Windows 10: Why does my USB drive show as “No Media” in Disk Management, and how can I fix it?

Hi, I’m having an issue with my USB drive. When I plug it into my computer, it doesn’t show up in File Explorer. However, when I check in Disk Management, it says “No Media” and shows no available space. I’ve tried different ports and computers, but nothing seems to work. Is there a way to fix this, or is the drive permanently damaged? I would appreciate any help or suggestions! Thanks in advance.

:)

 

Disk management shows no media for usb drive

I just got a new usb drive, plugged it into my computer, and tried formatting it to ntfs. I got an error that said something like "formatting is taking too long; disk could not be formatted" but i dont remember exactly what it said. now whenever i plug in
the drive, it shows up for a second in my computer and then is greyed out. in disk management and diskpart it shows up as no media. is there anything i can do to fix it? i don't care about data recovery. things i have already tried:

uninstalling/reinstalling device with device manager

use a different usb port

use diskpart to clean disk (says "virtual disk service error: there is no media in the device")

use diskpart to create volume simple ("a disk specified is not dynamic. please specify a dynamic disk and try again.")

uses disk part to create partition primary ("No usable free extent could be found. It may be that there is insufficient

free space to create a partition at the specified size and offset. Specify

different size and offset values or don't specify either to create the

maximum sized partition. It may be that the disk is partitioned using the MBR disk

partitioning format and the disk contains either 4 primary partitions, (no

more partitions may be created), or 3 primary partitions and one extended

partition, (only logical drives may be created).")

is there anything else i can try? (i've probably tried other things and am forgetting...) is there hope for recovery for this drive, or is it dead for good?

any help is greatly appreciated.

 

Disk Management Shows USB Drive but All Tasks are Grayed Out

Hi Chris,

I realize the inconvenience you are facing with Diskpart. I will certainly help you.

I appreciate your efforts in troubleshooting the USB drive.

Please follow the below steps:

• Check if you see USB drive in file explorer.
• If yes, please refer to the below link to create a recovery media:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us...3a5-a286-9e98f886d490/create-a-recovery-drive

If the issue still persists, try repairing the USB disk and check if it helps.
Follow the below steps:

• Press Windows logo key + X key and select
  Command prompt (Admin).
• Type diskpart and hit Enter.
• Type list disk and hit Enter.
• Repair the USB by type command repair disk= disk no. (Ex, if USB disk show at 3 then type repair disk=3)

After repairing the disk try creating system recovery drive again and check if it helps

Please reach back to us, if you still face difficulty with Diskpart. We will be happy to help you.

Thank you.

 

My USB Backup drive does not show in My Computer window.

Hi Meran,

A few possible reason can cause your external drive to not show in File Explorer. To diagnose and fix this issue, we suggest that you check the Disk Management window. To open it, follow the steps below:

• Right-click on the Start button.
• Select Disk Management.
• Alternatively, you can search diskmgmt.msc in Cortana.

Examine the list of drives in the Disk Management window and look for your external drive. Even if it doesn’t show up in File Explorer, it should appear here. If the drive appears, it may not be appearing in File Explorer because it needs to be assigned
a drive letter. To do this, right-click the partition on the drive in Disk Management and select
Change Drive Letter and Paths.

If you don’t see the drive in the Disk Management window at all, we suggest that you try connecting the drive to a different USB port or use a different USB cable. We also recommend that you avoid using USB hubs, and connect the drive directly to your computer.

If you need further assistance, please do not hesitate to post a reply.