- “One of the USB device attached to this computer has malfunctioned and Windows does not recognize it. For assistance in solving this problem, click this message.'
- 'The device you connected to this computer malfunctioned, and Windows does not recognize it.'
- “Flash drive not recognized”
- 'Drive did not load successfully.'
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Flash Drive Show On Mac But Cannot Download To Itunes
These errors when you connect the USB drive are really scary!! These errors generally appear when an external device is connected to the computer and the operating system is unable to recognize it or read it. It doesn’t mean that the drive is corrupt. It’s just one of the common issues associated with connecting an external device to your computer. It’s time we dig deep and fix ‘flash drive not recognized’ problem.
However, such issues can arise in both Windows and Mac systems. It may be an initial indication of your flash drive corruption and losing access to data in it. Hence, try to fix the issue as soon as possible. Here, you will find few methods to fix such not recognizing USB error.
But, before going ahead with the troubleshooting process, you need to secure your data. Yes, in the process of fixing the USB error there are chances of losing or corrupting your data. Hence, before proceeding with this process, recover your data and save on a secure drive.

Adobe Flash Player Version 32.0.0.453. By clicking the Download now button, you acknowledge that you have read and agree to the Adobe Software Licensing Agreement. Probably your USB drive is detected, but you don't find it because the USB drive doesn't show up in Desktop. To access to the USB drive, open Finder (press the icon at the left of the Dock), and choose your USB drive in the Finder sidebar, under 'Devices'. Users can right-click the flash drive and select the duplicate option to backup data on Mac easily. 7 Recovering Files from Flash Drive on Mac By using the Recoverit for Mac, the process is also very easy as below. Step 3 Restart your Mac and plug your USB flash drive again to see if the problem has been fixed. Manage the Manual Connections. Generally speaking, while you connect your USB flash drive to Mac, it will connect it automatically. However, when your USB flash drive device does not show up on Mac, you can consider manually connecting.
Recover data from not recognized USB flash drive – Remo Recover
In order to recover data from an unrecognized USB drive download Remo Recover software. This tool will scan your USB drive & extracts all files from USB drive. The software works on both Windows and Mac computers of all latest versions & helps in recovering files from corrupt flash drives securely. You can also use this software to recover deleted photos from the CF card on Mac. The entire recovery process takes few minutes:
Follow the below steps to Restore files from USB flash drive that is not recognized:
- First download and install Remo Recover software on your computer & launch the tool
- From main screen select ‘Recover Drives’ option
- Now click on ‘Formatted Recovery’ option on the consecutive screen
- Here list of available drives will be displayed and choose the one from which you need to recover files
- Software now scans the drive and displays all recovered files from the drive
- You can then preview and save files on any secure storage medium
Once, your data from flash drive is securely stored, you can now proceed with the troubleshooting methods. As said earlier, both Windows and Mac will have different methods. Read through the below procedure:
Easy Methods to Fix “Flash Drive Not Recognized” Problem in Windows
Method 1: Scan the Flash Drive for Issues
Every computer has an inbuilt mode of scanning any USB drive attached to it. You can use this method to find out any error in the connection or the device.
1 – Plug the USB drive on the computer
2 – Go to This PC (My computer for earlier versions) and right click on the flash drive and go to Properties
3 – Open Tool tab and click Check Now
This will scan and show you the results for any issues with your USB device. You can further troubleshoot the issues or use any third party element to fix them.
Method 2: Flash Drive Reformatting
In order to do this, follow the instructions;
1 – Right click on the flash drive icon and click Format; this opens the format window.
2 – Go to the File system.
3 – Toggle between NTFS and FAT32 and click Start
This will reformat your flash drive and it will fix the flash drive not recognized issue. In case this method fails to fix the error, then follow the next method.
Method 3: Update Driver
To update the driver, you have to go to the device manager window. Do keep in mind you have the administrator rights to use and change the system settings.
1 – Open the Run command and Type devmgmt.msc and click OK to open the Device Manager tab.
2 – Go to the Universal Serial Bus Controller drop-down
3 – Select Generic USB Hub from the dropdown and right click on it
4 – Select the Update Driver Software option
This step will update your driver software and fix the Flash Drive not recognized problem in the computer.
Methods to Fix “Flash Drive Not Recognized” Problem in Mac
If you are a Mac user and facing the same issue with your system, here are some methods to eliminate it. I will take you through 3 methods to troubleshoot and fix the Flash Drive Not Recognized problem. If your are looking to recover data from USB flsh drve click here.
Method 1: Connect the USB Flash Drive Manually
In order to perform this first select a port to connect the USB flash drive.
1 – Go to Applications and click on Utilities
2 – Select “Ask me What to do” from the Devices pop-up box
3 – Go to Devices and click External Devices.
Many a times, connecting USB flash drive manually will fix the issue. If this doesn’t help you, then try the next method.
Method 2: PRAM Fix
To perform this troubleshooting you have to return the PRAM.
1 – Shut down the Mac
2 – Press the Power button and hold Command + Option along with P+R while the system starts.
3 – As the system starts boot release the buttons.
Method 3: Format Drive
This method solves the issue after the drive is formatted and reconnected to the system. In order to do that, here are the steps;
1 – Press Command + Spacebar and connect the flash drive.

2 – Open Application and click on Disk Utility Option
3 – Select the Flash Drive on the left pane.
4 – Click on Erase button to complete the process
This will resolve your issue and now you can reconnect the flash drive to your computer and start using it. If you have accidentally quick formatted your USB drive you can recover data from it.
Now, your flash drive will be free from errors and use the drive. As said earlier, fixing these issues or formatting the flash drive will result in deletion of all the files in that drive. So make sure to recover all the important documents, photos, videos etc. from the drive before performing any troubleshooting.
Are you having problems of saving files to your USB flash drive? Try the following 3 quick and practical fixes to resolve this issue now:
Workable Solutions | Step-by-step Troubleshooting |
---|---|
Fix 1. Convert FAT32 USB to NTFS | Connect USB to PC > Run EaseUS Partition Master and right-click USB > Select 'Convert to NTFS'...Full steps |
Fix 2. Extend Volume Size | Run EaseUS Partition Master > Free up space to extend partition > Extend partition to save files...Full steps |
Fix 3. Obtain permission to save files | Press Windows + R to open Run > Type netplwiz > Open and select user account > 'Properties'...Full steps |
Can't save files to the USB flash drive
'I'm in deep trouble saving files to a SanDisk USB flash drive. My computer recognizes the flash drive but I can't save pictures or documents to it. Ctrl C+V is not working, the 'save' or 'save as' option is not working, even dragging files directly to the flash drive is still not working. What's the problem? How to save files to a USB flash drive as usual?'
Being a removable storage device that is portable, a USB thumb drive, memory stick or floppy disk is designed to store data so that people can take it anywhere and transfer files easily. Since a flash drive that cannot save files is useless, you must spend some effort in finding a troubleshooting method so as to bring it back to life.
3 ways to fix flash drive not saving files properly
Here, three workable methods are available for you when you can't save files to a USB flash drive, or when your flash drive is not saving files as it could have, including formatting FAT32 to NTFS, extending volume size and obtaining an access permission.
Fix 1: Format the USB flash drive and convert FAT32 to NTFS
If you are unable to copy or save files to the drive due to error 'file is too large for destination file system', you should know that the cause of the problem is related to the file system of the device. The common file systems of an external usb drive, USB or memory card are NTFS, FAT32 and exFAT. When your file is larger than 4GB and your flash drive comes with FAT32, you can't save file there due to the file system's maximum file size is 4GB.
To fix the matter, you can either use Windows Disk Management to format FAT32 to NTFS or use a third-party EaseUS Partition Master to convert FAT32 to NTFS directly without erasing data. For data safety, we bly recommend you try the professional solution without data loss.
Download and install EaseUS free partition manager on a Windows computer. Make sure your flash drive has connected to the machine correctly. Then follow the steps below to covert your FAT32 to NTFS.
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Step 1: Install and launch EaseUS Partition Master on your computer.
Step 2: Select a FAT32 partition, right-click on it and select 'Convert to NTFS'. If you need to convert a storage device such as SD card or USB flash drive to NTFS, insert it into your PC first and repeat the previous operation.
Access Flash Drive On Mac
Step 3: Click 'OK' on the pop-up dialog box to continue.
Step 4: Go to the upper left corner, click the 'Execute 1 Operation' button and you will see the operation details. Click 'Apply' and 'Finish' when the process completes.
Fix 2: Extend volume size when the disk is almost full
Did you receive the 'low disk space' warning while trying to save files to a selected volume of the flash drive? If yes, proceed to troubleshoot the issue with EaseUS Partition Master.
Step 1: Launch EaseUS Partition Master
Step 2: Free up space to extend partition
Using Flash Drive On Mac
If the hard drive has enough unallocated space to extend the target prtition, jump to Step 3 and continue.
If not, free up space first:
1. Right-click on a partition next to the target partition and select 'Resize/Move'.
2. Drag the partition ends to free up space, leaving enough unallocated space behind the target partition, click 'OK'.
Step 3: Extend partition
1. Right-click on the target partition and select 'Resize/Move'.
2. Drag the target partition handle into the unallocated space to extend partition.
Step 4: Keep all changes
Click the 'Execute Operation' button and click 'Apply' to keep all changes.
Fix 3: Obtain a permission to save files to a specific location

Now we're arriving at the last commonly seen error that will cause the trouble, which is 'you don't have permission to save in this location, contact the administrator to obtain permission'. This happens a lot when you're trying to save some certain Microsoft files.
Mac Flash Drive To Pc
Step 1: Press 'Windows + R' keys simultaneously and open 'Run'.
Step 2: Type netplwiz and hit 'Enter' to open the 'User Accounts' settings box.
Step 3: Select the user account that gives the error message.
Step 4: Click on 'Properties' and then 'Group Membership', select 'Administrator'and click 'Apply'.
My Flash Drive Will Not Open
Hope the three approaches we've given can help to solve your trouble in saving a file to USBsb flash drive or memory card. If none of the fixes works, it's highly like that your flash drive is write-protected. Try to remove write protection and get rid of the problem 'flash drive won't save files'.
