Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

The DU Lounge

DetlefK

(16,670 posts)

16. Nowadays that warning means little to nothing, because data-transfer has changed.

Reply to Orrex (Original post)

Thu Apr 27, 2017, 11:27 AM

Apr 2017

There are two ways to write data: Slow and space-efficient, or fast and space-inefficient.

Years ago, it was actually important to safe space when storing data. But nowadays data is written on USB-drives in a manner that is very fast but uses up more space than it actually needs.

Close all programs. Close the Windows Explorer. Wait 10 seconds. And you are good to go. No matter what the warning says. You don't even need to "safely remove the drive". If your computer has finished writing on the USB-drive (plus a few spare seconds), that's enough.
(I still "safely emove" it every time though.)

Or if that's too risky, reboot and unplug while the PC is starting the OS (or turned off).

Edit history

Please sign in to view edit histories.

Recommendations

0 members have recommended this reply (displayed in chronological order):

20 replies

= new reply since forum marked as read

Highlight:

When I attempt to "safely remove" a USB drive but I can't because it's "in use," [View all] Orrex Apr 2017 OP

better yet, why can't it gracefully handle a sudden disconnection? unblock Apr 2017 #1

Yes--there can be a substantial penalty for early withdrawal Orrex Apr 2017 #2

And the drive will get pregnant anyway. n/t malthaussen Apr 2017 #15

If you turn off write-caching, it's usually safe to remove the USB drive at any point. eppur_se_muova Apr 2017 #20

Has anyone ever removed a drive unsafely? PJMcK Apr 2017 #3

Yes, actually. Hence my skittishness Orrex Apr 2017 #4

you want I should kick your skittish ass, Orrex? Skittles Apr 2017 #14

try keeping outlook archives on an external hard drive, connected by usb. unblock Apr 2017 #6

Shut down. Remove the USB drive while the power is off. Reboot. n/t Binkie The Clown Apr 2017 #5

Well, yeah, but that shouldn't be necessary. Orrex Apr 2017 #8

You're right. Ive had that same problem on occasion though. Binkie The Clown Apr 2017 #9

LOL. Well... Orrex Apr 2017 #11

If you have any file manager (Windows Explorer) windows open, try shutting those first. earthshine Apr 2017 #7

+1 nt steve2470 Apr 2017 #12

I usually find that if I close all possible programs and then do the Safely Disconnect routine... steve2470 Apr 2017 #10

I often get that message. Yonnie3 Apr 2017 #13

Nowadays that warning means little to nothing, because data-transfer has changed. DetlefK Apr 2017 #16

It might have to do with the program(s) you use to run the files on your USB drive. blogslut Apr 2017 #17

The "advanced task manager" option interests me Orrex Apr 2017 #18

I love Daphne. blogslut Apr 2017 #19