Remove write protection from a Mirex flash drive. What to do if the flash drive is write-protected, how can I remove the protection? Ways to remove write protection from a flash drive

Question from a user

Hello. I'm trying to write one to a flash drive Word document With hard drive, but an error appears that the disk is write protected. This has never happened before, I didn’t hit the flash drive, didn’t drop it, didn’t do anything with it...

Interestingly, I tried to delete some file from the flash drive - exactly the same error appeared, no access. Those. in fact, I can only copy previously recorded data from a flash drive. Tell me how to remove this error?

PS Windows 7, USB flash drive Kingston 8 GB (most common)

Hello.

Such an error can be caused by several reasons: a hardware malfunction of the flash drive (for example, if you accidentally dropped it before), when viral infection, when “manually” setting write protection, etc.

In this article, I will look sequentially at all the popular causes (causing this error) and ways to eliminate them. I think that by presenting the article in a similar format, it will be simpler and easier for you and other users with the same error to solve the problem.

Typical error when deleting a folder from an SD card // example

Reasons blocking writing to a flash drive

We will eliminate it consistently!

1) Check if there is a hardware write lock

Experienced users probably remember that floppy disks used to have a small lever, thanks to which it was possible to protect the information on it from unwanted deletion (or modification). And in my opinion, the thing was extremely useful!

Nowadays, most USB flash drives do not have such protection; some manufacturers (mostly Chinese) produce such flash drives. Therefore, some users do not give of great importance some kind of “locks” on the body of the flash drive. Meanwhile, if the protection is turned on, then you will not write anything to such a flash drive (see photo below).

Well, SD cards (used in cameras, for example) have a small switch on the side. If you move it to the Lock position, the flash drive becomes read-only.

The moral of the last sentences: first of all, check whether there is mechanical write protection, whether the lever is positioned correctly (and in general, whether your device has one).

2) Is the flash drive (computer) infected with a virus?

I remember my student days... When it was necessary quite often to bring and connect a flash drive to computers “infected” with viruses (and knowingly and knowing about it in advance) - otherwise it would be problematic (if not impossible) to print materials. After such a connection, I had to check the flash drive for viruses and clean the “infection”.

If you do not have an antivirus on your computer, I recommend choosing one from the list:

3) Is there room on the flash drive?

I understand that this question is somewhat banal, but still. If the size of the recorded file is larger than the remaining free space on the flash drive, you may receive a recording error.

To find out how much is left free space on a flash drive: open My Computer, then click right click mouse on the flash drive and open it properties. In the tab are common- it will be indicated how much space is occupied and how much is free.

4) Isn't it worth writing protection in the registry?

First you need to open the Registry Editor as an administrator. This can be done, for example, through the task manager: to launch it, press the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+Esc(or Ctrl+Alt+Del ).

Next click file/new task and to the line open enter the command regedit(note that the task will be performed as an administrator).

By the way, you might find the article on how to open the Registry Editor useful.-

(for Windows XP branch: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR )

Important! If the branches StorageDevicePolicies will not be in the registry - it means you do not have a blocking entry in the registry. Just in case, you can create a branch (a branch in the registry is analogous to a folder in Explorer) and then the Write Protect string parameter with the value "0". Creating branches and parameters resembles working in a regular Explorer, the same as creating a simple folder.

5) Check file system flash drives for errors

A similar error can also appear due to errors in the file system of the flash drive. For example, in the process of copying a file, you removed the flash drive from the USB port or simply turned off the light - errors could well appear on it (by the way, the file system may be marked in such cases as RAW).

To check the flash drive for errors, open "My computer", then open properties flash drives, and in the section service click the button (check the disk for errors, see screenshot below).

6) Is there a Read-Only attribute on the flash drive?

Another reason why Windows may give an error when writing a file to a USB flash drive is read-only attribute (if it is installed on a flash drive). There is nothing wrong with this attribute, it just tells the system that this disk is read-only, so it does not write data to it.

By the way, this happens quite often if you have picked up certain types of viruses, or, for example, downloaded something from torrents ( uTorrent program often creates files with a read-only attribute).

And so, let's remove this attribute.

7) Check if there is any protection in the Group Policy Editor

Writing to a flash drive can be disabled through the Group Policy Editor. Therefore, I also recommend checking if the treasured parameter is there...

Note: OS users Windows initial and home versions - will not be able to open the Group Policy Editor.

To open the Group Policy Editor:

1. press a combination of buttons Win+R;
2. enter the command gpedit.msc;
3. click Enter .

It should have the option "Removable drives: disable writing". Open it and see if it's turned on...

By default, the parameter should be set to “Not set” (see screenshot below). If this is not the case for you, switch it to this position, save the settings and restart the computer.

Parameter responsible for prohibiting recording

8) Formatting a flash drive

Perhaps this is the last thing you can do if all other advice has been in vain and led nowhere. Formatting the media helps in many cases, including with our error, discussed in this article.

Note: copy all the necessary data from the flash drive; when formatting, everything will be deleted from the flash drive (just in case, I warn you ☺)!

In most cases, to format a flash drive, just go to "My computer", select a flash drive among the disks, right-click on it and context menu select a team "Format" .

If you can’t format the media: errors appear, the computer freezes, etc., then you need to use special utilities. One of these that I recommend is HDD LLF Low Level Format Tool.

HDD LLF Low Level Format Tool

A small utility used to low level formatting disks, flash drives. Helps in the most difficult situations when it is impossible to format the media through Windows. Interfaces supported: S-ATA (SATA), IDE (E-IDE), SCSI, USB, Firewire.

The utility is distributed in several versions: there is also a portable version that does not require installation.

Because There is no Russian in the program, I will show with an example how the media is formatted.

After launching the utility, click the button "Continue for Free".

When it ends, Windows will prompt you to format the flash drive (you can format it in the usual way through “My Computer”). As a rule, after low-level formatting, a flash drive can be formatted easily and without errors in Windows.

By the way, if your flash drive still doesn’t work, I recommend trying to restore it. Here is another way described in this article:

That's all I wanted to say! I would be grateful for any additions on the topic.

The era of floppy disks has long passed, but sometimes when trying to write to a flash drive, the user may encounter a situation known since the days of use floppy disks - removable drive is locked and cannot be used to write files.

We will look at how to solve this problem in detail in our article today.

So, you need to write some information to a flash drive, you insert it into the connector and receive a message like “The disk is write-protected, remove the protection or use another disk.”

This problem can be solved quite quickly, and we will talk about this a little later, but now we should say a few words about the purpose of installing write protection on a flash drive.

Note! Usually, this operation is performed for only one purpose - to protect the flash drive from viruses that can spontaneously be copied to removable media without the user's knowledge.

Methods for removing write protection from a flash drive

There are 2 key ways to remove protection from a flash drive: hardware and software.

The hardware method is to install a lock switch, which is present in some models of USB flash drives, as well as SD cards. As a rule, the switch is located on the side edge of the drive.

Carefully inspect your existing drive and look for an open/closed lock icon or the word Lock on it.

Note! Removing the protection is very simple - you just need to move the locking lever to opposite direction. Write protection has been removed. Insert the flash drive into the appropriate slot and repeat the file writing operation again.

The software method involves software interaction operating system and a flash drive controller, which is responsible for the ability to record information.

You can remove write protection programmatically using the command line, registry editor, or local group policy in Windows 7/8. Let's take a closer look at all of the above methods.

Removing protection using regedit

Step 1.“Start”, enter the name of the editor in the search field Windows registry-regedit. Right-click (RMB) on the program and in the context menu go to the “Run as administrator” item.

Step 2. Let's go to the StorageDevicePolicies section:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\StorageDevicePolicies

Important! If there is no such section, you need to create it. To do this, right-click on Control section- Create - Section. We name the section “StorageDevicePolicies” without quotes.

Create (RMB in right column registry) DWORD value (32 bits) in the created registry branch. For convenience, let's call the created element WriteProtect.

Step 3. You need to make sure that the value of the WriteProtect parameter is 0. Right-click on WriteProtect and select “Change”. If the value is “1” you need to change it to “0” and click “Ok”.

Step 4. Close the registry editor, remove the flash drive and restart the computer. Insert the flash drive. Now the flash drive works in normal mode, allowing you to write files.

Removing protection using Diskpart

If the flash drive could not be unlocked using the registry, let's try to do it using the Diskpart command interpreter, which allows you to manage disks and partitions using commands that the user enters at the command line.

Step 1.“Start”, enter the name of the command line in the search field Windows strings- cmd. Right-click in the program and select “Run as administrator” in the context menu.

Step 2. Now you need to enter the commands: diskpart and list disk, and after entering each of them, press the Enter key.

Step 3. In the list above, you need to determine what serial number in the name the flash drive has.

This can be done based on the specified size, in our case an 8 GB flash drive, presented in the table as “Disk 1” with a capacity of 7441 MB.

Step 4. We select the disk with the “select” command, clear the attributes that allow only reading “attributes disk clear readonly”.

If the flash drive needs to be formatted, you should enter following commands“clean”, create a partition “create partition primary”, format it to NTFS “format fs = ntfs” or FAT “format fs = fat”.

Removing protection using the Local Group Policy Editor

Step 1. Open the editor by pressing the Win + R key combination, after which you should enter the command gpedit.msc and press “OK” or Enter.

Step 2. In the editor, open the branch: Computer Configuration - Administrative Templates - System - Access to Removable Storage Devices. And look at the status of the “Removable drives: Deny reading” parameter.

If the parameter is enabled, you must disable it.

Step 3. To disable recording restrictions, double-click on the parameter and in the window that appears, select “Disable”, “OK”.

If all the methods described above did not help solve the recording problem, you can try going to the official website of the flash drive manufacturer and looking for proprietary utilities for working with the drive.

It is also possible that the flash drive has exhausted its resource (there is a limit on the number of rewrites, after which the drive is switched to read-only mode) and the only way out The situation would be to buy a new flash drive.

Flash drives and memory cards have almost completely occupied the niche of portable storage media for several years now. At times it gets to the point where it is almost impossible to buy a blank disc in some places. Agree, it is much more convenient to purchase a small accessory once, on which you can great amount rewrite various data once, without worrying that if you suddenly record something wrong, you will have to record everything again. In addition, by using flash drives, you practically protect yourself from the situation when a disc recorded on one computer may not play correctly on another. Well clean disks You also can’t always stock up.

Despite its durability and virtually indestructibility, from time to time a flash drive or memory card may experience problems with various errors. One of the most unpleasant is write protection. You can copy information from portable media, but if you want to write something to it or change the location of files already placed on it, the system displays a window with the inscription: “The disk is write protected.” The first thought that comes to the mind of almost every user is that the accessory is broken. In some cases this is exactly the case, but very often the reasons lie elsewhere. We invite you to familiarize yourself with all possible reasons, why write protection can be installed on a flash drive or memory card, and we’ll also look at everything possible ways, how to remove this protection.

Method 1: Hardware switch

This method is the simplest and can be truly effective for older models of USB flash drives, as well as almost all SD memory cards. What is its essence? On the drive body there is a small button in the form of a slider, which manual mode You can activate write protection mode. If you use a card microSD memory, then you probably use an SD card adapter to connect to your computer directly standard size. It is on this adapter that the slider will be located. Look at it carefully and you will see the word Lock or an image of a padlock, as well as an arrow indicating the direction in which you need to move the slider to activate write protection. Since in most cases the problem does not occur on its own, it is likely that last time you just accidentally touched the switch with your finger. Slide it in the opposite direction and try again to record the file you need. It is very likely that the problem will be resolved at this stage.

Next we list software methods, how to remove write protection. In this way, you influence the controller responsible for the operation of the drive chip. Choose one, since each of them leads to the same result, only the sequence of actions and the tools involved are different.

Method 2. Format the flash drive

A very simple and yet effective method in almost 100% of cases. The flash drive is formatted in two ways: via Windows Explorer or through the command execution utility. Let's look at each of them in more detail.

Through Windows Explorer.

1. In the conductor, depending on Windows versions, open the My Computer, Computer or This Computer tab, find your flash drive in the list of disks and devices.
2. Right-click and select Format.
3. In the window that opens, select the file system (we recommend choosing FAT32) and click the “Start” button. After just a few seconds, formatting will be completed.

We would like to point out that if the flash drive is write-protected, then you are unlikely to succeed in anything this way. It's better to use a command execution utility.

1. In Explorer, look at what letter the flash drive or memory card is identified by in the system.
2. Press the Win + R key combination, then enter the command in the window that opens

format<буква_диска>: /q

format<буква_диска>: /q /fs:fat32

1. After the command prompt opens, wait until the window is automatically closed, and then try again to write some .

Method 3: Through the Registry Editor

If for some reason the previous method did not help, let's try to dig deeper into the system. To do this, we will use the regedit utility - the Windows registry editor. You will need to change some settings.

1. Click on the search button, located either in the Start menu, or, if you have Windows 10, in the lower left corner near the Start button, and type regedit, then find the utility in the search results and run it as an administrator.
2. Go to the following branch: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\StorageDevicePolicies.
3. If the StorageDevicePolicies folder does not exist, create it in top menu by clicking Options - New - Partition, and name it StorageDevicePolicies without spaces or quotes.
4. Right-click on the created section, select New - DWORD Value (32 bits) and name it WriteProtect.
5. In the right part of the window, right-click on the name of the created parameter and select Change, after which you need to set the value to 0.
6. Remove the flash drive, close the utility and restart the computer.
7. Write the file to your drive again, everything should work.

Method 4: Through the command line

To unlock a portable drive using the Command Prompt, you will need to run it as an administrator, and then enter several commands that will help remove the write protection. In order to achieve desired result, follow these steps:

1. Click the Start button and enter “command prompt” or cmd in the search bar, right-click on the utility that appears in the search results and select run as administrator. If you are using Windows 10, right-click on the Start button and select “Command Prompt (Admin).”
2. Enter the following commands sequentially:

diskpart

list disk

1. The system will offer a list of disks connected to the computer indicating serial number. Based on the size, determine the number of your flash drive, then select it by entering select command disk 3, where instead of 3 indicate the number of your drive.
2. After the utility notifies that the disk has been successfully selected, you need to remove write protection with the following command:

attributes disk clear readonly

1. If you need to format the flash drive, do it with one of the commands:

format fs = ntfs

format fs = fat

1. After a few seconds everything will work, try again to copy something to the flash drive.

Method 5: Using the Local Group Policy Editor

1. To open the Local Group Policy Editor, hold down the Win + R button combination, then type gpedit.msc in the line that opens and confirm your entry with the Enter button.
2. In the utility window that opens, go to Computer Configuration - Administrative Templates - System - Access to removable storage devices.
3. See if the "Removable drives: Deny read" option is enabled. If the checkbox is “Enabled”, select “Disabled”, then click Apply - OK.
4. Check if writing files to the flash drive works.

Method 6. Using proprietary utilities

If for some reason none of the methods helps, try using a proprietary utility to fix problems with the flash drive from the device manufacturer. To do this, go to the official website, on the support page look for software for external drives. The most famous utilities are HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool, JetFlash Recovery Tool And Transcend JetFlash Online Recovery.

If this does not help, then most likely your removable disk has become unusable. It is possible that the maximum rewrite cycles have simply been reached, making it impossible to record anything. It’s easier to buy a new flash drive; their price today is completely affordable for everyone.

Conclusion

We hope that our guide will help you remove write protection from your flash drive or memory card and you will be able to use it for a long time. We invite you to write in the comments what exactly helped you get rid of the problem.

Flash media is a reliable means of storage personal information its owner, but sometimes when trying to write files to it, the error “The disk is write protected” may occur. This problem occurs due to many different reasons, including the failure of a flash drive. You can cope with it at home without any special skills.

Reasons for the error

Before you remove protection from a flash drive, you should familiarize yourself with the main reasons that cause a flash drive to be blocked. The most common of them are :

• incorrect Windows settings;
• USB port malfunction;
• lack of drivers that are responsible for recognizing the media on the computer;
• improper use (removing the flash drive before the writing, downloading, reading or moving process is completed);
• infection of a flash card with a virus;
• the physical switch is in the wrong position.

The appearance of an error can also be associated with a breakdown of the media itself. Cheap Chinese fakes Flash cards of famous world leaders have many faults.

Types of write protection

Types of write protection for flash media can be divided into 2 groups - software and hardware. The first type of protection is a set specialized programs, which are designed to ensure data security.

A standard example of hardware protection is the presence on the body of a flash drive of a special switch with which you can manually disable or enable the ability to write files. On SD cards it is always present, but on regular drives is much less common.

Ways to solve the problem

Before you familiarize yourself with the most effective ways to fix the problem and resort to using them, it is worth checking the functionality of the flash drive on another computer, since the reason may lie in a faulty USB port or poor contact.

It is also worth checking the position of the switch, since it often moves involuntarily. After making sure there is no mechanical problems, you can start various methods troubleshooting.

Hardware method

The hardware method using the command line is the most common and effective way solving the problem. First, you should launch the command line using the Win + R key combination or using the “Command Prompt” application located in the “Start” menu. After opening it, you need to act step by step by entering the following commands:

1. "Cmd" (after opening the Run window).
2. “Diskpart” (to launch the disk manager application on the system).
3. "List disk". A list of disks will appear in the window that opens and you should select the appropriate one from it and enter the command “select disk” and its number.
4. “Attributes disk clear readonly” (entered to remove the lock from all protected files).

As soon as the message “Disk attributes have been successfully cleared” appears, you should shut down, close the command line and check the flash drive for functionality.

Virus scanning

One more effective method The solution to this problem is to scan for viruses. You must proceed as follows:

1. Go to “This PC” and right-click on the name assigned to the flash drive (for example, “Transcend”).
2. Select “Scan for viruses” from the menu that appears.
3. Clean the flash drive from detected viruses.

This method is suitable for any antivirus software installed on a personal computer.

Applying Windows Group Policy

In some cases, the problem lies in the restriction of group rights Windows policy. To remove protection in this case, first press the “Windows” and “R” keys simultaneously, enter the command “gpedit.msc” in the window that appears and click “OK”. Then, you need to sequentially go to the following tabs:

• computer configuration;
• administrative templates;
• system;
• access to removable storage devices.

After opening the option window, you should check the “Disable” checkbox. Then you need to click on “Apply” and “OK”.

Removing protection via Total Commander

Significant amount various functions offers file Total manager Commander. To remove protection from a flash drive, use it to resort to the following manipulations:

• click “Configuration”;
• click “Settings”;
• go to the “Operations with files” tab
• check the box " Automatic selection copying method.

To save the settings, click on “Apply” and “OK”, and then check the media for functionality.

Using specialized programs

Using special programs, which can be downloaded for free on the Internet. Before downloading a particular utility, it is advisable to find out the brand of the media itself. Among the most popular specialized programs it is worth highlighting:

1. JetFlash Recovery Tool. This program is freely available and is suitable for A-Data and Transcend media. After downloading and installing the utility, you need to run it and press the “Start” button (the flash drive must be inserted into the USB input). After the process is completed, you should check the media for functionality.
2. Apacer Repair. This free utility specially designed for self-produced flash drives, but is also suitable for other media. After completing the downloading and installation process of the program, you need to insert the flash card into the USB input and launch Apacer Repair. To solve the problem, when running the utility, the user will be prompted to format the media. To confirm, you need to click “Format”.

Formatting media

The most drastic way to solve this problem is to format the flash drive. It should be remembered that when using this method, all files and folders will be erased from the media without the possibility of recovery.

First you need to download and install the free or paid modification “HDD Low Level Format Tool”. Then you should launch it and perform the following manipulations:

• select a flash card;
• click “Continue”;
• go to “Low-level format”;
• confirm the actions and click “FORMAT THIS DEVICE”.

We hope our tips will help you cope with the problem and remove protection from the flash drive.

Floppy disks are a thing of the past after they were successfully replaced by flash drives. But modern man, when trying to write something onto such a flash drive, you may sometimes encounter a situation that is familiar from the days of using those same floppy disks (floppy disks). It happens that a removable disk becomes locked and cannot be used for its intended purpose, that is, for writing any files. How to solve such a problem? We will consider this issue in detail in this article.
So, you are faced with a situation: you need to write down some information on removable storage, and when you try to do this, you see a message on the screen like “ The disc is write protected, remove the protection or insert another disc To".

This problem can be eliminated quite quickly, and we will talk about this a little later, but now it’s worth saying a few words about why protection is installed against writing any information to a flash drive.

Please note that most often this operation is performed solely for one purpose - to protect the flash drive from malware(viruses) that can themselves be copied to various removable media without the user’s knowledge.

Ways to remove write protection from a flash drive

There are two main options for removing protection from a removable drive: hardware and software.

Hardware method

You need to install a lock switch, which is found on some USB flash drives and also on SD cards. Often, such a switch is located on the side edge of a particular drive. Therefore, you need to carefully examine the drive that you have from all sides and look for an open and closed lock icon or the word Lock on it.

Please note that in fact, the protection is not difficult to remove - you just need to move the locking lever in the right direction. After such a simple maneuver, it often turns out that the write protection has already been removed. All that remains is to install the removable drive (flash drive) into the appropriate slot and repeat the entire process of writing files again.

Software method

This method involves software interaction between the OS and the flash drive controller, which is responsible for the ability to record any information. It is possible to remove write protection using this method using the command line, registry editor, or local operating group policy Windows systems 7/8/10. Let's now look at all of the options listed in more detail.

Removing protection using regedit

Removing protection using Diskpart

If you couldn’t unlock the flash drive using the registry, you can try to do it using the command interpreter Diskpart. The latter makes it possible to manage disks and partitions using commands that the user enters directly on the command line.

Removing protection using the Local Group Policy Editor

If all the methods listed in this article did not help solve the difficulties with the inability to write to a flash drive, you can also try going to the official website of the manufacturer of your flash drive and find branded original utilities there for working with your specific drive. In addition, a situation is possible when the flash drive has already exhausted its resource (some manufacturers set a limit on the number of repeated writes, after a certain number of which the drive itself switches to a special “read-only” mode). In this case, you will have to purchase a new flash drive.