If you are on this page most likely you have a problem with your USB key or SD card or any other storage disk that once connected to your computer does not work and a message like “ the disk must be formatted to be used “ appears . The problem is that in the disk / stick / SD there is a lot of important data and therefore before formatting you would like to understand if there is any alternative solution.
Another very strange thing that you may have noticed is that after connecting the disk to the PC, by accessing the properties you see Free Space 0 bytes and used 0 bytes , as if the disk did not contain any data. Absurd, right?
It is really nonsense, but this problem happens very often! Before understanding what are the possible solutions and also saving the data on the disk, let’s see what the causes of the problem are.
Why does the disk show 0 bytes?
Here are the main causes behind the problem:
- The USB disk or SD card was removed improperly or during the data transfer process.
- A partition on the disk is damaged
- The USB drive is infected with virus or the MBRis corrupt
- The USB drive has some bad sectors.
- Suddenor unexpected interruption while writing data to disk.
- There are some files which are set as hidden
- Simultaneously connecting multiple USB drives to your computer or connecting via a non-working USB cable.
- The file system of the USB partition becomes RAWand cannot be recognized by Windows.
How to solve the “Disk with 0 bytes” problem?
After understanding why the disc is no longer readable and 0 BYTE appears in the properties, let’s see how it can be solved. Before proceeding it is advisable to try to reinstall the disk (if it is USB) as follows:
(1) Connect it to the computer.
(2) Right click on “ My Computer ” -> “ Device Manager ” -> “ Manage ” -> “ USB Controller ” -> “ USB Mass Storage ” -> “ Uninstall “.
(3) Remove and reinsert the USB disk to redo its installation
Access the disk properties again and see if there is still 0 bytes free space and 0 bytes used . If the problem persists try these solutions described below.
Solution 1. Disconnect other USB devices
If other USB devices are connected to the computer, there may be an overload problem that is causing the problem. So try unplugging these USB disks and then plugging in the one you need. Finally, check if the problem still exists or not.
Solution 2. Repair disk MBR
A corrupted master boot record ( MBR ) is one of the main causes of the 0 byte (unreadable) disk problem. In that case, you can repair the MBR using a professional program called Partition Assistant . Here’s how it works.
Step 1 . Download and install Partition Assistant on your Windows PC
Step 2 . From the main program screen, right click on the disk with the 0 BYTE problem and then select the “Rebuild MBR” option.
Step 3 . In the next window select an MBR type suitable for your operating system:
Step 4 . Return to the initial screen of the program and click on ” APPLY ” at the top to proceed with the repair of the disk MBR.
Solution 3. Format disk with 0 Bytes without data loss
If the 0-byte disk problem is not resolved then it is advisable to proceed with formatting the drive. However, to avoid data loss caused by the format operation, you can first recover them by using a data recovery software like Data Recovery and then move them to another safe location.
After recovering the data you can use Partition Assistant for formatting the disk. Here are the steps to follow:
Step 1 . Start the program, right click on the disk to be formatted and then click on “Format Partitio
Step 2 . Select the desired file system and click OK to proceed.
Step 3 . Return to the Partition Assistant home screen and click on “ APPLY ” to proceed.
Solution 4. Repair file system errors
If the USB disk shows 0 bytes due to some file system errors, you can fix them with below steps.
- A)Open “Explorer” and right click on the USB drive, then select ” Properties“
- B)In the window that opens go to the “Tools” tab and click on “ Check now“.
- C)A new window will open where you will have to select both options: “ Automatically fix file system errors” and “ Search and attempt recovery of bad sectors “. Finally click on “Start”.
- D)After the scan is complete, any file system errors will be automatically repaired.
Solution 5. Repair bad sectors on the disk
To repair possible bad sectors on the USB drive, you can use the CHKDSK.exe tool in the command prompt window.
- A)Open the Windows command prompt (search “cmd” in the Windows search box)
- B)Enter the command chkdsk g: / f / r / x (if the disk to be repaired is G 🙂 to proceed with the repair.
