- Now you can open Windows Explorer to check if the USB drive is restored to full capacity. Solution 2: Restore USB drive back to full capacity with free partition manager. This solution will repartition the USB drive into one partition using free partition management software PartitionGuru Free. The partition process is simple and fast.
- If your USB flash drive has less capacity for unknown reason and you just want to restore USB drive back to full capacity, you can use the Space Analyzer feature. If you want to restore USB flash drive to original state, you can delete the partition, format the partition, or even wipe the partition to complete this job.
Fix and restore external hard drive which shows only 32GB to full capacity. As we've mentioned in the above paragraphs, the reasons why external hard drive, hard drive or USB with huge capacity becomes only 32GB available are varied. So the ways to fix this issue and restore full capacity to the storage device are also multiple.
Overview of USB flash drive not showing the full capacity
Partition external hard drive mac sierra. Sometimes, users may find that their USB flash drive is not showing full capacity. For example, you have a 16 GB USB flash drive, but Windows shows only 3 GB. The same issue can happen to other storage devices like hard drives, pen drive, memory card, Micro SD card, etc. When you happen to come across such a problem, how can you reclaim the lost space and restore USB flash drive back to full capacity or original size? Don't worry, even you have no reliable solution. After introducing how to restore the SD card back to full capacity in the last article, here on this page, we will continue discussing the reasons and fixes for USB flash drive not showing the full capacity issue.
Why USB flash disk showing wrong capacity
When your USB flash drives or other removable disks are not showing the original size, you may wonder how it happens or where the lost capacity disappears. Generally speaking, there are various reasons that will mistakenly display the actual disk space of a flash drive or an external disk. For example:
- It's made to be a bootable USB disk with a portable Windows operating system on it.
- The flash drive has more than one partition on it. Windows will only recognize the first partition.
- There is a hidden recovery partition or unallocated space that does not show up in the PC.
- The 64GB or 128GB USB flash drive is formatted with an improper file system (FAT32) in Windows.
- Some viruses did damage to the removable disk or the card reader/host devices are not well suited for some types of memory cards.
How to restore USB drive back to full capacity
According to the mentioned causes that will possibly result in a USB drive losing some disk space, the solutions to restore the USB drive back to full capacity should vary on different operating systems. Here in the following, you'll learn a full guide to get back USB flash drive's full storage size on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
On Windows 10/8/7:
To restore USB drive, pen drive or flash drive back to full capacity, you can use a third-party USB format tool to reformat the flash drive. EaseUS Partition Master allows you to format the USB flash drive, hard drives, pen drive, memory card, Micro SD card and recover the lost disk space or unallocated space when disk shows the wrong capacity in Windows.
- Warning
- Formatting will erase all the data, please make sure that you have made a backup before trying to restore USB drive, pen drive or flash drive back to full capacity.
To restore USB drive, pen drive or flash drive back to full capacity, follow these steps:
Step 1: Select the USB drive to format.
Connect the USB drive or pen drive to your computer. Download and launch EaseUS partition software. Right-click the USB drive you intend to format and choose 'Format'.
Step 2: Set the drive letter and file system.
https://bestefil144.weebly.com/things-3-windows-download.html. Assign a new partition label, file system (NTFS/FAT32/EXT2/EXT3), and cluster size to the selected partition, then click 'OK'. Step up revolution 123 movies.
Step 3: Check the warning box.
Click 'OK' if you see the Warning window. If you have important data on it, back up the data in advance. Paint expert 2 1.
Step 4: Apply the changes.
Click the 'Execute operation' button first, and then click 'Apply' to format the USB drive.
On Mac OS X & macOS:
Step 1. Connect the wrong-size USB flash drive to your Mac.
Step 2. Go to Applications > Utilities > Double click and open Disk Utility.
Step 3. Select your USB flash drive on the sidebar, choose Erase.
Step 4. Rename the USB flash drive, choose the format as MS-DOS (FAT) for Format, Master Boot Record for Scheme. Then click Erase.
On Linux:
Step 1. Delete all partitions
- Open a terminal and type sudo su.
- Type fdisk -l and note your USB drive letter.
- Type fdisk /dev/sdx (replacing x with your drive letter).
- Type d to proceed to delete a partition.
- Type 1 to select the 1st partition and press enter.
- Type d to proceed to delete another partition (fdisk should automatically select the second partition).
Step 2. Create a new partition
- Type n to make a new partition.
- Type p to make this partition primary and press enter.
- Type 1 to make this the first partition and then press enter.
- Press enter to accept the default first cylinder.
- Press enter again to accept the default last cylinder.
- Type w to write the new partition information to the USB disk.
- Type mkfs.vfat -F 32 /dev/sdx1 (replacing x with your USB key drive letter).
What else can help restore a USB flash disk back to full capacity?
Deleting all partitions on the USB drive and reformatting should be the most effective ways to regain the USB drive's full capacity. Nonetheless, they are not the unique troubleshooting for all cases of the USB drive showing the wrong capacity.
As some bad sectors or corruption issues will also cause the flash drive, memory card or external hard drive not showing its original size, it might help to fix corrupted USB flash drive using CMD.
If you don't have any technical know-how and want to minimize data risks, using third-party software could be a better choice. The Command line is suitable for computer professionals since wrong commands can cause severe problems. Therefore, we strongly recommend you try an automatic command line alternative.
EaseUS Tools M is a practical computer fixing tool that is safe and light-weighted. It's a perfect alternative to CHKDSK command. Use this one-click tool to solve your computer issues.
To fix file system error or disk error:
Step 1: DOWNLOAD EaseUS Tools M for Free and install it.
Step 2: Open the software and select the 'File showing' option.
Step 3: Choose the drive and wait for repairing. After the operation completes, click the 'View' button to check the drive.
Backing up your Mac is simple and important. We recommend it for everyone.
Back up with Time Machine
How To Restore A Usb Flash Drive
Time Machine is the built-in backup feature of your Mac. It's a complete backup solution, but you can use other backup methods as well.
Create a backupHow To Restore A Flash Drive
Store files in iCloud
You can also use iCloud and iCloud Drive to store files, such as your photos, documents, and music.
Set up iCloud and iCloud DriveRestore your Mac from a backup
When you have a backup, you can use it to restore your files at any time, including after the original files are deleted from your Mac.
Restore from a backupPrepare your Mac for service
Making a backup is an important part of preparing your Mac for service, especially because some types of repair might require erasing or replacing your hard drive. My camera is not working mac.
Get your Mac ready for serviceRestore Thumb Drive Capacity
How much space do I need for a backup?
To see the size of a specific file or folder, click it once and then press Command-I. To see storage information about your Mac, click the Apple menu in the top-left of your screen. Choose About This Mac and click the Storage tab. For Time Machine backups, it's good to use a drive that has at least twice the storage capacity of your Mac.
Related topics
Free up storage on your Mac
macOS can save space by storing your content in the cloud. Monoprice 3d printer software. This isn't a backup, but it includes new tools to make it easier to find and remove large or unwanted files before you make a backup.
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You can use Disk Utility if you need to erase or format a storage device.
Learn how to use Disk UtilitymacOS Community
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