Many friends have encountered this annoying thing when using mobile hard disks: the hard disk suddenly has a problem, and they want to fix it by formatting, but at this time the system pops up a message like "Cannot Format".
Use the tools that come with your computer and try again and again, but the progress bar will not move or an error will be reported directly.
At this time, the most worrying thing is not the condition of the hard drive itself. It contains photos, work documents, and important documents such as study materials.
In case the mobile hard disk cannot be formatted, you must not perform forced operations repeatedly, and you must not give up easily.
In this article, based on my own experience, the editor will tell you how to first perform an emergency file repair operation when encountering this situation, and then, what is the significance of this subsequent series of steps.
Don't move yet, rescuing the data is the first priority
When you realize that the mobile hard disk cannot be formatted and there are important data inside it, the first step is not to continue to try various formatting tools, but to stop all writing activities immediately.
The correct approach is to first find a way to copy the files inside.
Change the mobile hard disk to a USB interface or connect it to another computer and see if it can be recognized normally.
If the computer can recognize the drive letter, but the opening speed is very slow, or a prompt appears indicating that formatting is required, in this case, you can try to use data recovery software at this time.
In the market, tools such as "DiskGenius" and "Recuva" can generally avoid the partition table and directly scan the underlying data of the disk.
Follow the guidance given by the software and select the "Recover Files" function. You can usually find files in common formats such as photos and documents.
You must wait patiently for the scan to be completed and store the key data you can find on your computer's local hard drive or other secure storage devices.
Data is priceless, and this step must be done properly.
Doesn’t it work if the system comes with its own tools? Try forcing formatting from the command line
If the data has been successfully backed up, or there is no important content in the hard disk, then you can focus on solving the problem of how to format the removable disk.
When the formatting function under the graphical interface fails, command line It often works wonders.
We can use the one that comes with Windows system DiskPart tool.
Press the "Win + R" keys on the keyboard, type "diskpart" and press Enter.
Facing the command line window that pops up, type "list disk" and then press the Enter key. This will list all the disks on the computer, accurately identify your mobile hard disk according to its capacity, and record its number (just like "Disk 2").
Next, enter "select disk", then replace the number "2" inside the double quotes with the number you actually need, then press the Enter key, and finally, select the target disk.
Then enter the "clean" command. This operation will clear all partitions and volume information on the mobile hard disk, which is equivalent to a complete "clear".
Then, type "create partition primary" to create a primary partition, and finally type "format fs=ntfs quick" for quick formatting.
This method avoids the limitations of the resource manager and can solve most of the formatting failure problems caused by errors in the partition table or damage to the boot sector.
Faults caused by bad sectors should be shielded and dealt with using professional software
If during the formatting process, you hear the abnormal "clicking" sound coming from the mobile hard drive, or if the formatting progress stops at a certain point without any movement for a long time, and finally gives a failure message, then it is very likely that the hard drive has bad sectors.
Ordinary formatting cannot repair physical bad sectors, and the system's built-in tools will get stuck due to physical bad sectors, or even in such a situation.
In this case, if there is no important data in the hard disk, you can try to use "efficiency source" or "HDD Regenerator" software specifically designed to shield bad sectors.
The principle of their work is to scan and then mark those damaged sectors, so that the subsequent operating system will not write data to these places.
Follow the prompts given by the software to create a bootable USB flash drive, so that after booting the computer from the USB flash drive, run a scan and repair operation.
It should be noted that shielding bad sectors is only a temporary measure and will reduce the available capacity of the hard disk.
If the mobile hard disk is within the warranty period, or has a large number of bad sectors, then the most reliable, safe and correct way is to contact the merchant directly to proceed with after-sales replacement matters.
When encountering the situation that the mobile hard disk cannot be formatted, the important principle is to first rescue the data inside, and then repair the hard disk.
Use important documents first data recovery software Rescue it, this is the step that should not be messed up.
After the data is properly backed up, you can try to use the DiskPart command in this order to clean the partition, or use professional tools to deal with bad sector problems.
There are many situations where the hard disk itself is not completely scrapped, but is simply caused by logical errors or a small number of bad sectors, which leads to the failure.
It is hoped that these, derived from practical experience, can help everyone face such problems calmly and avoid unnecessary losses.
