Usb Stick Drive All Disk Utility Options Grey-ed Out.

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Usb Stick Drive All Disk Utility Options Grey-ed Out.

Hi everyone,

Thank you for anyhelp you can provide!

I have a 32gb Usb 2.0 Stick Drive that is stuck on read-only. It is invisible and only appears in Disk Utility. However all disk utility options are greyed out, I can't erase, repair, partition nothing!

I've tried verifying/repairing/erasing in disk utility in recovery mode/drive as well.

I've tried using terminal commands to force an erase/partition, but they seem to fail/make no difference.

I've even cleaned the usb connectors with watered down iso-propyl alcohol!

Its flipping anoying because this was a impulse purchase, and was a bloody overpriced and remarkably slow Lacie mini key.

Screenshots below, any help would be really appreciated and if its an actual hardware failure can anyone recommend a replacement?

cheers!

OS X Mavericks (10.9.2)

Posted on Feb 27, 2014 12:11 PM

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Answer 1

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C F McBlob

Level 4

2,885 points

Feb 27, 2014 12:35 PM in response to chrisgreen89

Second screenshot...

You should be selecting the 32.35GB Media, NOT the disk2s2.

THEN you should see Erase options.

Do you have access to a PC?

If so I have a USB format tool that will do a deep format (FAT or NTFS) on the PC, but you should be able to then use Disk Utility to format it in HFSExtended

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Answer 2

chrisgreen89 Author

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Feb 27, 2014 3:03 PM in response to C F McBlob

All the buttons are greyed out in all menus under 32.35gb and disk2s2. I put both screen shots to try and show that haha! but never mind.

I don't have a PC but I can find one somewhere no doubt, do I just need to plug in the stick drive into the windows machine and run your format tool?

Cheers

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Answer 3

C F McBlob

Level 4

2,885 points

Feb 27, 2014 8:22 PM in response to chrisgreen89

chrisgreen89 wrote:

do I just need to plug in the stick drive into the windows machine and run your format tool?

That's it. It's a tool from SanDisk. HP makes it and it can even fix (temporarily) broken Flash Drives. Unfortunately, it only comes in a Windows version.

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Answer 4

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Feb 27, 2014 10:22 PM in response to chrisgreen89

Some flash drives have a failure mode in which they are irreversibly write-locked by the internal controller when it detects a write error. If the drive doesn't have a write-lock switch (most do not) and you can't erase it in Disk Utility, that's almost certainly what has happened. To be sure, test it with another computer, if possible.

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Answer 5

chrisgreen89 Author

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Feb 28, 2014 6:47 AM in response to Linc Davis

This usb stick doesn't have a write-lock switch. I've tried it in 2 other macs and the same results appear in disk utility.

I guess my only option is to try McBlob's SanDisk tool on windows? and if not admit defeat haha

Cheers

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Answer 6

Linc Davis

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209,547 points

Feb 28, 2014 6:54 AM in response to chrisgreen89

The drive has failed.

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Answer 7

C F McBlob

Level 4

2,885 points

Feb 28, 2014 9:45 AM in response to Linc Davis

I've only ever seen one "failed" flash drive that the HP USB Format tool couldn't recover, in seven years.

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Answer 8

chrisgreen89 Author

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Mar 2, 2014 6:42 AM in response to C F McBlob

I've tried you're HP tool, I've tried it under fat32/ntfs, with quick format and without, with compression and without. It just keeps saying "Device media is write-protected"

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Answer 9

C F McBlob

Level 4

2,885 points

Mar 2, 2014 3:35 PM in response to chrisgreen89

I'd have to agree with Linc. The drive has failed. See if you can return it.

(Edit) In Windows, see if it can be cleared using the Disk Manager.

http://www.rmprepusb.com/tutorials/54---how-to-fix-write-protected-disks

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