How to Reset a USB Drive on Windows and Mac

If your USB isn’t working or is not storing data properly, it’s possible that your file system and partition tables are corrupt. This problem is easily resolved by resetting your USB drive.

Resetting your USB drive will revert the bootable USB to its default state. To reset your USB, you need to use native utilities like Disk Management (Windows) and Disk Utility (Mac).

But as complicated as it may sound, it’s very easy to perform the task. Here’s our step-by-step guide on how to reset a USB drive on Windows/Mac.

How to Reset a USB Drive on Windows

The easiest way to reset a USB Drive on Windows is with file explorer. But if that doesn’t work or if you want an alternative method, you can use Disk Management or CMD.

Format via File Explorer

1. Press Windows + E to launch Windows Explorer.
2. From the left pane, right-click your USB drive and press Format.
   
3. Optional: Uncheck Quick Format to do a Full format instead. This scans for bad sectors but takes a lot longer to complete.
4. Select the File System and Press OK.
   

Format via Disk Management

1. Press Windows + R to launch Run.
2. Type diskmgmt.msc to open Disk Management.
3. Right-click your USB drive and press Format.
   
4. Optional: Uncheck Perform a Quick Format to do a Full format instead. This scans for bad sectors but takes a lot longer to complete.
5. Select the file system and Press OK.
   

Use diskpart Command in CMD

1. Press Windows + R to launch Run.
2. Type and Enter cmd to launch Command Prompt.
3. Then, Type diskpart and press Enter. Accept the prompt as well.
4. Type and Enter list disk.
5. Check the Size section, then note your USB’s Disk #. Replace # with your USB’s disk number in the next step.
   Make sure you get this right as you could easily format the wrong drive.
6. Type select Disk # and press Enter.
7. Now, type the following commands and press Enter after each one. Change fat32 to your preferred file system if necessary.
   clean 
create partition primary
format fs=fat32 quick
   
8. Once you receive the completion message, type assign letter = k and press Enter. You can replace k with something else if you want to change the drive letter.
9. Finally, type exit and press Enter.

How to Reset a USB Drive on Mac

USB drives on mac can be reset using a GUI approach and also via the terminal. Sometimes, due to permission or file system issues, we cannot perform the task using the GUI approach.

Here is how you can reset a USB disk on Mac using both approaches.

Disk Utility

1. Press Command + Shift + U to open the Utilities folder.
2. Launch Disk Utility.
3. Select the USB storage device from the left pane.
4. Now, Press the Erase button at the top.
5. Set the Drive’s Name.
6. Select GUID Partition Map as the scheme.
7. Choose the preferred file system from the drop-down menu for Format.
8. Click on Erase.
   

Reset via Terminal

We recommend resetting your USB Drive via the Disk Utility if possible. If you mess up in the terminal, you can easily format the wrong drive and lose valuable data.

Method 1

1. Press Command + Shift + U to open the Utilities Folder.
2. Open the Terminal.
3. Type diskutil list and press Enter.
4. Note your USB’s Mount Point. Replace /dev/disk1 with your USB’s Mount Point in the steps below.
   
5. Type diskutil unmountDisk /dev/disk1 and press Enter.
6. Type sudo fdisk -iy /dev/disk1 and press Enter.
   

Method 2

1. Press Command + Space to open Spotlight search.
2. Type terminal and press Enter.
3. In the terminal, type diskutil list and press Enter to list all the connected drives to your Mac.
4. Note your USB’s Mount Point. Replace /dev/disk1 with your USB’s Mount Point in the next step.
5. Type sudo diskutil eraseDisk FAT32 MBRFormat /dev/disk1 and press Enter. This will format your USB Drive to the FAT32 file system.
   

File Systems

On Windows

1. FAT32
   • Compatible with almost all devices
   • 32GB Partition and 4GB single file limit
2. NTFS
   • Fast and virtually no size limits
   • Generally only compatible with Windows
3. exFAT
   •  Best of both worlds with good compatibility and no size restrictions

On Mac

1. APFS 
   •  Fast, reliable, and packed with more features
   • Terrible compatibility with older devices
2. MacOS Extended (HFS+)
   • Default file system on older macs that’s decent for all purposes

Frequently Asked Questions

Why Is the USB Drive Not Showing Up on My PC?

The main reasons this happens are outdated OS and drivers, damaged ports, or problems with partitions.

Check out our article on how to fix USB Drive not showing up.

How to Fix a Corrupt/Damaged USB?

If the damage is physical, the only option is to take it to a repair center. Even then, it may not be salvageable.

If only the software is corrupt, that can be fixed by performing a full format and using the CHKDSK tool, though.

Windows Was Unable to Complete the Format. How to Fix?

Users can encounter this error because of file system errors, write-protected locks, bad sectors in the disk, or even physical damage in some cases.

Check out our articles on how to fix Windows was unable to complete the format.

How to Recover Data After Formatting USB Drive?

The best solution is to use a backup of your drive to recover your files. In case you don’t have a backup, you can instead use third-party recovery software. EaseUS, Recuva, and PhotoRec are some popular ones available right now.

How to Fix Directory Invalid Windows Cannot Find This Disk Error?

This error mostly happens if the port you’ve connected your USB to is malfunctioning/dead. Connect the USB Drive to a different port to fix this issue.

Additionally, update your Disk Drivers and use the CHKDSK tool to scan and repair your drive in case the error is caused by a software issue.

Do I Really Need to Safely Eject My USB?

Every time you remove your USB without safely ejecting it, there’s a small possibility of corrupting your USB. Although this may seem trivial, we recommend safely ejecting your USB before removing it as a good practice.