Unfortunately, there are often situations where when you try to copy or move files to a removable USB-drive in the form of a regular USB flash drive or memory card, the system suddenly reports that the disk is write-protected.
How to remove protection, not all users know. It is for this reason that it is worth considering the issues related to this as detailed as possible. There are not as many ways to carry out such operations as we would like, but they can be conditionally divided into two main types: hardware and software.
How to remove write and format protection from a disk: basic options
First of all, let's think about why, in fact, access to a removable device may be restricted, even at the level of formatting, which would seem to be able to remove any obstacles in its path. There may be several reasons, among which the most common are the following:
- physical damage or wear of the carrier;
- protection switch on;
- activated access code on specialized models;
- exposure to viruses;
- malfunctioning ports used to connect;
- lack of device drivers and corresponding controllers;
- activated prohibitions in the settings of the operating system;
- incorrect removal of media from the port (for example, during the recording process), as a result of which critical failures occur.
The flash drive is write-protected: how to remove protection by hardware?
We sorted out the reasons a bit. Now let's see how to remove write protection from a flash drive in the most primitive way. Many users either intentionally or accidentally sometimes include a mechanical flash drive protection system.
In some devices, one of the ribs has a special switch. If you set it to the locked position (Lock or Write Protect), access to the contents of the medium will be limited, although the files and folders present on it can be seen in the same "Explorer". So the conclusion is obvious: just slide the switch to the desired position and try to access again.
Virus scan
Alas, very often the violation of access to removable media occurs precisely due to viral infection. To determine that the virus is the culprit in this situation is quite problematic, although one method can still be proposed. If your drive is not bootable, or the installation components of some programs are not recorded on it, turn on the display of hidden objects in any file manager and see if autorun.inf is in the content (usually viruses either infect such files or create them yourself ) If there is such a component, immediately perform a full scan of the flash drive, choosing the advanced mode. As the most effective means you can use portable scanners like Dr. Web CureIt, but only with updated anti-virus databases.
Using registry settings
Further, we assume that no viruses were detected, the lock is unlocked, but access to the device is still not available. How to remove write protection in this case? One of the most cardinal solutions can be offered, however, to use it, you need at least basic knowledge and skills related to working with the system registry.
For ordinary users, a detailed description of the actions performed is given. First, run the editor as administrator (regedit in the Run menu). If it does not work, use the creation of a new task with the appropriate start in the "Task Manager" (taskmgr) or start the regedit32 file in the System32 directory, which is located in the Windows folder on the "C" drive.
In the editor, through the HKLM branch, the SYSTEM and CurrentControlSet sections, find the Control folder in which the StorageDevicePloicies subdirectory should be located.
If it is not there, which is most often observed, it will have to be done on your own by choosing to create a section in the RMB menu with the name given to it above.
In the created section in the window to the right, in a similar way, you need to create the DWORD parameter (32 bits) and for convenience call it WriteProtect.
Having entered the editing of the key value by double-clicking or through the change command in the RMB menu, zero should be set in the corresponding field. After that, it will remain to restart the computer, and after restarting, try again to access, record or format.
Actions in the Group Policy Editor
Now a few words about how to remove write protection using Group Policy Editing (gpedit.msc). By and large, group policies duplicate registry settings, but the registry has a higher priority. What does it mean? The only thing is that the settings set in group policies can be changed through the registry, but the settings set in the registry in group policies are not. However, working with the policy editor is simpler.
So, for any USB device, you can remove write protection as follows. In the computer configuration, through administrative templates, go to the "System" section and find the write ban option for removable drives on the right in the window.
After that, you should go into editing options (double click or RMB menu) and make the shutdown point active, and then save the changes.
Command line toolkit
Now let's see how to remove write protection using the tools of the command console. Many users may be surprised, but this is the DISKPART kit, which in most cases serves to partition the hard drive or to create bootable media.
Run the console as administrator, as shown for the registry editor, and then type the commands shown in the image above. The execution of these commands allows you to completely disable the read-only attribute set previously for the removable drive.
JetFlash Recovery Tool
Speaking about how to remove the write protection for any USB-drives, it is impossible not to mention some of the simplest programs. The described utility is more focused on A-Data and Transcend devices.
After installing the program, you need to start it, insert the locked drive into the port, click the start button in the application window and wait for the troubleshooting process to complete. After that, it will be possible to check the performance of the flash drive in the usual "Explorer".
Apacer Repair App
This program is aimed at devices manufactured by Apacer Technologies, however, it removes protection very peculiarly. This is done by quickly formatting a locked device.
Last Tips
In general, if we consider the methods of unlocking with reference to specific models of removable devices, you can also use general-purpose programs such as the HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool, however, it is better to give preference to specialized utilities, which, as a rule, are shared on manufacturers' websites.
If none of the above helps, and the device is not detected at all, it is advisable to check its driver in the “Device Manager”. If it is missing or out of date, try setting the update using the system tools. If this does not work, use automatic driver update programs like Driver Booster (in this case, we are not talking about flash drives, but about the corresponding system USB controllers). If the problem is in the device itself, through the "Properties" go to the information tab and use the DEV and VEN parameters in the list of equipment IDs, copy or write the longest line with identifiers, search for it on the Internet, and after downloading install it yourself .
Among the measures described to eliminate problems of this kind, the most difficult is the intervention in the registry. However, you need to be clearly aware that this is just the most effective solution.
Note: in some cases, for example, when short-term malfunctions occur in the operating system itself, it is enough to simply restart the computer device. If none of the proposed methods has resolved the problem, you need to check the functionality of the USB controller (chip) built into the device. In the event of a malfunction, nothing remains but replacing the drive.