How to Repair a USB Stick? (4 Methods)

It could happen to have an USB Flash Drive that don’t work at all. Keep it, that unusable USB could help you more than you think. Be sure that the hardware part of it is undamaged and after this try to format it, to make it usable.

1st Method: Repair the USB Flash Drive damage

Step 1. Make sure your data is insignificant enough to peril a DIY test at files recovery. You will need to search an USB Flash Drive data recovery society, if you think that your data files are too significant to put them in danger.

• All societies have an excellent technical equipment,  made to fix the electric circuits. The most evolved societies use equipments that can remove the NAND memory chip from the electric circuit, than to remove and unscuffle raw files from USB Flash Drive.
• The costs of files recovery may have a fluctuation between $20-$900, depending on the damage of your flash drive and the kind of recovery chosen.
• But some of recovery society, give you different solutions for your exterior/interior damage, which will cost you under $200.

 Step 2. Obtain the following. When you make sure that you may risk your data, assure you have checked all items from the next list:

• USB Flash Drive cable
• Magnifier
• Soldering iron
• Mini screwdriver
• Wire cutter
• You will follow this
• Note: You will follow this treads just if the connector of your USB is damaged.

Step 3. Repair the USB Flash Drive with your screwdriver, by moving away the casing of it.

Step 4. Examine the electronic circuit (PCB) and solder pads with your magnifier.

In the case that the PCB or the solder pads are deteriorated, you will need to call a service.

• Note: In the case that the connector is broken but PCB  or solder pads are not damaged, follow the Step 5.

Step 5. Put the USB Flash Drive on a solid area together with the connector end oriented to you and with the solder pads oriented up.

Step 6. Cut off the end of your USB Flash Drive cable, with your wire cutter. If you have male-to-female, then cut the female’s end.

Step 7. Utilize the wire cutter to get something about 0.25 inch (0.6 cm) for each 4 wires from the cable.

Step 8. You need to solder each wire to the 4 solder pads. Keep an evidence of the colours, from left to right: Black, Green, White and Red. This is the order you should attach them.

• Don’t change the order or your USB Flash Drive including your data will be permanently lost.

Step 9. Pug in your “new” USB in your laptop/computer and let the magic begin.

• If the files appear, everything worked just fine!  Save all of them in your computer.
• If your files don’t appear, don’t get panic. There is still a big chance to recover them. It may be a different hardware problem, impossible to be seen by the naked eye. Go to a professional society, or you may use your USB as an adornment in your Christmas Tree to remind you that every time you should back up your significant data.

 

2nd Method: Repair the USB by scanning for the problems (Windows)

Step 1. Plug in the USB Flash Drive into your PC

Step 2. Right Click on your USB Flash Drive icon from you My Computer folder. Open Properties.

Step 3. Hit Tools option.

 

Step 4. Choose Check Now option.

Step 5. After you check both  “Automatically fix file system errors” and “Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors”, click Start.

Step 6. The scan will start. Wait several moments. Select Close after the process ends.

 

3rd Method: Repair the USB by doing a double formatting of it

Step 1. Right click on USB Flash Drive. Choose Format. Select NTFS file system. Click Start button.

Step 2. Repeat the Step 1, but instead of NTFS, select FAT32 file system.

 

4rd Method: Test the port of the USB

Step 1. Not the USB Flash drive doesn’t work properly all the time. The USB port from you PC may not work correctly.

Step 2. Unplug the USB Flash Drive. Restart the PC. Plug in the USB and check if it works. If yes, great! If not, go to the Step 3.

 Step 3. Plug in the USB to other computer. If it works, it means that you have a physical issue with the USB port from the first computer.

• If you have another port on your (first) computer, try it. It may be possible that only the first port may have an issue, and the other(s)  to work properly.