Hi guys, I was wondering if anyone could suggest a freeware program that can be used to safely remove usb drives prior to shutting them off. I have several external hard drives, and for whatever reason, the windows version of safe remove doesnt always do it properly. I'm using Windows Vista 64x, but if there is a program that works for Windows 7 as well (that's whats on my daughters computers) that would be great.
Thanks in advance all!
Hey 1984.
I use USBDeview from Nirsoft.
http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/usb_devices_view.html
EDIT: The downloads are way down the page, and Win 7 and X64 are covered.
Flash devices usually don't unmount because there maybe a file handle still open by an application.
Unlocker should be able to help close those pesky handles and give you peace of mind.
Richard S.
thanks Dennis, this looks like it might help!
The only time it hasn't been able to release my external USB Hard Drive was when Sandboxie had a hold on it for some reason, and deleting the Sandbox fixed it.
I'm pleased you asked the question as I've discovered my version of USBDeview is out of date.
I actually helped in the testing of this on XP, Vista and Seven (and use it daily)
http://www.portablefreeware.com/index.php?id=1425
EjectUSB
Category: System - Miscellaneous (33)
Synopsis: EjectUSB is a tool for quickly closing apps running from a USB drive and ejecting the drive from safe removal. It will automatically close all programs running from the drive EjectUSB was run from (host drive), close any explorer windows open to the host drive, remove Windows MUI and MRU entries and recent document shortcuts related to the host drive, and attempt to eject the host drive when done. It can also interface with various utilities to aid in drive ejection.
Alternately, the program can be run from your hard drive as a tool to restore a computer to its post-boot state. If you have 10-20 windows open, this will quickly and easily close them all, akin to pressing a reset button for your desktop.
This versatile tool has an active discussion thread at the TPFC forum for this utility if you have any questions or suggestions.
Warning: launching EjectUSB will immediately close all programs running from the host drive and eject the drive without user intervention! A graphical front-end is available here to help manage which drive is ejected.
Note: Main website offline, linking to download.com mirror.
Writes settings to: None
How to extract: Download the ZIP package and extract to a folder of your choice. Launch EjectUSB.exe.
The program reads its settings from EjectUSB.ini (in the same folder as EjectUSB.exe). If EjectUSB.ini does not exist, the program will run with default settings. EjectUSB also accepts a drive letter or folder path as a command-line argument. Read EjectUSB.txt for more information.
Stealth [?]: Yes
License: Freeware/Open Source
System Requirements: Win98 / WinME / WinNT / Win2K / WinXP / Vista
I've discovered my version of USBDeview is out of date.
I also use USBDeview, it's been getting updated regularly.