XtGem Forum catalog
HomeBlogAbout Me

Repair Corrupted Usb Drive Mac



Flash, or thumb, drives are a great way to transfer data between multiple computers. And every once in a while, this transfer method fails because flash drives are physical devices. They can be damaged or have data corrupted.

Here's how to access the contents on a USB drive that won't open on your Mac. Including how to format a drive to be used on a Mac and a PC and how to repair a corrupted hard drive. Remo Recover for Mac is built and designed with a self-explanatory interface to recover data from a corrupted hard drive. Integrated with deep scan algorithm, the tool scans the corrupted hard drive sector by sector to recover the data across all versions of Mac OS including the latest Mac OS Catalina.

However, more often than not, the problem is not with the device itself, but how we use them. If the USB flash drive appears to be corrupted, e.g., when Mac cannot detect it or refuses to mount the drive, make sure that it was properly prepared.

macOS has a built-in tool that can help fix an unreadable USB flash drive on Mac: Disk Utility. After selecting the drive in the Disk Utility, click on the First Aid button to verify the device. However, before fixing the problem, check if the drive was correctlyformatted.

How To Fix Unreadable USB Flash Drive On Mac

Verify the USB drive was formatted for compatibility with macOS

There are two special cases when a USB drive may not be accessible, but not because it was corrupted. It is possible that the drive was not formatted in a disk format compatible with macOS. The two cases are:

  • A new drive
  • The drive that has been used in Windows or another operating system

Formatting the new drive

Most flash drives that you can purchase are preformatted in the Windows format (because there are more PC users than Mac users). In some cases, the drives were not formatted at all.

If the USB drive was not formatted, then the first time you plug it into the Mac, you will see the error message “The disk you inserted was not readable by this computer” with the options to Initialize, Ignore and Reject.

If the drive was never used before (and does not contain any valuable data), then click on the Initialize button. This will open the Disk Utility app.

Another way to open the app is to use the Spotlight Search: press simultaneously Command and Space bar keys and type “Disk Utility” in the search bar. Hit Enter.

On the left side of the app, locate the flash drive. Since this is a brand new drive, it won’t have partitions like this:

Click on the Partition button in the top toolbar of the app.

You need to provide three pieces of information: Name, Format, and Size. Ignore the size and use the default.

Type a meaningful description in the Name field (I usually avoid using special symbols, underscores, and spaces).

When it comes to the format, there are many choices, and the choice depends on how the flash drive is going to be used.

If you are absolutely sure that the flash drive will only be used with Mac computers, and there will never be a need to copy something to and from PC, then the best format is Mac OS Extended Journaled.

https://coollload967.weebly.com/iexplorer-ios.html. If you need encryption, then use the encrypted version of the format. However, do not use case-sensitive variants: I don’t know a single case when it could be useful.

Repair corrupted usb drive mac download

Photoshop cc mac mega. In case there is a possibility, even a remote one, that the flash drive will be used with Windows computers, then pick ExFAT.

Here is a file format compatibility table from my previous post:

Formatting a drive used with PC

As you can see from the table above, Macs support most PC formats, while PC only supports its own ones. macOS fully supports FAT32 (appears as MS-DOS in the Disk Utility) and ExFAT.

The problem with MS-DOS format is that it was intended to store files less than 4GB. In other words, if the file is formatted as MS-DOS device, you will not be able to copy files larger than 4 GB on it.

Macs can also read from drives formatted as NTFS, but only in read-only mode. Macs cannot delete or modify the file contents on NTFS drives.

Unfortunately, if the drive was already formatted with NFTS, the only way to reformat for read/write Mac compatibility is first to save the contents of the drive on another computer or disk, reformat to ExFAT, and then copy the files back to drive.

Verify the USB drive was mounted in Mac

One issue that beginner users often face is when the USB drive won’t mount on Mac.

To find out if the drive was mounted, again, use the Disk Utility. Sometimes, the drive will appear in the list of volumes (or disks) on the left side of the app but does not appear in the Finder.

Repair Corrupted Usb Drive Mac

Screenshot app mac. In this case, select the drive and then click on the Mount button in the toolbar.

If the drive was mounted, but you can’t see it on the Desktop, then try another trick. Right-click on the drive in the Disk Utility and choose the “Open in Finder” option from the drop-down menu.

Run First Aid from Disk Utility app

Repair Corrupted Usb Drive Mac Os

As mentioned above, macOS has a built-in tool to check and repair failed devices. In the Disk Utility app, select the problem drive and then click on the First Aid button.

The tool will pop up a message box. Mac tropic tonic lipstick.

Click on the Run button. First, the First Aid module will check if the device has any problems. If any errors found, it will ask for permission to fix the errors.

Reset PRAM on Mac

There is a universal solution for the most problems with any Mac. It’s called resetting PRAM (Parameter RAM).

The PRAM contains some initialization parameters related to hardware cached in the special memory. Sometimes, this memory gets corrupted and may cause all kinds of problems with sound, video, and USB devices.

All you need is to shut down Mac first. Then turn it on and immediately hold four keys on the keyboard: Command, Option, P, and R. Release the keys once the Apple logo appears on the screen.

Here are the detailed instructions from Apple.

Try 3rd party drive recovery apps

If nothing from above helped with the issue, one way to try to solve the problem is to use 3rd party apps.

I cannot recommend any apps, but if you decide to go with this route, I have some suggestions on how to make sure that the app is safe.

I always suggest using apps downloaded from the Mac App Store.

However, the problem is that the apps from the App Store usually have restrictions when it comes to direct access to the hardware (kind of thing you need when the device is failing).

So, it is most likely that the apps that can recover USB drives have to be downloaded directly from the developer site, which is not safe.

To make sure that the app does not contain any malware or adware, upload the file to Virus Total web site. This site will run multiple antivirus scanners, and if it does not find anything, then the downloaded software is most likely clean.

Send the drive to Mac repair shop

It happens very rarely so that the USB flash drive is actually having problems, e.g., bad sectors. The issue was prevalent with older mechanical devices that had moving parts, and they used to get worn out. Nowadays, it most likely that the connector could break or deform.

I have a 10-year old thumb drive, which is hard to unplug. When I try to pull it out from the USB port, I often pull the outer case, but the connector stays inside the port.

But, if you exhausted all DIY methods, it is probably a time to ask help from a specialist. I know a number of Mac repair shops that specialize in data recovery. They have a number of expensive tools they can run and diagnose the disk problems.

In conclusion, I wanted to note that quality matters when purchasing USB flash drives.

Anyone who thinks they found a good deal on Amazon – a thumb drive with a lot of space under $10-$20 with thousands of five-star reviews, but the company name is unknown or hard to pronounce, is risking to lose their data one day.

The quality devices may cost a little extra, but they have two distinct advantages:

  1. They are less likely to fail
  2. They are 3-4 times faster than no-name brands

If you are looking for suggestions, check my page with the best USB flash drives (type A and C):

External Hard Drive Corrupted

Photo credit: ©canva.com/Svetlana Lukienko

The idea to repair your USB become necessary most especially when there are vital files that you would like to make use of in one way or the other. In case you have been wondering how to go about such a process, there is no need to bother. This post will be revealing some of the most effective USB repair strategies.

    • 1. Using USB Drive Repair Tool - CHKDSK Utility

    • 2. Check Disk with Error Checking

    • 3. Reinstall the Drivers

13 Effective Solutions to Repair a Corrupted USB Drive

Most PC owners don’t usually understand that it is possible to repair a USB drive that is corrupted. This means there will not be any problem like data loss or even formatting. You only need the right knowledge and tools to get going.

1Using USB Drive Repair Tool - CHKDSK Utility

It is very possible to make use of CHKDSK (check disk) utility in your system to carry out USB repair process. Below is how this process can be effectively carried out.

Step 1: Get Command Prompt opened. This can be done by going to the start menu and typing in 'cmd' on your search bar.

Step 2: Note down your corrupted USB drive’s letter.

Step 3: chkdsk f: /f /r /x command should be entered. Replace f with the letter of your USB drive. It will begin to repair your USB drive.

/f command represents fixing of USB drive errors.

/x command represents getting the USB drive dismantled.

/r command represents locating bad sectors inside such USB drive.

2Check Disk with Error Checking

It is also possible to make use of the error checking feature in your USB drive. This can be found in its properties menu. For Windows 10 users, these are the steps below:

Step 1: Get the corrupt USB drive inserted into your system. Now head over to File Explorer and then This PC.

Step 2: Get the USB device right clicked on. After that, select Properties below from the listed options.

Step 3: You will be shown a page where there are various options to choose from. Click on Tools after that. Beneath Error Checking, Check button should be clicked on.

Step 4: Scan and repair drive option should be selected.

Step 5: If there are disk errors, you will be asked whether to fix them automatically.

3Reinstall the Drivers

Fix Corrupted Usb Drive Free

Reinstalling the drivers is another effective USB repair method that most people are yet to discover. It is a straightforward process which doesn’t require you to do much as explained in the steps below.

Office dla mac os. Step 1: Locate My Computer and get it right clicked on. After that, locate Manage and click on it.

Step 2: On the left, get Device Manager clicked on.

Step 3: Disk Drives should be selected. After that, your pen drive should be selected.

Step 4: Uninstall should be clicked on after which you will have to click on OK.

Step 5: Pen Drive should be removed after which you will then get your system restarted. Your PC will be able to detect it.

2Best Tool to Recover Data from Corrupted USB Drive

There are various ways that you can use to recover data from corrupted USB pen drive. However, some are more effective than others. With the use of iMyFone AnyRecover, there is no doubt that this process will be a walk in the park.

The features of every top data recovery tool are always top-notch. Those of AnyRecover isn’t an exception. This is because they have been integrated to ensure that you aren’t limited in your data recovery process.

Key Features of AnyRecover:

Any form of lost data can be easily recovered such as accidental deletion, virus attack, lost partition, emptied recycle bin, formatted drives/devices, crashed, damaged or dead hard drives.

Over 1000 file formats are fully supported.

It is compatible with various devices. These could be hard drives, USB flash drive, SD card, digital cameras, and more.

The data recovery process is secured.

100% user-friendly interface and high recovery rate.


Using AnyRecover is very easy since it has been designed to meet the needs of everyone. The steps are simple to follow which you could refer here or check the link below: Macbook pro 1080p camera.

3Bonus: How to Avoid USB Drive Data Loss

The problem of data loss in your USB pen drive can be avoided by some strategies which will be listed below. If you can take note of these, there is no doubt that the chances of experiencing such problem will be minimal.

Inserting it into too many systems can make it prone to virus infection.

Unplugging it when it is still writing or reading.

Storing it under extreme conditions.

When the USB pen drive isn’t reliable.

Using it for updated files (frequently).

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is obvious that there are lots of ways to tackle issues which are related to USB repair. However, you need to understand that using the most effective method such as AnyRecover will make the process look like a walk in the park. This is due to how it has been designed to meet the needs of users.





Repair Corrupted Usb Drive Mac
Back to posts
This post has no comments - be the first one!

UNDER MAINTENANCE