Top 3 Ways to Remove Write Protection From USB Drives and SD Cards on Windows 11

You can solely view and copy recordsdata when your USB gadget or SD card has write safety enabled. As a consequence, should you strive to write or delete recordsdata on the storage gadget, Windows will present an error message stating, ‘The disk is write protected.’ Fortunately, Windows 11 makes eradicating write safety out of your USB drive or SD card simple.

Such restrictions wouldn’t maintain you from formatting your storage gadget or modifying its content material. Below, we share three simple strategies for disabling write safety in your USB drive and SD card on Windows 11. So, let’s have a look.

1. How to Remove Write Protection Using the Physical Switch on Your Device

Select USB drives and SD playing cards embody a bodily change that permits you to rapidly toggle the read-only. This gives a handy manner to allow or disable write safety in your storage gadget.

If your USB drive or SD card has a bodily change for write safety, set it to the unlocked or off place. However, in case your gadget lacks such a change, you should use the DiskHalf command or the Registry Editor to take away write safety.

2. How to Remove Write Protection With the DiskHalf Command

DiskHalf is a helpful command-line utility that permits you to handle your inner and exterior storage gadgets. With Diskpart, you’ll be able to carry out a number of superior disk administration duties unavailable within the Disk Management utility. This contains the power to take away write safety out of your storage gadget.

Step 1: Right-click on the Start icon and choose Terminal (Admin) from the Power User menu.

Step 2: Select Yes when the User Account Control (UAC) immediate seems.

Step 3: In the console, sort the next command and hit Enter to entry the DiskHalf utility.

diskpart

Step 4: Type the next command and press Enter to view an inventory of storage gadgets on your PC.

listing disk

Step 5: Note the disk quantity related to the storage gadget you need to take away write safety. Then, sort the next command and press Enter to choose it.

Select disk N

Replace N within the above command with the precise quantity related to the disk.

Step 6: Paste the next command and press Enter to take away write safety for the chosen gadget:

attributes disk clear readonly

(*3*)

You will see the ‘Disk attributes cleared successfully’ message as soon as the method is full. To confirm, you’ll be able to run the next command and test the Read-only attribute in your drive.

attributes disk

If you need to allow write safety in your USB drive or SD card, repeat the above steps and enter this command as a substitute:

attributes disk set readonly

3. How to Remove Write Protection through the Registry Editor

If you are feeling adventurous, you’ll be able to take away write safety in your storage gadgets through the Registry Editor. Unlike DiskHalf, this technique permits you to disable write safety for all of the detachable storage gadgets on your PC in a single go.

Making incorrect adjustments to the registry recordsdata could make your pc inoperable. Hence, following the steps fastidiously and again up all of the registry recordsdata beforehand is necessary. Alternatively, you too can create a system restore level.

After you’ve finished that, use these steps to take away write safety through the Registry Editor.

Step 1: Press the Windows + R keyboard shortcut to open the Run dialog field. Type regedit within the field and press Enter.

Step 2: When the User Account Control (UAC) immediate seems, choose Yes to proceed.

Step 3: Paste the next path within the deal with bar on the high and press Enter.

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControl

Step 4: Right-click on the Control key, go to New, and choose Key from the submenu. Name it StorageDeviceInsurance policies.

Step 5: Right-click on the StorageDeviceInsurance policies key, go to New, and choose DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name it WriteDefend.

(*11*)

Step 6: Double-click the newly created DWORD and enter 0 within the Value information subject. Then, click on OK.

Restart your PC after this for the adjustments to take impact. To re-enable write safety in your storage gadgets, repeat the above steps and set the WriteDefend DWORD to 1.

No More Restrictions

One of the above options will assist take away write safety out of your USB drive or SD card, permitting you to use it once more. However, if the above strategies show ineffective, there could also be a difficulty together with your storage gadget. In that case, you will have to change it.