If the operating system cannot detect the disk, then it assigns it the RAW format. In this case, the HDD is visible to the system, but you will not be able to save anything on it, or use the information stored on it. The solution in this case is either to format the disk, which will entail the loss of all data on it, or to restore the old file system (in which case you will need more time).
RAW format information
All modern hard drives operate in two file systems - FAT and NFTS (the latter is the most common). However, it happens that the file system changes to RAW, which means that there is no file system on the disk, therefore, no operations with it will be available.
One or more of the following reasons can cause the original format to change to RAW:
- The file system has been damaged;
- If you have purchased a new hard disk and it is displayed in RAW format, then this means that the partitions were not formatted;
- Another factor is blocking access to the contents of the volume.
These problems can be encountered if the computer was turned off improperly (for example, through the power button, or by disconnecting from the mains), Windows system failures, physical damage to the disk, or the penetration of viruses into the computer.
If there was an operating system on the "damaged" disk, then it will not be able to start, and the BIOS will display "Operation System not found". In rare cases, the operating system may show signs of life, but they are limited only by an endless recovery procedure.
The process of converting RAW-format to any other is not particularly difficult, but at the same time there is a risk of losing data stored on the hard disk. If you need the data to be saved, then use methods that imply their saving. If the stored data can be neglected, the conversion process to another format will take several minutes.
Option 1: Scan for errors
By using this method, you can count on recovering data stored on the disk. The method is universal and will suit everyone, regardless of the health of the operating system. However, this option does not always solve the problem, and it can take a long time.
If it is not important for you to save information on disk, then you can consider other options in the article.
Provided that the operating system boots without problems, use this instruction:
There are also situations when the system disk has acquired the RAW extension. In this case, the operating system will not boot, however, restore its operability using "Command line" it will still be possible. To do this, you need a bootable USB flash drive with the current OS version:
It should be understood that scanning can take a long time, but it does not always bring a positive result.
Option 2: Format the disk
This method is not very difficult to execute, but in this case, you are 100% likely to lose your personal data. It is also worth considering that the method is valid only if your operating system boots normally.
The instruction looks like this:
Option 3: Initialize the disk
This method will also require formatting the disk, but deeper. Recommended for use if you just bought and installed the HDD. If the hard drive worked fine before, then this method will not work for you at all.
The instruction for this method is as follows:
Option 4: Recover using third-party software
In this case, you can easily restore the file system on the disk without damaging the data stored on it. However, you need to use third-party software to do this.
This software does not require installation on a computer, and is also distributed free of charge, plus, interface elements are mostly in Russian. You can download the program at this link.
The instructions for changing RAW format using DMDE are as follows:
Using DMDE, you can also recover a disk with an installed operating system. To do this, you need to connect it to another computer and do everything described in the instructions above. However, there may be a problem when booting the operating system from this disk. In this case, you will have to do additional recovery using the installation flash drive.
TestDisk
This program is much more difficult to learn than the previous one, but it is more effective. The whole interface looks more like Command lineand it's completely in English. If you do not understand what to do in this program, then it is better to consider its analogue above, since one error can lead to the loss of all information on the disk without the possibility of recovering it.
Those who are confident in their abilities can try to restore the disk's performance using the following instructions:
This program can also be used to restore the file system of an operating system disk, but be careful, as any wrong action will mean deleting all data on the disk. If everything goes well, the operating system may still not boot from disk. In this case, you will need to use the OS bootloader to restore functionality.
This article covered the main ways to help you change the RAW format to NTFS or FAT32. Use the option that is most convenient for you, as they are all equally effective, although some restore both the file system and data on the disk.
How do I recover a disk partition?
It doesn't matter what kind of disk it is: a computer hard drive, a portable USB hard drive or a USB flash drive. Most often viruses can be the cause of the failure. In this case, when trying to open the disk, Windows reports some unfortunate information that cannot please in any way, for example: " The disk in the device [drive letter] is not formatted. Format it?"
If the disk's file system is recognized as RAW, reading data, assigning a volume label, and other operations on this partition (for example, defragmentation or checking for errors) become impossible. In this case, the operating system displays the size of the partition and, when accessing it, offers to format it:
If you are faced with a similar situation, then in no case press " Yes"if you have the necessary files on the disk. After formatting, they can of course also be restored with the help of professionals or specialized file recovery programs, but the likelihood of success may decrease, and it is still better to do it from the very beginning.
If you look at the properties of this flash drive, you can see its zero size and the RAW file system:
RAW- designation for an undefined file system, in the operating systems of the Microsoft Windows NT line. In fact, the RAW file system is not, and the definition of the file system of the partition as RAW means that the partition was not recognized by any of the file system drivers installed on the system (for example, FAT or NTFS). This usually means that the partition is not formatted or the file system structure is damaged.
RAW file system - the type of file system of a logical disk determined by the operating system (and other programs) in case of partial damage to the structure of the file system, for example, such as FAT or NTFS.
Possible reasons file system definitions as RAW:
Damage to the structure of the file system occurs as a result of failures in the operation of a computer or programs, as well as due to the activity of various kinds of malicious programs. The following damage can be distinguished:
- incorrect values \u200b\u200bfor a partition in a partition table (for example, in MBR);
- partial destruction in the boot sector of the file system;
- destruction in the area of \u200b\u200bthe main file table MFT (for the NTFS file system);
- while formatting a partition, the file system may be displayed as RAW.
One of the possible reasons is writing erroneous data to the boot sector or to the MFT. If most of the file system structures remain intact, the file system is likely to be restored.
If you look at the zero (boot) sector of the disk, you can see that not all is well:
Who is a maniac or fairies, he can figure out and manually correct the zero sector. It's not a fact that it will work out the first time and you won't lose anything extra. It is best to use a program that will spit on the displayed RAW file system and show all files and folders on a flash drive in its interface in the form of a familiar explorer.
There are several ways to save files from the RAW file system:
1.Using the program MiniTool Power Data Recovery
As a result, all files were copied to another disk, the problematic hard drive was formatted, after which the files were returned to their place. This is the safest way if you are not fairies :). It is written in detail about this .
The disadvantage of this method is that you need to have enough free space on the other disk to temporarily store all files from the damaged disk. Also this method takes quite a long time.
2.Using the utility Check Disk
Open Start Menu -\u003e Run -\u003e type in line chkdsk E: / f, where instead of the letter E is your letter of the damaged drive.
Depending on the size of the disk (flash drive), after a few minutes the disk will be seen as a normal disk with the NTFS file system instead of RAW, and all the files are in place!
Attention! This method is applicable only to flash drives and hard drives with the NTFS file system! If you had a FAT or FAT32 file system, then this method will not work to recover a RAW disk.
3.Using the TestDisk program
If the first two methods are not applicable, use this option.
TestDisk can:
- Correct the partition table, recover deleted partitions;
- Recover FAT32 boot sector from a backup;
- Rebuild (reverse engineer) the FAT12 / FAT16 / FAT32 boot sector;
- Correct the FAT table;
- Rebuild (reverse engineer) NTFS boot sector;
- Recover NTFS boot sector from backup;
- Recover MFT using MFT mirror;
- Define a backup SuperBlock ext2 / ext3 / ext4;
- Recover deleted files on FAT, NTFS and ext2 file systems;
- Copy files from remote FAT, NTFS and ext2 / ext3 / ext4 partitions.
Most often, the file system of a disk changes to RAW after an improper shutdown of the computer, when the lights were turned off, or the user saved time and pulled out the power cord of the system unit from the outlet. Another reason is viruses that change NTFS to RAW HDD format. How to fix this problem, read this article.
What is RAW File System?
If the disk received the RAW format, Windows will display it among other partitions of the hard drive. But when you try to open it, the computer will give an error and offer to format it. In addition, any actions with this volume will be unavailable: checking for errors, defragmenting, etc. (it is useful to read "How to check the integrity of Windows 10 system files and restore them?").
As such, the RAW file system does not exist. If the disk receives such formatting, it means that the computer drivers are not able to determine the type of its file system - NTFS, FAT or FAT32. In practice, this happens in several cases:
- the file system structure is damaged;
- the partition has not been formatted;
- there is no correct access to the contents of the volume.
If the volume with the OS is damaged, the warnings "Reboot and selеct proper boot device" or "Operating System not found" will appear when the computer boots.
Recovery
If the problem occurs on a non-system disk, but it contains important information that will be lost during formatting, use standard Windows tools or third-party programs to fix the error.
Windows tools
Basically, the standard chkdsk utility helps to fix problems with formatting in RAW.
After the check, the computer will repair the damaged sectors and the NTFS file system on the problem volume.
Important! This method is effective if the flash drive or hard drive has been formatted in NTFS.
Also, the chkdsk utility will help when the system disk is damaged. But for this you need a bootable disk or flash drive.
- Start the computer from a bootable USB flash drive or disk → Select "System Restore".
- Advanced options -\u003e command line -\u003e enter chkdsk desired_drive_letter: / f.
Partition letters in a recovery environment differ from the names of logical drives. To avoid mistakes, open the list of computer partitions in the command line.
Enter diskpart → list volume → the list will indicate which disk is the system disk.
Third party programs
There are third-party programs that help restore the NTFS file system, if for some reason it was reformatted to RAW. They do not damage user information stored on the volume, unlike the chkdsk utility, which can "touch" them during the recovery process.
MiniTool Power Data Recovery
Important! This method is most effective if the RAW file system appeared on a USB flash drive.
TestDisk
It is a multifunctional freeware utility that works with hard disk partitions with a wide range of options. The program is presented in a portable version, therefore, does not require installation. The main disadvantage of TestDisk is that there is no Russified interface.
An alternative way to restore NTFS formatting of a partition is presented in the video.
A person is faced with changing the format of the disk file system to RAW, as a rule, due to the fact that the computer was not shut down correctly. You must agree that there are a lot of such cases - the light will disappear, then you are in a hurry somewhere and automatically pull the power cord out of the socket. But everything happened to me not "like people." I took a USB flash drive from a friend, I wanted to upload a video to myself - but only there were so many viruses on this media that I still have to rake it. Among them, by the way, there were those that change NTFS to RAW format of HDD disks. However, I managed to deal with this problem relatively quickly. So if an unwanted format appears and you want to eliminate it, then read on about it.
A bit of theory about what kind of system is this - RAW?
If the disk is changed to RAW, Windows will display it in the middle of other partitions of the hard drive. But when you try to open it, the computer will indicate an error and a window will appear with a proposal to format it. What's more unpleasant - all actions with this volume will become impossible, including error checking, defragmentation, and many others.
The problem is that there is no RAW file system in nature. Basically. Generally. If a message appears that the disk has received such formatting, then this will indicate that the computer driver cannot determine the type of its file system - NTFS, FAT or FAT32. This can happen under the following circumstances:
- The structure of the file system has been damaged;
- The partition has not been formatted;
- There is no correct access to the contents of the volume.
It is important to note that if the volume with the OS is damaged, then when the computer boots up, a window will pop up - the warning "Reboot and selеct proper boot device" or "Operating System not found".
The raw format of hdd disks appeared. How to fix it?
How is this kind of situation resolved?
In my case, I should have used only standard Windows tools, since the failure was on a non-system disk, which stored a large amount of important information. Formatting was ruled out anyway. Yes, I would honestly say that I would like to reinstall the system, but only because of several documents that I forgot to copy to the "cloud", I had to "play" with all this.
What Windows tools should I use to resolve this issue?
First of all, to fix problems with formatting in RAW, you should use the standard chkdsk utility. Below is a clear, step-by-step algorithm:
- Press PCM on the Start menu, and then - the command line (admin).
- Enter: chkdsk desired drive letter: / f.
After the check is carried out, the computer will restore the damaged sectors and the NTFS file system on the affected volume. Again, this technique works only if the flash drive or hard drive was in NTFS. 
In addition, the use of the chkdsk utility will be advisable if the system disk is affected. However, in this situation, you will need a boot disk or flash drive. Next, you will need to follow a strict sequence of actions:
- Start the PC from a bootable USB flash drive or disk, after that you need to click the "System Restore" item.
- Enter - additional parameters - command line -chkdsk required drive letter: / f.
Partition letters in the recovery environment are not the same as the names of logical drives. To avoid the error, it is enough to open the list of computer partitions in the command line.
In order to find out which disk is the system one, you need to enter diskpart - list volume - and the information you need will be indicated in the list.
The flash drive has become raw. How to recover?
In this case, the way out of the problem situation is carried out using third-party software
The software used to restore the NTFS file system, previously reformatted to RAW, does not affect the user's information on the volume. This is the advantage of this method over using the chkdsk utility.
MiniTool Power Data Recovery
This program is good for everyone, but there is only one small drawback - it costs money. It's very easy to use.
- It is necessary to activate the LostPartition recovery software, click on the desired Full Scan disk, a display of the files on the USB flash drive appears.
- It is necessary to designate the files to be saved. To do this, click on the "Save" button, then point to the desired location for saving and confirm the process.
- After copying and checking all the files you have selected, you will need to format the damaged volume.
MiniTool Power Data Recovery Alternative - TestDisk
This program has a number of significant advantages over the previous one. TestDisk is a multifunctional, and most importantly, a free utility that uses a large number of options when working with hard disk partitions. Moreover, there is a portable version of TestDisk, so there is no need to install it. However, there is also a drawback that negates all the advantages. This program does not have a Russified interface, so GoogleTranslite is needed. Or hire a translator. You should work with TestDisk like this:
- Activation of the file testdisk_win.exe - followed by the choice of "create". Then you need to press enter, select the desired drive and enter again.
- Next, you will need to click the "Write" item in order to save the structure of the section.
- If the measures taken are ineffective, you must use the "DeeperSearch" command and then go through all over again.
Output
The problem under consideration is not that difficult - there are many options for solving it. But still, it is better to use only verified flash drives and scan them for viruses before use. Indeed, in addition to these, there may be a huge number of other viruses that have much more adverse effects.
Some users may find it impossible to access their hard drive (or flash drive). In the operating system, such devices receive the "Raw" status, and their file structure becomes inaccessible to the user. In this article, I will consider this dysfunction in detail, tell you what to do in a situation when the file system is RAW, as well as how to return NTFS, FAT32, what tools will help us with this, and how to use them.
To understand that this is a RAW file system and how to return the NTFS, FAT32 format, it is necessary to determine the meaning of the term "RAW" itself. Translated from Shakespeare's language, the lexeme "Raw" means "raw", "raw material". Accordingly, in our case, this term refers to disks that are either not yet formatted, or the data structure on them is corrupted (errors in the MBR partition table and MFT file table, viruses, PC hardware problems, etc.).
Simply put, RAW discs are discs that are not recognized by Windows OS for various reasons. Usually, in this case, Windows recommends formatting such a disk, which you just should not do, since the data on the disk will be lost due to formatting.
Reasons why a disk from NTFS and FAT32 becomes RAW
The reasons for the appearance of RAW disks instead of the usual NTFS and FAT32 file systems are as follows:
- Sudden disconnection of such disks (loss of voltage in the network, physical disconnection by the user, problems in the operation of the power supply, etc.), as a result of which the integrity and structure of the data on the disk is violated;
- Problems with the cables connecting the motherboard and the hard drive;
- The work of virus programs that violate the integrity of the bootloader, partition table, file structure, and so on;
- Bad sectors on the hard drive, as a result of which the structure of the system on the hard disk is damaged;
- An error in installing or updating the operating system;
- Errors when working with various hard disk partition managers;
- Not tight connection of the USB flash drive with the PC USB connector (in the case of a flash drive);
- Problems in the work of the computer motherboard and so on.
How to recover NTFS, FAT32 from RAW
- Try to simply restart your computer, the problem may be random;
- Check the tightness of the connection of the cables to the hard drive, try using a different connector to connect the hard drive on the motherboard, as well as another USB connector of the computer when connecting an external flash drive;
- Use the built-in CHKDSK () utility. Run Command Prompt as administrator and type
chkdsk X: / f (where X is the letter of the RAW drive)
The "f" parameter stands for fixing errors on the disk, which means that the CHKDSK utility not only looks for problems, but also fixes them.
I also note that this command is relevant, first of all, for those disks that were formatted in the NTFS file system. In this case, if you cannot load the operating system, then boot using a bootable system disk or flash drive (you can use various assemblies "Live CD"), select "System Restore" there, go to "Advanced options" and then to "Command line" , and there type the above command.
If you cannot access the command line from your PC in any way, then it is recommended to connect your hard drive to another computer and check for errors on your drive from it.
- Use the capabilities of another system utility, sfc, designed to check the integrity of system files. Also run the command line as administrator, in it write:
sfc / scannow
and press enter.
- If you have access to the operating system, then it is worth checking your computer for viruses using special antivirus programs (for example, Web CureIt! Or Malware-AntiMalware);
- If there is no important information on the problem disk (or it is not essential), then the problem disk (or flash drive) can be formatted. Click on the "Start" button, and in the search bar type diskmgmt.msc, the disk control panel will appear. Right-click on the raw disk and select "Format" from the pop-up menu.
If you have a RAW file system, return NTFS, FAT32 - using third-party programs
If you want to restore the NFTS and FAT32 file system, then you should use the functionality of special programs that will help us with this. I offer programs like Recuva and TestDisk.
Recuva
One of the popular programs for recovering lost files is Recuva. Download, install and run this product, select the option to restore all files, specify the problem disk, use the advanced analysis option and click on "Start".
After the scan is over, the program will display a list of found files, mark them with checkmarks and click on "Restore".
TestDisk
The second program that can help with the RAW file system is TestDisk.
- Download and install this program, run it as administrator.
- Select the "Create" command and press enter, select the raw disk with the cursor and press "Enter".
- After selecting the desired type of partition table, press enter, then select "Analyze" and "Quick Search" (a quick search for problematic sections will be carried out).
- After TestDisk finds the problem volumes, click on "Write" to write the structure of the found partition.
How to change the file system of a flash drive [video]
Above, I analyzed the problem when the file system is RAW. The most optimal tool for recovering NTFS, FAT32 is using the system command CHKDSK, as well as special programs that can restore the file structure of a problem disk. If none of the tips I have proposed turned out to be effective for you, then I recommend contacting the service center - perhaps your hard drive has not software, but hardware problems, and it needs a thorough repair.
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