Damaged SD card how to repair it and recover data. One of the benefits of using Android smartphones is the ability to add additional storage by inserting a micro SD card.
If your phone suddenly displays a message like “The SD card is damaged or tells you what the SD is "Write protected", it could be damaged.
If this happens to you, don't panic. There are a few things you can try to do to fix a damaged SD card.
Damaged SD card how to do
Use Windows to repair your SD card
- Turn off the phone and take out the microSD card.
- Insert the SD card into your computer.
- Open file explorer. If you see your card on the left side of the window, right click on it.
- Select properties and then tools.
- Click on the error check. The tool checks the SD card for errors and repairs them.
If your computer doesn't recognize your card, try changing the drive letter.
- Press and hold the Win key and press X.
- Open computer management.
- Select memory.
- If the disc is present, right-click and select "Change Drive Letter and Paths"
- It will open a new window. Click on Add.
- Assign a drive letter to the MicroSD card that the computer is not already using.
Once the letter is assigned, the memory card should be visible in your file explorer. Fix it using the method explained earlier.
Once the card is repaired, check that all data is still available.
Reformat your SD card
If you are unable to recover the information from the SD card after repairing it, the next step is to try to reformat the card.
- If not already present, remove the SD card from the Android device and connect it to a PC.
- In Computer or My Computer, locate and right click on the SD card.
- Select Format.
- Click Format.
Recover data from formatted card
After formatting the SD card, you may think that your files have been deleted. While it's true you probably can't see them in the file explorer, it's likely they're still there.
To access it, you can use tools such as or.
Each of these programs has a free download which should allow you to recover those lost files. However, the recovery is faster and requires fewer steps if you purchase a full version.
Tips to avoid this problem
Of course, it would be better if you didn't have to go through all of this. While nothing is guaranteed, following some of these tips could prevent your cards from getting damaged.
- Format your SD cards right away and reformat them after importing your photos or other information.
- Use some smaller capacity memory cards instead of a larger one.
- Be sure to safely unmount or eject the memory card when removing it.
- Do not use it on more than one device. They may have different formatting requirements.
- Regularly scan your card for malware.
A damaged SD card does not mean that you have lost everything. If this happens to you, try these solutions. They may allow you to repair yours microSD o SD and recover your data within it.
