter. This will completely clean the media.
  6. Enter create partition primary, activate enter. A new section will appear on the map
  7. Then select partition 1, press enter
  8. active, enter. The section is activated
  9. format fs=fat32 quick. A message indicating successful formatting will appear.
  10. Assign and enter. The flash drive will get a new name
  11. To check, create a new folder

This is one of the best methods for formatting a flash drive, allowing you to not use third-party utilities.

If the formatting error persists and you are unable to work with files on the memory card, try using an additional program.

Formatting using utilities

Windows cannot format the memory card and that’s it! Then we turn to the almighty Internet and download helper programs.

When working with third-party software, you should be very careful. You must choose the correct name for the micro SD, otherwise you can cause serious harm to your computer. The choice of file system type also matters. Remember that 32 GB memory cards use FAT32. For more venerable colleagues - exFAT. Additional programs will always clean the drive completely; in this case, creating a backup copy of the data is mandatory.

I will give the most common of them:

  • AutoFormat Tool. Quite easy to use. Working with it doesn't take much time. I recommend running as administrator.
  • HDD Low Level Format Tool. A thorough program that does low-level formatting. Remember, you will not be able to restore files after using it.
  • The utility requires installation on your computer. Intuitive and easy to use.

Fixing problems with micro sd

Sometimes it happens that files from the card on the phone are not deleted. You erase them, but nothing happens, they come back again, annoying you more and more. Then you need to try all the steps together:

  1. Reboot phone
  2. Remove and reinsert the card
  3. Download the utility to your phone
  4. Do formatting
  5. If all else fails, accept the inevitable - the memory card is “dead”

Write protection

When you try to format, the message “The disk is write protected” may appear. This happens in several cases:

  • if the write protection button on the SD card has switched, which needs to be returned to a different position. (More information about locking/unlocking the memory card);
  • if your computer has caught a virus that blocks writing to hard drives. It is necessary to carry out anti-virus diagnostics.

Hidden files

If the card is readable but cannot be formatted, it is worth checking it for the presence of hidden files such as autorun.

Autorun.inf is a hidden startup file that tells the system how to properly start the disk. It displays a colorful menu with an algorithm for further actions on the screen and replaces the icon on the desktop. Virus developers really liked these properties and they make full use of the file for their own purposes. Regular hidden text contains code to launch a program, which is how viruses get into the computer.

At the same time, viruses that have infected removable media try in every possible way to protect themselves. Including not allowing you to format the micro SD card. It is very easy to remove such a virus.

Let's try together if none of the above methods helped to get to the micro-drive:

  1. Open the command line (you already know how to do this)
  2. Finding our flash drive
  3. Change the parameters of the file attrib -a -s -h -r autorun.inf
  4. Destroying the virus on the map del autorun.inf
  5. Let's try to work productively.

Sometimes Anti Autorun, Autorun Guard, USB_Tool programs help identify and remove a virus.

In order to protect micro SD from re-infection, you can do one interesting thing. The bottom line is this: a file called Autorun.inf is created on the media. Newly arrived viruses will no longer settle on a drive where there is a folder with the same name as theirs. Why does this work? Because Windows OS does not allow you to create folders with the same name. That's all!

Bottom line

Only a memory card from a trusted manufacturer can serve for a long time without interruption and not cause trouble to its owner. If handled carefully, the consoles will remain in place for a long time. Never pull or remove the card from the slot while working with files.

Remember! The recommended operating load on the card is no more than 20% per day. This means that more than 6 GB of files cannot be removed or written from a 32 GB memory card per day. This will significantly extend the life of the card consoles and help avoid formatting problems in the future.

If all of the above methods for solving the problem did not help, specialized service points will help you remove important files from the card.

It's always better to buy two 32 GB micro SD cards than one 64 GB one. This will simplify the work for the average user, save important information and make formatting simple and accessible.

If the material was useful to you, subscribe to my blog updates. Read it yourself and recommend it to your friends on social networks.

If you want to stay informed, I'm in instagram, where I post new articles that appear on the site.

Bye everyone!

Thank you for your attention! See you again on my blog. Sincerely, Rostislav Kuzmin.

Indeed, the problem with formatting a flash drive is no longer uncommon. The main prerequisite for the increase in such problems is their increasing cost reduction, which leads to the use of low-quality materials. Accordingly, during the operation of such a drive, you may encounter a problem when formatting could not be completed successfully; we will tell you what to do in such cases in this article.

The good news is that most of them can be resurrected thanks to one of the presented programs or methods. Since there is a low-level formatting option, it is possible to exclude factors that interfere with formatting, sometimes these are programs launched from the drive, and sometimes non-working memory sectors. Both of them can be repaired, so there is every chance of bringing the flash drive back to life if Windows is unable to complete the formatting.

Let's look at the methods for solving the problem situation in order, and let's start with the built-in OS tools, since they do not require unnecessary steps to install programs.

Formatting a flash drive in the "Disk Management" section

This method can help because it ignores the attachment of files to system processes, completely erasing data. To do this you need:

1.Open the Start menu and select Control Panel;

3.Now click on the “Computer Management” element;

4.From the left menu, select “Disk Management”;

5.Select the drive (flash drive) you need; it can be determined by its memory capacity. Right-click on it and click the “Format” option.

From this section you learned a tool provided by Windows developers; perhaps this method will be enough for you. “What should I do, I can’t complete formatting even this way?” - some users will ask, there are other solutions to the problem for you.

Formatting a drive via the console

Now you should use the command line to troubleshoot hardware problems. This method performs approximately the same actions as the previous one, but more rigidly. All you need to do is:

  • Open a command prompt with administrator rights using the combination Win + R and typing the letters cmd, then Enter;
  • Now insert the phrase “format f:”;

At the end of the procedure, the error when it says the formatting cannot be completed may not occur, so the method can be useful. Next, for those who have not yet received a solution to the problem, we will look at programs specifically designed for these purposes.

Formatting using HP USB Disk Storage FormatTool

This solution is advantageous and allows you to recover even damaged memory cells and format your device at a low level, bypassing Windows restrictions. A very convenient and effective solution, since the program is suitable for all popular brands of devices. The key advantages of the program are its free operation, no installation and flexibility in use. To use the utility you need:

1.Download HP USB Disk Storage FormatTool;

2. You need to run the application with administrator rights; to do this, right-click on the file with the .exe extension and select the appropriate item from the drop-down list;

3.Now connect your device to your computer;

4.Specify the file system you are interested in. Check the “Quick Format” box;

5.Click the Format button.

At the end of the work, you will most likely receive a working flash drive, since the solution is not only universal, but also powerful. Do not rush to delete the application, because the program also has a function that allows you to create a bootable USB flash drive. If Windows still cannot complete the formatting, then try using another solution.

Specialized program for formatting flashnul

The last resort is a utility for testing flash drives, it allows you to get rid of unnecessary device errors. When using this method, you need to be careful, because by mixing up the disks or simply their indexes, you can format your logical disk.

1.Download the flashnul application;

2.Unpack the working program files to the root of some disk;

3.Now run the command line (Win + R and cmd) and insert cd c: flashnul into it, where c is the name of the root of the disk where you placed the program;

4.Now enter the command flashnul -p;

5.Now, among the results obtained, you need to remember the index of our flash drive, based on the size of the drive;

7.When finished, enter the command flashnul 4 -l;

8.After all the steps, use formatting again through Disk Management, as we did at the beginning.

You should no longer be bothered by this error. These methods should help the vast majority of users. If you are still not clear why you cannot complete formatting the device and these methods do not help, there is only one option left.

The last possible solution would be to use a special utility for the controller of your device, but first you need to find out the “stuffing” of your flash drive. Download the Usbflashinfo program and use it on your device. You will see a VID and PID section with the names of the controller. Copy the information received and enter it into a search engine along with the manufacturer’s name. Perhaps there is a specialized program specifically for your model.


If you still have questions on the topic “Failed to complete formatting of the flash drive, what should I do? ", then you can ask them in the comments


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