When a system locks a removable storage out of the system or when write-protected switch is enabled on removable hardware, the error like Disk Is Write Protected USB Drive Error shows up on screen. The problem could occur on USB/ CD drivers as well as Micro SD cards.
There should be a hardware problem, but you should also check for the possibility of software related issues on the operating system. We have listed below all potential fixes that you should help you in resolving the case.
Potential fixes for Disk Is Write Protected USB Drive Error
Fix 1: Toggle off the Physical Write Protect Switch
Before moving to any advance solution, make sure that the physical write protection switch is turned off. For that, remove your USB or SD card from your system and see the next for any switches on your device. You SD card should have a White switch while USB switch might vary. You must change it to the unlock position and then plug it back to the computer and then check if the problem is resolved.
Fix 2: Use DiskPart Command Utility
This utility creates a multi-partition layout for removable devices like flash drives. You should use this utility from command prompt and see if this resolves the problem:
- Press Win+ R. type Command Prompt,
- Right-click on the app and select Run as Administrator,
- In the command line, type diskpart and hit Enter,
- Now, type list disk to get listed all the devices plugged into your computer in the terminal interface,
- Identify the disk with associated disk numbers assigned to it,
- Once done, type command select disk 1 (if the disk causing the trouble is disk 1),
- Once you selected the disk, type attributes disk clear readonly and hit Enter,
- This will clear all the readonly attributes attached to your disk,
- Unplug your USB device and then plug it back again and check the next if this resolves Disk Is Write Protected USB Drive Error.
Fix 3: Use Registry Editor
If the problem persists, you should try editing some value in registry. You should change the value for WriteProtect and then format your USB drive using exfat instead of fat3 and check if this helps you.
- Press Win+ R, type regedit and hit Enter,
- Once in the registry Editor, navigate to the below directory:
- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\Currentcontrolset\control\
- Look for “StorageDevicePolicies” entry (if you don’t find it, create a new one),
- Right-click on any control and select New> key,
- Name the new keys as “StorageDevicePolicies,
- Once you created the key, on the right pane, select New> DWORD (32-bit) value and select 3bit if your computer is of 32 bit and 64bit if it is 64bits system,
- Set the DWORD to WriteProtect and the value as 0 in hexadecimal
- Hit OK button and exit,
- After that, open This PC using File Explorer and refresh the windows 5 to 6 times,
- Plug-in back the USB device to your computer and format it,
- For that, right-click on it and select Format option,
- Set the Format Type as exfact,
- Once the formatting is done, you should access to your removable device correctly.
Fix 4: Use Disk Management
Disk Management utility manages all removable and connected storage devices on your system. it also creates and deletes partition. You should delete the existing partition and make a new one and see if this works in your case:
- Press Win+ R, type diskmgmt.msc and hit Enter,
- In the Disk Management window, select the disk you are trying to troubleshoot,
- Navigate to the window and delete the existing partition,
- In the new window, you will see an empty space in place of partition. Right-click on there and select Create Partition option,
- Navigate through the wizard and select the default values and drive letters,
- Once the partition is created, refresh your computer and check this resolves the problem for you.
Fix 5: Use another system
If Disk Is Write Protected USB Drive Error still appears, make sure you switch to a different computer. The problem could be computer specific. You might receive the problem because there is some registry values causing not to format the USB device as instructed or there could be certain element which is mal-functioning.
In case of any Windows related issue, you can use PC Repair Tool – an automatic tool to check for possible Widows related issues to get the automatic fix. It works in most of the cases where there is BSOD errors, problems related to registry entries, DLL or EXE file errors and etc. Here is its direct download link.
Conclusion
That’s all! We are now rounding off the article on how to fix Disk Is Write Protected USB Drive Error. Hope so, these fixes are helpful for you in getting the problem resolved. Drop down below in the comment you any queries, questions and suggestions regarding the post.
