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We all know the importance of USB flash drives, right? These are tiny but very useful. USB flash drives give us the freedom to access our essential files from any system. We take them for granted, but unfortunately, they also sometimes fail! If you face Unrecognized USB or corrupted USB drive issues, it’s time to use USB Repair Tools. USB repair tools usually fix any USB error and recover your essential data. Here in this post, we will suggest a few free USB repair tools to help you successfully fix your USB corruption and other relevant issues.

Are you getting the error message like Please Insert Disk into Removal Disk, USB Device Not recognized or Malfunctioned? Do you need to format the disk before using it? If yes, it indicates that your USB drive is corrupted or controlled by a corrupted drive software. Some users also get notifications as the drive got infected and files corrupted, clearly saying the problem is with the NAND memory. If your USB drive is relatively new, it is because of low-quality NAND chips.

Now the question is, what causes the USB drive corruption? The answer is simple! Though there may be several reasons behind USB corruption, usually, it happens because of

Before we go ahead and use the preparation tools, it’s best to perform some basic troubleshooting. Sometimes we think the USB is not working, but it can be a minor issue. Follow these suggestions:

You will need an admin account to execute some of these.

It is the most common and very first fix; you should always try to define whether your USB storage is working correctly or not! For example, sometimes your USB drive is not corrupted, but the system USB port is damaged. In such cases, you need to try on other USB ports to cross-verify whether your USB drive is working or not.  

If you are facing a USB is not recognized error, then you can reinstall the USB drive. Sometimes your PC cannot detect the USB if the driver gets corrupted. In such cases, reinstalling the USB driver will work wonders. Follow the steps below to perform the whole process.

Some user face unwanted errors like their USB is detected but not showing in Windows explorer, and due to this error, they can’t even open their files stored on the USB. In such a situation, changing the drive letter fix works amazingly. Here is a detailed guide on this process.

Read: USB 3.0 External Hard Drive not recognized

Sometimes basic fixes will not work for your USB error, and in such a situation, we recommend you go for some of the reliable third-party tools to repair or fix your USB drive. Here we will recommend you such top-rated, highly trusted six different tools that can repair your USB drive without damaging your data.

The suggested built-in tools of Windows may need admin permission in some cases.

It is a built-in tool that comes with the Windows operating system. This tool can quickly check for any driver error. In addition, this tool can automatically fix file system errors. The scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors feature of this inbuilt tool also performs a complete scan of drive which may bed damaged or unusable.

Fix: Unknown USB Device, Port Reset Failed error

Run the Hardware and Device Troubleshooter and check if it helps. The automated tools check the hardware/USB connected to the computer for any known issues and fix them automatically.

Before going for any third-party tool, we will always recommend you check whether your USB drive can be detected by your Windows PC or not. CHKDSK utility tool within the command prompt is another built-in tool on Windows that can quickly detect USB drive errors. This tool can easily detect the bad sectors and fix casual disk errors. Follow our detailed guide on how to use this ChkDsk tool.

The options /f and / r will scan the integrity of the file system and file system metadata. It will also fix any logical file system errors on the USB drive.

Once done, eject the USB drive, and reinsert it to check if the issue is resolved.

There can be two scenarios. First, you can view your USB drive, but no data is inside; second, the USB drive is missing but visible in Device Manager or can be seen through Disk Partition tools.

Resolute is an open-source USB repair tool that supports 32-bit and 64-bit Windows. This advanced tool can easily fix USB device errors without damaging your data. This tool comes with a simple and one-click action interface. There is no need to edit registry keys or any complicated technical stuff to fix the USB error. Make sure to download this tool from its official website for safety purposes.

Reputed memory manufacturer brand Transcend comes with its free-to-use JetFlash Online Recovery tool, which can easily repair errors and undetected USB drives on your system. This tool can easily restore your flash drive to its factory settings and fix all the USB issues. It has a user-friendly interface, and anyone can quickly repair their USB drive with the help of this most effective open-source USB repair tool. It only works with Transcend JetFlash USB flash drives.

If you were ever facing a USB error or corruption issue, you should initially try the quick fixes given above. However, if you still have issues, we recommend using the five best free USB repair tools above to resolve all your USB drive-related issues.     

No doubt corrupt USB drive can be terrifying, but if you have complete knowledge of how to fix USB drive corruption and relevant issues, it will help you a lot! That’s why we will provide some frequently asked questions; make sure to read those.

When your USB drive is corrupted, you will get error messages like the USB drive is not recognized or malfunctioned. You can check by connecting to another PC or USB Port or even to a smartphone by using an appropriate converter. If the device or the data inside it is not visible anywhere, it means the device is corrupt, and you need to look for a replacement.

Read: External Hard Drive not showing up

You can easily fix a USB storage not recognized by uninstalling and updating the USB drivers. You can also fix the error with the windows error checking tool quickly. You can use the Device manager to uninstall and then update the driver once you plug it back in. Some of the unique USB devices need drivers of their own. If that is the case, you must download the driver from the OEM website and install it.

You can easily fix a corrupted USB drive without formatting it with the help of the CHKDSK utility within the Command Prompt. The tool will check and fix any minor issues, such as header corruption, and will rebuild it. However, if the repair is beyond that, you will have to look for professional software to help you retrieve data from devices that don’t work.

You might also want to check out these freeware for your USB:

Date: August 30, 2022 Tags: Repair, USB

Ashish is a veteran Windows and Xbox user who excels in writing tips, tricks, and features on it to improve your day-to-day experience with your devices. He has been a Microsoft MVP (2008-2010).