[rayman79]

i have a 2tb external hard drive which has become write protected. i never changed any setting, i dont want to lose data stored on it, is there any way to turn it off?

thanks in advance to anyone for assistance

[Advertisements]

Hello rayman79

How much free storage space was/is available on the drive.

What is the brand and model name or number of the drive please.

[phillpower2]

Hello rayman79

How much free storage space was/is available on the drive.

What is the brand and model name or number of the drive please.

[rayman79]

thanks, its a WD not sure of model but WDBAAU0020HBK?? it says theres 1.44 TB free

[phillpower2]

It appears that this is a common problem

Please see the suggestion offered by Joe_S Here

[rayman79]

thanks, how do i know all divers have been deleted? i'm a comp tech novice(at best)

[phillpower2]

I have a feeling that divers should actually read as drivers

Another suggestion that I have read is to disable write caching on the USB HDD in device manager, before you do the following let us know if there is data on the drive that you would like to try and secure first - if it can be accessed that is.

You can choose in the disk properties for optimize for quick removal or optimize for performance.
Select optimize for quick removal.
Backup the files and try reformatting it with NTFS with the disk manager of your operating system.

[rayman79]

yeah i have data that i want to save, i will buy another usb HDD and then try reformatting

thanks

[phillpower2]

Has the "write protect" been disabled, if not did you try the following;
Go into the Device Manager, right click on the external USB HDD device, select "uninstall drivers", close Device Manager, disconnect the external HDD, restart the computer, connect the USB HDD and see if "write protect" is disabled, if this works use the Puppy guide below to back up your data.

Removing the HDD from the housing and trying a USB adapter such as the example here is worth a try but only if you can borrow one.

===================
***Required Hardware***
CD Burner (CDRW) Drive,
Blank CD,
Extra Storage Device (USB Flash Drive, External Hard Drive)
===================

1. Save these files to your Desktop/Burn Your Live CD:

• Download Latest Puppy Linux ISO (i.e.: lupu-528.iso)
  Download BurnCDCC ISO Burning Software
  
  There are instructions on how to boot from flash drive with puppy here; http://www.pendrivel...e-from-windows/
  
  
• Open BurnCDCC with Windows Explorer
• Extract All files to a location you can remember
• Double Click BurnCDCC
• Click Browse and navigate to the Puppy Linux ISO file you just downloaded
• Open/Double Click that file
  IMPORTANT: Adjust the speed bar to CD: 4x DVD: 1x
• Click Start
• Your CD Burner Tray will open automatically
• Insert a blank CD and close the tray
• Click OK

Puppy Linux Live CD will now be created
2. Set your boot priority in the BIOS to CD-ROM first, Hard Drive Second

• Start the computer/press the power button
• Immediately start tapping the appropriate key to enter the BIOS, aka "Setup"
  (Usually shown during the "Dell" screen, or "Gateway" Screen)
• Once in the BIOS, under Advanced BIOS Options change boot priority to:
  CD-ROM 1st, Hard Drive 2nd
• Open your ROM drive and insert the disk
• Press F10 to save and exit
• Agree with "Y" to continue
• Your computer will restart and boot from the Puppy Linux Live CD
  
  

3. Recover Your Data

• Once Puppy Linux has loaded, it is actually running in your computer's Memory (RAM). You will see a fully functioning Graphical User Interface similar to what you normally call "your computer". Internet access may or may not be available depending on your machine, so it is recommended you print these instructions before beginning. Also, double clicking is not needed in Puppy. To expand, or open folders/icons, just click once. Puppy is very light on resources, so you will quickly notice it is much speedier than you are used to. This is normal. Ready? Let's get started.
  
  3a. Mount Drives
• Click the Mount Icon located at the top left of your desktop.
• A Window will open. By default, the "drive" tab will be forward/highlighted. Click on Mount for your hard drive.
• Assuming you only have one hard drive and/or partition, there may be only one selection to mount.
• USB Flash Drives usually automatically mount upon boot, but click the "usbdrv" tab and make sure it is mounted.
• If using an external hard drive for the data recovery, do this under the "drive" tab. Mount it now.

3b. Transfer Files.

• At the bottom left of your desktop a list of all hard drives/partitions, USB Drives, and Optical Drives are listed with a familiar looking hard drive icon.
• Open your old hard drive i.e. sda1
• Next, open your USB Flash Drive or External Drive. i.e. sdc or sdb1
• If you open the wrong drive, simply X out at the top right corner of the window that opens. (Just like in Windows)
• From your old hard drive, drag and drop whatever files/folders you wish to transfer to your USB Drive's Window.

For The Novice: The common path to your pictures, music, video, and documents folders is: Documents and Settings >> All Users (or each idividual name of each user. CHECK All Names!) >> Documents >> You will now see My Music, My Pictures, and My Videos.

Remember to only click once! No double clicking! Once you drag and drop your first folder, you will notice a small menu will appear giving you the option to move or copy. Choose COPY each time you drag and drop.

YOU ARE DONE!!! Simply click Menu >> Mouse Over Shutdown >> Reboot/Turn Off Computer. Be sure to plug your USB Drive into another working windows machine to verify all data is there and transferred without corruption. Congratulations!