How do I remove Write Protection from a USB Drive 1

[OfficeAnimal]

My machine is Intel Core i5-3470 CPU @ 3.20GHz, 8,0GB RAM, MS Windows 7 Home Premium v. 6.1 64-bit SP1
Intel HD Graphics and RealTek High Definintion Audio on Motherboard MSI B75MA-P45
I have Windows Defender as Anti-virus with Memeo Backup Pro, Google Talk, and Skype running in the background.

Routine work-in-progress backups are usually made to a USB Drive which has suddenly become Write Protected.
How do I remove that write protection?

Thanks

"Truth will sooner come out from error than from confusion."
Francis Bacon (1561-1626)

 

[cdogg]

Is it a thumb drive? If so, there's usually a physical switch on the drive itself that you can toggle on and off.

-Carl
"The glass is neither half-full nor half-empty: it's twice as big as it needs to be."

[tab][navy]For this site's posting policies, click [/navy]here.

 

[goombawaho]

Or some of them have that fancy software that runs down on the task bar and you can lock it and unlock it there. Brand/model number please for further review?

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.

 

[OfficeAnimal]

It's a thumb drive but I don't remember the make and model - I've had it a while. Right Click -> Properties doesn't tell me anything. How else could I find out?

There doesn't seem to be any software associated with the drive.

"Truth will sooner come out from error than from confusion."
Francis Bacon (1561-1626)

 

[Nelviticus]

Is it read-only in all machines or just the one? I've had faulty ones go into read-only mode.

Nelviticus

 

[spamjim]

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/24738-63-write-protected-flash-drive-removal-software

 

[cdogg]

So you didn't see any switches you could toggle on the outside of the thumb drive? More than likely, this was moved into the locked position by mistake.

 

[OfficeAnimal]

No cdogg. There is no toggle switch of any sort on the Thumb Drive.
That's a thought Nelviticus. I'll check that out.

"Truth will sooner come out from error than from confusion."
Francis Bacon (1561-1626)

 

[OfficeAnimal]

Hi spamjim
I went to that site you suggested and found

2. Go to Start > Run > type in: regedit > hit enter. On the dialog box that opens up navigate to the following path:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\StorageDevicePolicies

Find the entry named "WriteProtect" if the value is set to 0x00000001 (1), double click it and set the value to zero.

Reboot your computer and try your flash drive.

There is no "StorageDevicePolicies" and no "WriteProtect"

Does that leave me with the reality of a dead Thumb Drive?

"Truth will sooner come out from error than from confusion."
Francis Bacon (1561-1626)

 

[goombawaho]

I wouldn't trust it at this point especially if it won't work in multiple computers. That can be a symptom of failure in a flash memory device.

Also, I would never rely on these things as a single source for backup. They are really only good as a secondary or tertiary form of backup and for data portability.

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.

 

[guitarzan]

I wouldn't trust it at this point especially if it won't work in multiple computers
But the OP didn't say they tried it in any other computers yet. I agree with your points, though; probably a bad thumb drive, and never rely on thumb drives for a primary backup.

Does that leave me with the reality of a dead Thumb Drive?
Maybe, but not based on those reg keys not being present! This thread gives a better explanation of the reg key StorageDevicePolicies (it says if it doesn't exist, to create it) but i would not go changing registry keys unless you have evidence that the problem is the computer, and not just a bad thumb drive.

I would try the drive in another machine, and if possible use a different thumb drive your computer, and see the what happens.

 

[goombawaho]

I KNOW it hasn't been tested on multiple computers. So my comment would suggest a test on multiple computers would be prudent.

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.

 

[guitarzan]

goombawaho: Yes, I see now that I misinterpreted your first sentence in that post.

 

[OfficeAnimal]

It didn't work on other computers. It is now, formally, deceased.
Thanks to all who tried to help.

"Truth will sooner come out from error than from confusion."
Francis Bacon (1561-1626)

 

[goombawaho]

You are actually better off that you know this rather than risking any data written to the flash drive. I replace my flash drives once a year to avoid just such issues. They are so cheap unless you are buying massive ones that it's just prudent.

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.

 

[cdogg]

True. Always a good idea to keep sensitive data on newer flash drives, since they are pretty cheap to replace. However, I have to admit. I have an old Kingston thumb drive from 2006 that still works fine. I use it to transfer data, maybe 2-3 times per week. No big deal when it eventually decides to bite the dust, since I'm only using it to transfer copies, but so far it's still chugging along!



-Carl
"The glass is neither half-full nor half-empty: it's twice as big as it needs to be."

[tab][navy]For this site's posting policies, click [/navy]here.

 

[goombawaho]

No big deal when it eventually decides to bite the dust, since I'm only using it to transfer copies

That's the key. If you had all your QuickBooks documents on it and it was the only copy, that would worry me. I've seen people do that. They said they didn't want to have it on their computer in case something happened!!!! As if ONLY having it on a USB stick is somehow safer.

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.

 

[cdogg]

No doubt! I'm just surprised this thing is still usable with the writing and erasing I've put it through over the years.

 

[goombawaho]

If it was a human, it would 110 years old. Time is not on its side. Woe to all who think of flash drives as permanent storage.

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.