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An SD card, external hard drive, or USB flash drive is a convenient device for storing large amounts of data and files. But have you ever encountered the “disk is write-protected” error when trying to modify any of the files stored on it? If so, we're here to help!
In this guide, we've listed 3 effective methods that can help you remove the write protection from your disk and get it back to functioning normally. Whichever solution you opt for, your storage drive will be perfectly reusable!
What is the "Disk is Write Protected" issue?
Have you ever encountered the “disk is write-protected” issue when trying to use or write to an SD card or hard drive? But do you really know what this issue means? If not, let us explain!
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When your internal or external hard drive, USB flash drive, or SD card is write-protected, you can no longer write data to it or perform any operations. In other words, you become unable to access the data stored on the drive, and you cannot make any changes to the device.
Therefore, if you encounter such an issue in Windows 11, try fixing it with these hassle-free solutions for the 'disk is write protected' problem!
Solution 1: Check the lock switch and move it to the UNLOCK position.
The first thing to do when you see the “The disk is write-protected” error on Windows 11 is to check the lock switch. Some USB flash drives, SD cards, or pen drives come with a lock switch. So, if your Windows 11 PC tells you that the media is write-protected, you must look for the write protection switch (also called the lock switch) on the SD card or USB drive. If the media has a lock switch, make sure it's set to writable and not read-only.
To switch it to read-only, just flip the switch to the unlocked position, and you'll be able to access and modify the data on the drive!
Solution 2: Remove write protection via Partition Master
Step 1. Download and install Partition Master, go to the “Toolbox” section, and then click on “Write Protection.”
Step 2: Select your read-only USB drive, external hard drive, or SD card and click “Eject.”
Solution 3: Remove Write Protection using Diskpart
If the lock switch on your SD card or USB flash drive is turned on, but you're still unable to make any changes to the files on the disk, you can try using Diskpart to remove the write protection. Using Diskpart is a less scary way to deal with a write-protected issue.
And here's how it works!
Step 1: Insert the USB drive into the corresponding USB port on your Windows 11 computer.
Step 2: Press the “Win+X” keys and select “Run.”
Step 3: Type “diskpart” in the “Run” dialog box, and then click “OK”.
4. Next to "DISKPART >", type list disk, and press Enter.
Step 5: Find your USB drive in the list of mounted disks and make a note of its disk number.
Step 6: Type “select disk x” (replace x with the disk number) and press Enter.
For example, if your disk is number 1, type “select disk 1.”
Step 7: After you select the disk, Diskpart displays a message indicating that the disk is now selected.
Step 8: Type “attributes disk clear readonly” and press “Enter.”
Step 9: Diskpart will display the message, "Disk attributes successfully cleared," letting you know that the write protection has been removed and the disk is no longer write protected.
Step 10: Finally, type “exit” and press “Enter” to close the “Disk Management” window.
This is how Diskpart helps you to remove write protection from your USB flash drive!
Solution 4: Remove write protection from the registry
Lastly, but not least, removing write protection from a disk via editing the Registry is the final method. This method of removing write protection is very risky; therefore, it is advisable to back up the Windows Registry before making any changes.
Here's how to disable write protection on a Windows 11 computer.
Step 1: Connect the read-only removable disk to your Windows 11 computer.
Step 2: Press “Win+R” and type “Regedit” into the “Run” box to open the “Registry Editor.”
Step 3: Click on “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE” and expand “System.”
Step 4: Here, tap on “Current Control Set”, and then touch “Control”.
Step 5: Now, check the “Storage Device Policies” and change the DWORD value to 0. Click OK.
Step 6: Exit the Registry Editor and restart your Windows 11 PC.
Now, wait for your computer to restart and check if your device can be accessed!
Part 3: How to Format a Protected USB Flash Drive or SD Card in Windows 11
If you can't remove the write protection from your device using any of these three methods, then it may be that your device is not actually write protected but damaged. So if you've tried all the above methods and still can't solve the problem, you should use AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional to format the problematic USB flash drive or SD card to fix the issue of being unable to read or save data.
Partition Master is a powerful tool with a wide range of disk management capabilities. It can perform basic disk formatting and maintenance tasks in just minutes.
Step 1: Right-click on the hard drive partition and choose the "Format" option.
Step 2: In the new window, assign a "Volume Label," "File System," and "Cluster Size" to the partition, then click "OK."
Step 3: A warning will appear. Click Yes to proceed.
Step 4: Click on the “Perform 1 Task” button and then click “Apply” to start formatting the hard drive partition.
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So, if you're looking for an affordable professional tool, Partition Master is the right choice for you! With this tool, you can easily format a write-protected SD card or USB flash drive without much hassle.
Part 4: Bonus Tip: How to Remove Write Protection from a Single File/Folder
Are you looking for a workable way to unprotect a single file or folder? If so, then this extra tip is for you!
If you want to make changes to a specific file or folder but can't, it might be because the file is write-protected. Here's how to give yourself write permissions and make all the changes you want to that one file/folder.
Step 1: Insert the SD card or USB drive into the correct port on your Windows 11 computer.
Step 2: Open File Explorer and navigate to the device or folder containing the files.
Step 3: Select the file, and then click the Home tab. From there, choose Properties > Advanced Properties.
Step 4: In the Properties dialog box, clear the Read-only check box, as shown below.
Step 5: Finally, click on “OK” to save the changes.
And there you have it! You've successfully removed the write protection from a single file or folder on your Windows 11 computer in a straightforward manner.
Conclusions
That's it for how to remove write protection from a USB flash drive, internal/external drive, or SD card! Each of the above methods has its pros and cons, so you can choose any one of them based on your needs and system requirements.
Moreover, if you need to format the disk after removing write protection, then the Partition Master tool will best suit your needs. So, don't waste any more time and remove write protection from the disk right now to make it accessible again!