I put in a memorex 16gb flash drive and it made RAW.

Aiden Allen 0 Reputation points
2026-10-02T16:36:48.3066667+00:00

How can file system: RAW crash your computer. what can cause RAW: Improper Ejection: Unplugging an external hard drive, USB, or SD card while it was actively writing data, Power Outages: A system shutdown or power loss during a critical disk write or system update, File Corruption: Damage to the Master File Table (MFT) or partition table caused by bad sectors or malware, Foreign Formats: Moving a drive formatted on a different operating system (like Mac's APFS or Linux's ext4) that Windows cannot natively read.

Windows for home | Other | Devices and drivers
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  1. Hendrix-V 19,485 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2026-10-03T00:13:58.8666667+00:00

    Hi Aiden Allen,

    A drive showing as RAW usually means Windows can no longer recognize the file system on the device, which can happen if the file system information becomes corrupted or unreadable.

    If the files on the flash drive are important, I would recommend checking whether the drive is detected consistently in Disk Management and testing it on another computer. This can help determine whether the issue is related to the drive itself or how the current system is reading it.

    If the drive is recognized but still appears as RAW and you need to recover data, avoid formatting the drive for now, as that could make recovery more difficult.

    If the flash drive does not contain important data, you can try:

    1. Open Disk Management.
    2. Locate the USB drive.
    3. If it is shown as RAW, right-click the partition and select Format.
    4. Choose exFAT or NTFS and complete the format.

    If the drive continues to return to RAW status after formatting, that may indicate the flash drive itself is no longer functioning reliably and may need to be replaced.

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  2. AI answer

    2026-10-02T16:37:13.74+00:00

    RAW is not a file system that crashes Windows. In Windows, RAW means the volume does not currently have a recognized file system, or the file system metadata is damaged enough that Windows cannot identify it as NTFS, ReFS, FAT32, or exFAT.

    Supported causes from the documentation include:

    1. Windows does not recognize the file system
      • If media uses a valid but unrecognized file system, earlier or unsupported Windows versions can identify it as RAW.
      • This can happen with storage formatted by technologies or file systems whose drivers are not installed.
    2. File system or metadata corruption
      • A volume can unexpectedly become RAW when the file system is corrupted or metadata is corrupted.
      • Documented causes include improper shutdowns or storage disconnects, physical disk or controller hardware failure, and partition table or volume boundary errors.
    3. Backup or restore failure on certain storage devices
      • For persistent memory and NVDIMM-N devices, a backup or restore failure can cause the device to appear as a brand new disk without a partition or file system and surface as RAW.

    For a USB flash drive that suddenly shows as RAW, the practical checks supported by the documentation are:

    1. Do not format it if files need to be recovered
      • Formatting erases data.
    2. Try basic hardware checks
      • Unplug and reconnect the external disk.
      • In Disk Management, select Action > Rescan Disks.
      • Try a different USB port directly on the PC, not a hub.
      • Try a different cable if applicable.
      • Try the drive on another computer.
    3. Check the file system type
      • In File Explorer, right-click the drive and select Properties.
      • For recovery decisions, Windows File Recovery notes that non-NTFS file systems are only supported by Extensive mode.
    4. If the volume was NTFS and corruption is suspected
      • Back up the affected volume first if possible.
      • Run:
         chkdsk /f <Drive>:
   chkdsk /r <Drive>:
      • chkdsk /r can take longer because it checks for bad sectors.
    5. If the disk is empty and recovery is not needed
      • In Disk Management, if the partition is listed as RAW, it can be formatted.
      • Warning: formatting erases all data.

    The listed causes such as improper ejection, power loss during writes, corruption, and unsupported foreign file systems are consistent with the documented patterns, especially storage disconnects, improper shutdowns, corruption, and unrecognized file systems.

    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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