# Windows recognizes usb stick as raw with 0 bytes of data. Cannot Format. PLEASE HELP!



## AlienAxeSlinger (Oct 25, 2007)

HI, and thanks in advance for any advice that I may receive. Ok, I am having problems with my Lexar usb drive. It is a 1gb Secure II model. I have used it for the past few months with no problems and I always make sure to disconnect it properly. The problem is now that windows will recognize the stick but every time I try to access it windows wants to format it. Problem is windows cannot format it and when I click to properties if shows it as raw file system with o bytes of data. I have tried the disk management utility in administrative tools with no luck as well as a couple of usb formatting utilities. I don't know what else to say other than I am frustrated!!!!!


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## leroys1000 (Aug 16, 2007)

In disk management,right click the drive and delete any
partitions on the drive.
If there isn't one you will need to create one in any case.
Create the primary partition and then try to format.
Sounds like the partition is corrupted.


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## AlienAxeSlinger (Oct 25, 2007)

Hi, Thanks for the help. In disk management it shows the drive as "removable." however it does not show any partitions and when I right click it just gives me these options.

Change drive letter and paths
Properties
Help

I am in the disk management utility in administrative tools so I do not know why windows will not let me create a new partition. Also, the drive is not recognized with my main hard drive in the disk management utility under volume. Any other ideas? Thanks again.


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## AlienAxeSlinger (Oct 25, 2007)

Ok, I got the stick to be recognized in disk management by going into properties and into policies and changing it to optimize for performance then suddenly it appeared in disk management. Now it shows that the stick has 0 mb of memory. When I right click it gives me the options to

open
explore
change drive letter and paths
format

I still cannot format it or create a new partition. Also, when I first got the stick I deleted the program that was installed on the stick. Could this be the problem?


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## leroys1000 (Aug 16, 2007)

Right click the drive in "my computer" and click eject.
Apparently,windows is seeing it as the wrong type of drive.
Remove the drive and reboot the computer.
When windows is loaded,reinsert the drive and
see if it is properly recognized.


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## Elvandil (Aug 1, 2003)

Try repartitioning and reformatting the drive with this tool (after following *leroys1000's* good advice):

HP USB Disk Storage Format Tool


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## AlienAxeSlinger (Oct 25, 2007)

Hi guys, thanks for taking the time to help me. I actually tried that a few times already. When I try to format it with the HP tool windows tells me "there is no media in the specified device" i have tried everything I know how to do and am stumped. Is this drive dead or are there any other options? Thanks again!!!!


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## BG-0 (Jan 1, 1970)

The program you deleted just COULD be the problem. Make/model of the stick? Would be helpful with research.


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## AlienAxeSlinger (Oct 25, 2007)

Hi, it is a Lexar Secure II 1gb. The model number on the back is JDSE1GB-00-500 Rev J 3051-1GBB-2406R

I don't know if you need all that buy hey. I tried the lexar website and could not find anything. But then again I seem to overlook a lot sometimes. Thanks for the reply or and advice you can give me


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## BG-0 (Jan 1, 1970)

Secure... Quickly pacing through some review or something like that gave me the image, that it is encrypted and the program maybe would be needed to access the drive... Shucks. You need to try and get that program somewhere, although I doubt it will be found, at least easily. It would make sense that for security the program would not be shared anywhere. Maybe. Just maybe. Good luck, I'm running out od ideas. I can't find any cases on the Internet regarding deletion of that program...


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## Elvandil (Aug 1, 2003)

Thumb drives have a pretty short life compared to hard drives. You'd think that being electronic, they would live forever, but they certainly don't and have a mean time to failure that can be as short as 1/1000th that of a hard drive. The cheaper, the shorter.

So, I guess what I am saying is that if another drive works on your machine and yours doesn't, it is probably shot and not worth your time to try to revive.


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## AlienAxeSlinger (Oct 25, 2007)

Hey guys, thanks for the replies. I have been away from my internet this week. So I contacted Lexar and they are going to replace the drive. Just wanted to say thanks for the replies!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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