Scan and Repair Led to It Being Corrupted
If you ran Windows “Scan and repair” on an external hard drive, USB flash drive, or SD card and the device subsequently appears corrupted, inaccessible, or RAW, the situation can be alarming. However, the data may not necessarily be gone. The most important thing is to avoid making additional changes until you determine the condition of the drive.
Stop Using the Drive
If the storage device contains important files, stop copying new data to it. Don't format the drive simply because Windows displays a message asking you to do so. Formatting can overwrite or replace filesystem information and make recovery more difficult.
Also avoid repeatedly running Windows repair utilities. A repair operation can modify filesystem structures, which may complicate recovery if the original problem involves significant corruption.
Check Whether Windows Detects It
Open Disk Management in Windows and locate the affected drive. Check its reported capacity and filesystem.
If Windows shows the correct capacity but identifies the filesystem as RAW, the problem may involve damaged filesystem metadata. If the drive shows the wrong capacity, repeatedly disconnects, or isn't detected consistently, there may also be a hardware problem.
Try another USB port, cable, card reader, or computer where appropriate. This helps rule out a connection problem.
Recover Important Files First
When the data is valuable, consider using reputable data-recovery software that can scan corrupted or RAW volumes. Recovery software may find files even when Windows cannot display the normal directory structure.
Install the recovery application on a healthy drive, not on the affected device. When files are recovered, save them to another physical drive. Never recover files directly back onto the corrupted storage device.
If the drive contains irreplaceable information and has physical symptoms such as clicking, unusual noises, overheating, or repeated disconnects, professional data recovery may be safer than continued experimentation.
Should You Run CHKDSK Again?
If Windows reports that CHKDSK is not available for a RAW drive, don't keep trying different CHKDSK commands. CHKDSK is intended for recognized filesystems, and a RAW volume may not provide the filesystem structure it needs to perform a normal repair.
If your files are already backed up, you have more options for rebuilding the filesystem or formatting the device.
After Recovery
Once your important data has been recovered, test the storage device carefully. If corruption returns, the drive may be developing hardware problems and should not be trusted for important files.
Replace an unreliable device rather than repeatedly repairing it, and maintain at least one additional backup of valuable information.
Final Thoughts
If Scan and Repair led to a drive becoming corrupted, don't immediately assume that your files have been permanently lost. Stop writing to the device, check its status in Disk Management, and prioritize data recovery if the files are important.
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