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22 November 2021  Amanda J. Brook  Senior Product Manager
 

Summary
SanDisk is the largest supplier of flash memory cards in the world. Its SD card is a convenient and removable storage device. However, some users receive the notification saying that Windows cannot format the SD card. In this essay, we will talk about how to fix a SanDisk SD card that won’t format.



CONTENTS

editing data recoveryPart 1: Reasons of SanDisk SD Card that Won’t Format
editing data recoveryPart 2: How to Fix a SanDisk SD Card that Won’t Format?
how to fix a sandisk sd card that wont format

Part 1: Reasons of SanDisk SD Card that Won’t Format

These are the possible reasons of a SanDisk SD card that won’t format.

1. Improperly Use SD Card or Lock to Write

Usually, the SD card cannot be used because you don’t insert the SD card into the correct position or it is not completely put into the card reader. That causes the SD card control information is not completely connected to the system. The SanDisk SD card won’t be formatted when Windows does not collect the enough SD card information. Besides, the SD card cannot be read or written when the write-protected lock is on.
sd card lock to fix a sandisk sd card that wont format

2. Bad Sector on SD Card

Sector is the minimum storage unit. The damaged sectors affect data recovery and formatting. Frequent fragmentation and wrong plugging operation can cause bad sector.

3. Virus Attack

Having been connected to several computers, the SD card is easily attacked by virus. The virus-attacked SD card cannot be used normally.

4. SD Card Damage

When the SD card is physically damaged, the SD card won’t be formatted. You should change a new card under such situation.

Part 2: How to Fix a SanDisk SD Card that Won’t Format?

Before fixing a SanDisk SD card that won’t format, you should use the professional data recovery software to recover the lost data.

1. Recover Lost Data with Renee Undeleter

What is Renee Undeleter?
Renee Undeleter is the software specializing in data recovery. It can recover the deleted files, the emptied Recycle Bin and the formatted disk. The software includes 4 scan modes, Fast Partition Scan, Whole Partition Scan, Whole Disk Scan and Image Creation, which provides comprehensive solutions to data loss. Besides, its fingerprint technology and the file system rebuilding technology can skip the damaged blocks of the SD card to rebuild the file system. That can help us retrieve the lost data as much as possible.
Renee Undeleter - Powerful Data Recovery SoftwareRenee Undeleter data Recovery software

Easy to use Only simple steps to recover data from storage devices.

Multiple scan modes Fast partition scan, whole partition scan and whole disk scan for different recovery needs.

File types Support to recover pictures, videos, audios, documents, mails, etc.

Supported storage devices Recover data from recycle bin, SD card, external disk, etc.

Supported systems Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista, XP, 2000 and Mac OS X10.6, 10.7, 10.8.

Easy to use Only simple steps to recover data from storage devices.

Multiple scan modes - 3 scan modes for different recovery needs.

Supported storage devices Recover data from recycle bin, SD card, external disk, etc.

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3000 users have downloaded Renee Undeleter and found data back!

How to recover the lost SD card data with Renee Undeleter?
It is easy to use Renee Undeleter. Here are the steps:
Step 1: Download and install Renee Undeleter. Open the software and select [Whole Partition Scan].
Note: Don’t install the software into the source disk in case that the data is overwritten, unable to be recovered.
select whole partition scan in renee undeleter to recover deleted video from sd card
Functions of different recovery modes:

• Fast partition scan – Recover the files after emptying Recycle Bin or deleted by mistake without data backup.

• Whole partition scan – Scan the whole partition and list all files, especially for the formatted partition or inaccessible issue.

• Whole disk scan – Scan entire disk to find out all partitions’ information and simulate the partition table.

• Image creation – Create a partition image which can be used in case that reading partition is slow or need a backup.

Step 2: Next, select the SD card and click on [Next] to go on.
Renee Undeleter Whole Partition Scan
Step 3: Wait for the scan and then select the target files to recover. Click on [Recover].
Note: Please save the recovered files into the folders in case that the original disk is overwritten.
preview and select the files to recover in renee undeleter
Step 4: Select the destination to save the files that are to be recovered. Finally, click on [Recover] to recover the files.
Note: Don’t save the recovered files in the original SD card. Otherwise, the files may cover the original data in the SD card. If you cannot recover the data in this easy, try [Whole Disk Scan] for the further scan.
recover files from whole disk scan with renee undeleter

2. Remove SD Card Read-only Protection

If the SD card is still under the read-only protection but the write-protected lock is off, you can remove the read-only protection in this way.
Steps:
Step 1: Press the keys [Win +R] to open the Run window. Seach [diskpart] and press the Enter key to open the following program.
type diskpart to run
Step 2: In the diskpart window, type the commands one by one, and then press the Enter key after typing each command. When all the commands are finished, you can try to reformat the SD card.
list disk
select disk n: n is the SD card letter. You can identify the target according to the size values.
attributes disk clear readonly: It is used to remove the read-only protection from the SD card.
how to fix a sandisk sd card that wont format

3. Format SD Card in Disk Management

You can fix a SanDisk SD card that won’t format in Windows Disk Management. Here are the steps:
Step 1: Insert the SD card into the card reader and then connect the reader to the computer. Press the [Win + X] keys and then select [Disk Management].
open windows disk management
Step 2: Next, select the target SD card and right click at it. Select [Format].
right click to select format sd card in disk management
Step 3: Select a suitable file system. FAT32 is used for the SD card up to 32 GB, and exFAT is for the card over 32 GB.
select file system in sd card formatting if sd card is unexpectedly removed