Step by step explanation guide.
If you are able to, you can Restart or Turn Off Computer. After the Computer has restarted you can try to eject the drive again.
While the computer is on: ‘Quick Removal Option’
First you need to check if ‘Quick Removal Option’ is eneabled for your specific drive.
Goto ‘This PC’ folder (Star menu -> This PC) and locate your drive, right click and choose ‘Properties’.
The properties window opens (See image blow).
A. Click ‘Hardware’
B. Click the drive that you want to eject.
C. Click properties.
D. Click Change settings.
A new window opens (see image below)
E. Click the ‘Policies’ tab
F. Make sure the ‘Quick removal’ optien is selected.
3. see what is using your external hard drive or SSD before ejecting
otherwise Windows will not let you eject.
Free official Microsoft Software to view: Download Process Explorer
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/process-explorer
then run procexp64.exe or procexp.exe
4. Notice the drive Letter of your drive that you would like to eject
5. Choose Find-> File handle or DLL, pop up window appears.
Type in the field (where there is shown ‘File’) the drive letter including’:’
For example if your drive letter that you want to eject is D. Type this D:
This wil show all the processes that is still using your drive.
6. Related processes are displayed on bottom left of the main window.
7. Right click on the window below on the filename and choose ‘Close handle’ When all the running processes are closed, you can eject the drive.
8. Go to ‘This PC’ folder (Star menu -> This PC) and locate your drive, right click and choose ‘Eject’.
If the drive is still not possible to eject, then shutting down the PC is the safest way to eject the drive. Wait till the PC is fully shut down, only then remove the drive from the pc.
There are several possible solutions you can try if you are unable to eject an external hard drive or USB drive on Windows:
- Close any open programs or windows that may be accessing the drive.
- Use the “Safely Remove Hardware” icon in the system tray to eject the drive.
- If the above steps do not work, you may need to use the “Eject” option in File Explorer. To do this, open File Explorer, right-click on the drive, and select “Eject”.
- If the drive still will not eject, you can try using the “Eject” command in the Command Prompt. To do this, open the Command Prompt and type “eject [drive letter]”, where [drive letter] is the letter of the drive you want to eject (e.g., “eject E”).
- If none of the above steps work, you may need to power off the computer and physically unplug the drive. However, be sure to use the “Safely Remove Hardware” icon or the “Eject” command before unplugging the drive to prevent data loss.
- If the drive is still not ejecting and you have tried all of the above steps, it is possible that there is a problem with the drive itself. In this case, you may need to try a different USB port or seek further assistance.
