Recovering disk partitions. The hard drive does not open, it asks to format it: what should I do? Solving the problem using the system

Sometimes PC or laptop users may experience an annoying problem. The computer stopped seeing the flash drive or hard drive. Often, errors may appear: “the disk is not formatted”, “the disk is not found”, “insert the disk”, “the disk in the device is not formatted, format it”, “before using the disk in the drive, it must be formatted”, etc. etc. And it’s not even scary that the system asks you to format the HDD or Flash card.

The trouble is that the important and much-needed data contained on the device is under serious threat. Is it possible and how to recover data on a hard drive or flash drive if the computer does not see it? Will the drive work again or is it broken and can I say goodbye to it? These questions are of primary concern to users.

Let's not draw hasty conclusions or make harsh decisions; we will try to restore all the information and return the disks to a working state. To do this you need:

1. Check the storage media for viruses.
2. Check for logical errors and bad sectors.
3. Try to recover data.
4. If all of the above fails, try to restore the operation of the flash drive or hard drive by formatting.

How to check a flash drive or hard drive for errors and viruses?

To check for viruses and malware (Trojans), you can use any popular anti-virus programs. I recommend Eset, Kaspersky, DrWeb, Avast and MalwareBytes Antimalware. After checking the device for viruses, you can proceed to checking the logical integrity of the file system.

To check and eliminate existing logical errors on the disk, you need to use the chkdsk program. This is a standard program in Windows (7, 8, 10) for checking drives for file system errors. To run it, you need to open the command line, through the Start menu bar, enter cmd.exe in the search bar and run it as Administrator (right mouse button).

Chkdsk X:

Press Enter and wait for the process to complete. Reboot your PC or laptop. After that, we try to open the flash drive or hard drive again. If it doesn’t help, it says “The volume cannot be opened for direct access” or “not valid for RAW disks”, look further.

You can use third-party disk scanning programs, such as MiniTool Power Data Recovery. But the functionality of chkdsk is quite sufficient to eliminate most problems with disk access.

How do you know if a disk needs to be formatted?

If you encounter the error “before using the disk, you need to format it,” this is not a death sentence. But in some, especially difficult cases, when it is not possible to recover data from a flash drive or hard drive. And if none of the proposed methods brought the desired result. You can try to repair, repair and make the hard drive itself work (after such problems, it is better not to store important information on it).

How to restore a hard drive or flash drive after errors if data recovery did not help? You need to format it and then scan it for errors and bad sectors.

How to format a hard drive?

Formatting a local hard drive (it can be under the letter C, D or others) is not such a difficult task. Despite the confusing name, formatting the C:/ hard drive is very simple. You can format the hard drive through the BIOS or use special programs. I offer several convenient ways.

The simplest thing, if the hard drive is not bootable, is to format it in Windows. You need to go to My Computer, right-click on the desired drive and select “Format”. Next, select the NTFS file system, cluster size 4096 bytes, check the box for “Fast (cleaning table of contents)” and click “OK”.

Formatting via BIOS or command line can be useful if Windows does not boot and it is not possible to use standard formatting tools. For example, when problems arise with the boot drive C, on which the operating system is usually installed.

To format a hard drive in the BIOS, you will need an installation disk or USB flash drive with Windows. You need to set boot priority in BIOS to 1 for bootable media. Everything is the same as when installing Windows. When the system installer loads, press Shift+F10 to launch the command line. If you couldn’t open cmd like this, there is another way, go through “Select language” - “Additional options” - “Command line”. Or click next in the Windows installer until a table with active hard drives and partitions appears, select “format”.

At the command line you need to enter the following commands:

Wmic logicaldisk get deviceid, volumename, size, description

The command is used to determine and clarify the drive letter and its size. In order not to confuse and format the desired hard drive or partition.

Format /FS:NTFS C: /q

Command to quickly format drive C: to the NTFS file system.

Another way to change the disk file system is ERD Commader, Microsoft Diagnostic and Recovery Toolset, Acronis Disk Director. You must create bootable media based on these programs and perform formatting in their environment. I suggest you google this topic if you are interested.

How to format a flash drive?

What should you do when a laptop or computer asks you to format a flash drive when you insert it into a USB connector (port)? However, he does not see it, it is not readable and does not open. That's right, you need to format it, but only after you have tried all the methods to restore its operation and information.

The principle of formatting a flash drive is approximately the same as that of an HDD drive.

About file systems of flash drives and hard drives.

When formatting an HDD or flash drive, you must select the future file system. The device will be formatted according to your selection. You can choose from several possible options.

• FAT32

Which file system should I choose for a flash drive or HDD? Assessing all the pros and cons and without going into details, I recommend NTFS. This is a more modern file system that ensures the reliability of reading and writing information at a decent speed. In addition, NTFS supports flash drives with a capacity of more than 4 GB well, which cannot be said about FAT 32.

Still have questions or something is unclear? Write in the comments.

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Formatting an HDD is an easy way to quickly delete all data stored on it and/or change the file system. Formatting is also often used for a “clean” installation of the operating system, but sometimes a problem may arise in which Windows cannot complete this procedure.

There are several situations in which it is impossible to format the drive. It all depends on when the user tries to start formatting, whether there are software or hardware errors associated with the operation of the HDD.

In other words, the reasons may lie in the inability to complete the procedure due to certain operating system parameters, as well as problems caused by the software or physical condition of the device.

Reason 1: The system disk is not formatted

The most easily solvable problem, which only beginners usually encounter: you are trying to format the HDD from which the operating system is currently running. Naturally, in operating mode, Windows (or another OS) cannot remove itself.

The solution is very simple: you need to boot from the flash drive to perform the formatting procedure.

Attention! This action is recommended before installing a new OS version. Don't forget to save the files to another drive. After formatting, you will no longer be able to boot from the operating system you were using previously.

Set the BIOS to boot from a flash drive.

The next steps will be different depending on the OS you want to use. In addition, formatting can be carried out either for subsequent installation of the operating system, or without additional manipulations.

To format and then install the OS (using Windows 10 as an example):

To format without installing the OS:

Reason 2: Error: "Windows cannot complete formatting"

This error may appear when working with your main drive or second (external) HDD, for example, after a system installation was suddenly interrupted. Often (but not necessarily) the hard drive format becomes RAW and in addition to this, it is not possible to format the system back to the NTFS or FAT32 file system in the standard way.

Depending on the severity of the problem, you may need to follow several steps. Therefore, let's go from simple to complex.

Step 1: Safe Mode

Due to running programs (for example, antivirus, Windows services or custom software), it is not possible to complete the started process.

1. Boot Windows in Safe Mode.
2. Perform formatting that is convenient for you.

Step 2: chkdsk
This built-in utility will help eliminate existing errors and cure broken blocks.

Step 3: Command Line

Step 4: System Disk Utility

Step 5: Using a Third Party Program

You can try using third-party software, since in some cases it successfully copes with formatting when standard Windows utilities refuse to do so.

Reason 3: Error: "Data error (CRC)"

This most likely indicates a physical failure of the disk, so in this case you need to replace it with a new one. If necessary, you can send it to a service center for diagnostics, but this can be financially costly.

Reason 4: Error: “The selected partition could not be formatted”

This error can generalize several problems at once. The whole difference here is in the code, which comes in square brackets after the text of the error itself. In any case, before trying to fix the problem, check the HDD for errors using the chkdsk utility. How to do this, read above in Method 2.

We looked at the main problems that arise when trying to format a hard drive in a Windows environment or when installing an operating system. We hope you found this article useful and informative. If the error has not been resolved, please tell us your situation in the comments and we will try to help resolve it.

Situations when an unreadable RAW format appears on a computer or laptop instead of a regular partition are very unpleasant for the user. And many simply do not know what to do to bring the disk to normal condition, since the system initially does not recognize the RAW format of HDD disks. How to fix this problem? To do this, you can use several recommended tools, including Windows tools and specialized programs.

RAW format - what is it?

Some users mistakenly believe that the appearance of this format is solely due to the fact that the RAW file system appears instead of the usual one. We restore the disk by rolling back the system state to the previous state, and... the result is zero! Why?

Yes, only because the RAW format is not a file system, but rather the absence of one. This is why the operating system does not see the hard drive or logical partition (damage may also affect partition tables).

Sometimes the system can perceive a damaged HDD, but there is no information that should supposedly be present on it. That is, it is there, but it is impossible to read it. However, often when you try to access such a partition, Windows immediately displays a message about the need to format it before further use. Unfortunately, formatting does not always produce the desired effect, and information is destroyed. It will be very difficult to restore it later, although special programs can be used. But this is not the best method that allows you to convert the RAW format of HDDs. How to fix the situation with saving information? For such purposes, you should first turn to the system’s tools, which will be discussed separately.

Why is the format changing?

Among the reasons that cause the replacement of the desired format with an unreadable one, the main place is occupied by purposefully acting viruses, power surges, sudden power outages in the process of performing some system or user operations, etc.

It also happens that the system defines the hard drive as RAW, files and folders seem to be displayed, but it is impossible to do anything with them (copy, open, move, delete). In this case, you cannot even format the partition, change the volume label, or change its conditional or actual size.

RAW format of HDD disks: how to fix it using the simplest method?

The very first thing to do is to use the command console and run as administrator. You can call it from the “Run” menu (Win + R) using the cmd line.

The chkdsk command is used as a universal tool for restoring the format without data loss. Please note that if the system partition is damaged, you can only call the command line if you boot from removable media such as a LiveCD, a Windows installation disk, or from a bootable flash drive. As a rule, the combination Shift + F10 is used to open the console.

To run the command itself, you need to know the drive or partition letter (the so-called volume label). Let's say the damaged partition in the system is designated by the letter “D”. In this case, the command to be written will look like this: chkdsk d: /f. After entering it, you need to press the Enter key and wait for the file system recovery process to complete, after which you must restart the computer.

RAW format of HDD disks: instructions for using partition management tools

Windows has another powerful tool in the form of the Disk and Partition Management utility. It, along with the above command, is capable of restoring the RAW format of HDDs. How to fix the partition format using it? It's also easy. It’s just worth considering that this technique is designed exclusively for those cases when there is no data in the section.

First, through computer administration or using the diskmgmt.msc command in the Run console (Win + R), you need to call the built-in Disk Management system utility. Next, on the selected partition that has a damaged format, you should right-click and select the formatting line from the context menu.

If the system displays an error or formatting error message, in order to restore a RAW disk, initialization will first be required, followed by the creation of a simple volume. After completing these steps, formatting will be performed, and the disk or partition can be used again for your needs.

Using the TestDisk application

Interesting opportunities for recovering the HDD format are provided by the free TestDisk utility, which is designed as a portable version and does not require installation on the hard drive.

After starting the program in simulating DOS mode, you need to select the Create line, and then specify the disk that was converted to RAW format (you need to select the disk, not the partition). Next, the section style is set (this is usually done automatically).

At the next stage, select the analysis line (Analyze), press Enter, then Enter again with the Quick Search item selected.

In the analysis results, partitions for recovery will be marked in green and the letter P, while those to be deleted will remain gray with the letter D. If you need to change the attribute from P to D, arrows are used.

To continue, press the Enter key again, select the Write button from below, then use Enter again, and press Y (Yes) to confirm the action. When the conversion is complete, all that remains is to restart your computer.

MiniTool Data Recovery utility

This program is also capable of restoring the RAW format of HDD disks. You can fix it as follows.

After launching the utility, a tool called Lost Partition Recovery is selected, the RAW partition is specified, and Full Scan is activated.

At the end of the scan, all files and folders that are in the partition with the changed format will be shown. They can be copied to another location, and then formatted in the application itself, or use the methods described above for this.

According to most experts, the program is good in everything (it works quickly, reliably and stably), but it has one huge drawback - it belongs to the category of shareware applications. The limitations in the trial version include the fact that using this utility it will not be possible to recover partitions larger than 1 GB (but you can also find distributions with activators on the Internet, although their use is illegal from the point of view of international law).

Recovering partitions in DMDE

DMDE is another program for converting disks and partitions of any type from the RAW system to the normal format.

In the application, you select a physical disk with a RAW format (do not uncheck the partition display line!), which can be visually identified by underlining, color mark, size or file system, after which you need to select it and click the open volume button just below. Next, you should check the contents by clicking the show sections button. If this is exactly what is required, the restore button is then used, then the operation is confirmed, and at the end of the process the “Apply” button is pressed. To avoid errors, although this is not required, it is advisable to reboot the system.

A few final words

These are the main methods for restoring a damaged HDD format. Only the most popular tools and programs were listed here. You can find many other interesting utilities on the Internet, but all of them, as evidenced by reviews from experts and users, work on similar principles.

When changing the format on the system partition, the same methods are used, but in this case, loading is done from removable media, and the main tool is exclusively the command console or portable versions of the above-described applications (for example, TestDisk).

There can be many reasons for this (incorrect shutdown, startup, wear, etc.), but the most common is errors on the disk. Out of ten similar problems, in 9 cases a standard disk error check helped. The disk error checking program is built into Windows and the command for it is Chkdsk. Let's take a closer look at it. If something is unclear, there is a video instruction at the end of the article.

Calling the command: best from the command line, i.e. Start in the find field, write CMD and press Enter. CMD is needed.

At the command line you need to enter the following: let’s say you need to check drive J: (be sure to look at which letter the faulty hard drive is), then the command will look like this:

CHKDSK space J: space /f ( chkdsk j: /f) then press Enter. Next, the system itself will check the hard drive for errors and automatically correct them. Patience, a couple of Our Fathers and our disk with important information will start automatically.

This is how you can easily save and restore important information on your own on an external hard drive that won’t open. After such cases, I recommend duplicating this information on another external medium. If suddenly your data has been restored, but not everything will help you, the article about. You can’t do anything this way, let’s go to extreme measures and

If, after working with an external hard drive, the device is improperly disconnected from the computer or a failure occurs during recording, the data will be damaged. Then, when you reconnect, an error message will appear asking you to format it.

When an external hard drive does not have important information, you can simply format it, thereby quickly fixing the problem. Then all damaged files will be erased, and you can continue working with the device. There are several ways to correct the error while saving important data.

Method 1: Check via the command line

You can check your hard drive for errors and fix possible problems using standard Windows tools. This same option is especially relevant if you have discovered a failed NTFS file system before RAW.

Procedure:

When the check is completed, all faulty data will be corrected, and the hard drive can be used to record and view files.

Method 2: Format the disk

If there is no important data on the hard drive, and the main task is to regain access to the device, then you can follow the advice of Windows and format it. You can do this in several ways:

After this, all files that were previously stored on the external hard drive will be deleted. You can try to recover some of the information using special software.

Method 3: Data Recovery

If the previous method did not help resolve the problem or another error appeared during the process (for example, due to a file system type mismatch), and there is important data in the device’s memory, then you can try to restore it. This can be done using special software.

We recommend choosing R-Studio for this purpose, but you can use any similar software. The program is suitable for working with external hard drives and other removable storage media. Capable of recovering data from a faulty or accidentally formatted device.