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With the increase in the number of USB flash drives produced in China, the recovery of Chinese flash drives is becoming more and more relevant. Online platforms offer a huge range of these gadgets. You can order USB drives up to 512 Gb at competitive prices. But most owners of flash drives ordered from China face problems in their operation. The most common of them is file corruption in the memory of the flash drive.
The reason for the loss of data from the memory of drives from China
The main components of any USB drive are the NAND chip and the controller. The NAND chip is responsible for the maximum amount of data that can be written to the media. The controller provides communication between the chip cells and the computer. During the manufacture of a flash drive, all information about the characteristics and size of the memory is recorded on it. Mismatch of data in the controller with the real capacity of the flash drive causes device malfunctions. When the true volume is full, the information begins to be written in a circle, overwriting the previous data. As a result, the files become inaccessible. Often the file system of overcrowded media is recognized as RAW. In some cases, it is possible to format such a device using standard Windows utilities, but the solution to the problem will be temporary, because after the real amount of memory is filled, the drive will start to malfunction again.
The NAND chip of most Chinese flash drives is serviceable and usable. But to restore its correct operation, it is necessary to make changes to the drive controller, indicating the actual capacity. After that, the flash drive can be used without fear for the information on it.
Flash drive memory analysis
Before you begin to restore the true value of the amount of memory, you need to find it out. The easiest way is to gradually fill the media with files, waiting for a critical capacity value, after which a failure will begin. But in this way it will not be possible to determine the exact value of the memory and the number of sectors of the microcircuit. It would be more correct to use the program for testing drives. The most convenient free program for this is H2testw. It has a simple and intuitive interface. With its help, it is possible to quickly and accurately determine the true size of the storage medium.
The algorithm for working with the program is as follows:
- specify the desired device (select target);
- select full data check (all available space);
- run test writing and reading information (Write + Verify).
Depending on the declared volume of the flash drive, the analysis time may last more than 10 hours. But there is no need to wait for the end of testing. You should wait for a significant drop in the write speed. This is evidence that the drive is completely full and the process of surface overwriting has begun. You can stop the write test (Abort). Next, select the reading process (Verify) and wait for it to complete. A value of the following type will be received: "6.7 GByte OK (14162432 sectors)". The value in brackets is the actual number of memory sectors that will be needed to restore the Chinese flash drive. In most cases, the true capacity of the media is 5-10% of the specified, so the amount of usable memory for drives with the declared 32-64 GB will not exceed 6 GB.
Restoring the real size of the capacity of Chinese flash drives
Restoring the real size of fake flash drives requires special utilities. But before using such programs, you must remove other media so that you do not mistakenly format them. The most convenient program for this is Acronis Disk Director.
Recovery instructions:
- Select the media you want to restore, right-click and start the initialization process. If the flash drive is formatted, skip this step.
- Select "create volume" from the operations menu. In the window that appears, designate the creation of a basic volume and select the required media.
- Set the volume size to no more than the one obtained during testing. The volume type is logical. Choose the file system according to your needs. Click on the "finish" button.
- On the main page, select the "apply pending operations" option. The formatting process will begin, after which you can use the media. If an error occurs, you must return to step 2 and set a smaller volume size.
In this way, information about the total amount of memory in the controller will not change, but only its actual size will be available to all readers. This method is fast and safe, so it should be preferred.
To reprogram the controller, you must use the MyDiskFix utility. This program was developed by the Chinese to change information about the amount of storage media. There is only an alpha version of this program, so failures are possible. It is more convenient to use its English version.
For the correct operation of the program, media recovery must be performed in safe mode. To do this, when the PC boots up, press F8 and select the item "Safe Mode with Network Driver Loading".
The algorithm for working with MyDiskFix:
- select the required media;
- mark low-level formatting (Low-Level);
- leave the first field of sectors (Sectors) unchanged, in the second field indicate the number of sectors that does not exceed the one that was obtained during testing, for example, 14162000;
- start formatting "START Format".
This method is longer in time, but allows you to permanently fix the problem by changing the information about the NAND chip in the flash drive controller.
Regardless of the chosen recovery method, after the formatting process is completed, you must re-test using the H2testw utility. After making sure that the USB media is working properly, you can safely use it.
Good afternoon. I finally got to civilization and I can again please you with an interesting and, I hope, useful article.
One flash drive from China came into my hands and it was sold for a rather modest price, like 64 GB. But the one who bought it had doubts about its performance, since some of the recorded files stopped opening. Of course, he was not aware that our brothers in communism had long since learned how to flash controllers so that it showed a larger volume than it actually was and recorded files as if cyclically. The system is very tricky and I don't fully know how it's all implemented. I remember at the very beginning, when I first heard about such a Chinese trick, some people shouted on Habré that such a controller would cost much more than a flash drive. But today it is found on every second flash drive ordered from China. But let's move on to the most delicious and today the article will be divided into two parts. The first is about how to recognize a fake (which will make it possible to open a dispute on Ali and return your money), the second is how to bring the flash drive into working condition with its real volume.
We recognize a fake and determine the real volume of a flash drive
- To do this, we need a small utility called h2testw, download from Yandex.Disk and unpack the archive. Run h2testw.exe and for convenience (I don't know German) switch to English. Click the "Select target" button.
- We select our problem flash drive. Look, make no mistake, otherwise you will lose all the data on the flash drive.
- Click the "Write+Verify" button.
- The process of filling the flash card will begin, and then the program will check how much was recorded and how much is actually on the storage media. It took me a little over two hours to make a true 8 GB flash drive (about an hour to write and an hour to read).
- Now let's get the flash drive in order so that it can be used without the risk of data loss (as far as possible with a fake Chinese card :) and for this we need one value that is in the report. So before closing the window, copy or overwrite the value of the number of sectors for the working volume.
Fix volume display for fake flash card
I should warn you that since we are working with fake flash cards, they can break at any time and you use this method at your own peril and risk. If your fake fails after this procedure, then thank the Chinese, not me :)
So, download the second utility from the link. And we launch it. This is a Chinese program and do not be surprised at the lack of text on the buttons, the main thing is to click on the right ones, and this site exists for this. By the way, I had a problem with the work until I ran it as an administrator. The program cursed as if the flash drive was being used by something. Therefore, at startup, close all windows that can use the flash drive. And if that doesn't help, run it as administrator.
- Launched, at the top select the desired flash drive. I do not advise you to make a mistake, double-check. I won't be surprised if the Chinese increase the volume of the same program.
- We rearrange the point to the bottom item, this is the low-level formatting mode - what the doctor ordered for this Chinese fake g…
Good day to all readers of the blog site!
What you will learn from the article:
How to choose the right usb flash drive in the AliExpress online store so that you are not deceived.
Why and how to find out the real size of a flash drive purchased from the Chinese, what to do if it does not meet the declared parameters.
Based on statistical data, 50% of online commerce falls on the Chinese store Aliexpress, which is the most popular in Russia of all available on this moment like him.
But still, Russians lag far behind other countries in terms of purchases through online stores. Everyone is attracted by the huge assortment and cheapness of goods, which sometimes reaches a difference of several times in relation to the purchase of the same goods in ordinary Markets.
True - this is not always the case, you can buy on Aliexpress more expensive even than a simple store, so you need to navigate the product you are buying.
Of course, in most cases, it will still be more profitable to purchase from the Chinese. Also, when buying, there will always be some risks in the AliE online store, however, like others like it.
See some of the most common possible examples:
1. A product will arrive that is not the one you ordered (color, model, etc.).
2. From the post of Russia, you can expect anything, the loss of the parcel, the opening, the seizure of the thing, its substitution with the subsequent sending to the addressee. True, I must say in recent years, Russian mail has been significantly modified in better side so her credibility grows.
3. There is no guarantee for the goods, which of course formally exists, but there is no sense in it.
4. The return will also be problematic, most likely at your own expense without any guarantee that the seller will confirm receipt, send a replacement or refund your money.
There are a number of other possible so-called dangers that may lie in wait for you when buying on virtual sites.
Despite these points that I have listed, which are well known to everyone, probably in more than 95% of cases everything goes well.
Therefore, you can still buy, but naturally not everywhere in a row. Cheapness fascinates all those who have no money, and equally others who have it. Therefore, people acquire and will always do so, our ranks are only growing!
1. When buying on AliExpress, first of all, you need to be guided by the rating of the seller, read the comments about him - of course, everything is clear, logical, but unfortunately, it does not always work.
2. Having found the right product (my episode is a flash drive) relevant to point 1, in no case be led to a very low price.
Well, a drive with an example of 32 gigabytes cannot cost only 3 dollars, even for this site it's just a fantastically low price!
Chinese flash drives real size and price ratio
Well, after such a voluminous introduction, I will finally return to the main topic of the article.
I somehow needed a compact flash drive for a car radio, because mine is not very small in size, everything hurts it and looks like it will break off.
Naturally, I turned to the Ali site there, it’s cheaper and there is a large selection, I quickly found what I wanted in appearance resembling a wireless mouse adapter, plus everything else is still waterproof.
The price was generally cheap, for 32 GB it was only three and a half dollars, and if you paid a little extra, you could buy 64 gigabytes.
Accordingly, a suspicion crept in at such a volume that it costs so little money, I remembered reading information somewhere that very often there are cases of deception.
Nevertheless, I decided to take a chance and buy it for the experiment, if it’s “bullshit”, then I’ll open a dispute, I won’t prove it, well, I won’t become poor from this.
Looking ahead a little, I want to say that I didn’t plan to write this article at all, because when I searched this topic on the Internet, I saw a lot of similar information, namely, in my case, the discrepancy between the size of flash drives.
But the thing is, everything looked a little different for me than other bloggers described. Therefore, I decided to scratch my story so that you, the reader, could immediately recognize the fake, having several real examples in service.
So, having decided on the size, having paid the cost of the gadget, I began to wait for the so-called small package from China.
Interestingly, my wait did not last long, somewhere around only 2 weeks. Having received the package, having unpacked it, I saw there, in addition to the flash drive itself, a nice bonus to it in the form of a small “pendant” on a string.
I was in no hurry to give confirmation of the arrival, remembering that it could still be a divorce.
The small dimensions of the gadget did not bother me, I think today's technologies can cram gigabytes or terabytes of memory into a pea.
My actions
1. I inserted a USB flash drive into the computer, went into its Properties, where I saw 29.8 GB, good sign almost full size.
2. I downloaded more than 10 gigabytes of different files, as you can see in the screenshot, the place has decreased, everything is as it should be, also good.
Usually they write that if you have a fake, then its real size is much less than the declared one, so it will not work to fill in more than it may contain.
In the best case, new files will take the place of the old ones, deleting them when the physical size is exceeded, I have not observed these problems.
3. Files can be displayed as the size of the storage device will decrease as they increase, but only some of them will be able to play, most will have an error saying that it is impossible to play.
For me, everything that I downloaded successfully got up and worked as it should, be it music or video.
Well, I think the Chinese did not deceive everything honestly did well done, respect to you brother!
Immediately confirmed the receipt of the order wrote good review thanked for the bonus, put five stars.
After that, I formatted the flash drive, pulled it out of the computer, and so far have successfully forgotten about it.
While the other day she didn’t catch my eye, I gathered my strength and decided to fill it with music as I had previously assumed.
After a while, everything was ready. After inserting it into the radio of the car, I did not find many musical discographies, which is why I suspected something was wrong, as it turned out later, I was right, but very late.
The “trick” was this: on this flash drive it was possible to install files for all 32 gigabytes and all this content, whether it be music or video, worked successfully.
That's just until Yuesbishka was on the computer, but as soon as it was removed from the USB socket of the PC, a significant part of the files miraculously immediately “evaporated”.
Reconnecting it to the computer showed that there was as much information left as the flash drive has its actual size. I got it by calculating the weight of working files of only 5 out of 32 GB!
It was already too late for me to show something, so never rush to confirm the receipt of a particularly expensive item.
Make it a rule before you start unpacking a more or less valuable item, film your actions or at least make a detailed photo report on unpacking and removing the goods. And also record a video review or take a picture of the performance, integrity, non-compliance with the requirements of the order.
If everything is good, then just put your review on youtube video hosting, as many do, or in a bad scenario, open a dispute by providing evidence that will increase your chances of winning.
How to find out the real size of a Chinese flash drive
In order to find out the true size of the drive, you can use empirically, which I wrote about a little higher.
Or, with the help of special programs, one of them is H2testw, which we are currently using.
I will also show you how to flash a usb device to correctly display its true size using another MyDiskFix alpha2 program.
The download will start, the program will be in the Zip archive, unpack it to any convenient place, run the h2testw.exe file
A window will open with the default German English will be more convenient for me, so I switched to it, unfortunately there is no Russian. Then press the Select target button.
Find your USB drive and click OK.
Here we click on the Write+Verify button.
Alas, the safe mode did not help me, the error repeated itself, and I did not try other methods.
In principle, I know the size, so I didn’t bother if anyone has any additions to the article, I will only be glad for your comments.
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Chinese Internet sites, such as AliExpress, offer a huge selection of goods at affordable prices, and sometimes at unrealistically cheap prices. But very often there is a catch behind the cheapness. Today we will analyze how not to be deceived when buying Chinese flash drives on the Internet. The classic divorce scheme, that's what it can be called, consists in selling cheap flash drives with large sizes. Outwardly, everything looks good, when you insert such a flash drive into the computer, the size is displayed as on the site when selling. The buyer sees that the flash drive is working and gives the OK to transfer money to the seller. Don't trust Chinese flash drive sellers - never! Trust must always be tested.
Divorce scheme by Chinese sellers of flash drives. Now let's look at why you should not immediately confirm the receipt of the goods. In most cases, it will not work correctly, and this is fraught not only with lost money for a low-quality flash drive, but also with the loss of important information. The Chinese inflate a smaller flash drive to a larger one and sell it for the price of flash drives bigger size(for example, 8 GB, I inflate to 64 GB and sell at a discount for the price of 64 GB - very profitable). But do not inflate, do not inflate, an 8 GB flash drive will not store 64 GB information in itself, and this flash drive will not work normally without certain operations.
Determination of the actual size of the flash drive. You cannot trust the inscriptions and stickers on the flash drive, as well as the display size on the computer. To do this, we need a small, but in this case extremely useful program for Windows. h2testw_1.4 . Download, run. We choose the language: German or English, there is no Russian, but the program is extremely simple, which does not require the Russian interface language. Next, insert the USB flash drive into the computer and select it Selecttarget(pre-formatted if it's not empty) . Next click Write+ Verify.
Now you can turn on the movie and watch it. this operation is quite long (depending on the flash drive write speed and its size).
How h2testw works. During this test, the size of the flash drive is completely filled with small files that are formed into 1 GB files until they are completely filled. After filling the entire size with a flash drive, a report will be displayed and verification will automatically begin. If the flash drive is “bloated”, then this will be visible after receiving the correct size and it is not advisable to wait for the end of the test of all memory (a waste of time).
Analysis of results h2testw. After the determination of the “good” size is finished (in the screenshot, the second line is “7.4 GByte OK ...”), the “lost” volume is determined. If there is no change in the second line with a “good” size, you can stop the test with the “Abort” button. Of all the results, the most important indicator for us is the second line, which indicates the actual size (number of sectors) of the flash drive.
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Restoring the real size of MyDiskFix. After auditing the size of the flash drive, we return the real size to it by the program MyDiskFix . Don't let the incomprehensible characters in this utility scare you, this is due to Chinese characters, apparently, this is the native language for the program. Next, set the settings (numbers in the screenshot):
1) select a flash drive;
2) set low-level formatting;
3) specify the actual number of sectors for the flash drive (we take from the h2testw report, the second line, for my flash drive the correct number of sectors was 15618999);
4) run, press yes / ok in the subsequent windows.
Error at work MyDiskFix. In my case, after launching and agreeing to restore the flash drive, an error popped up: « Can NOT open drive H: [ Mass Storage device]! Please close the program which is using the drive and try again". Its meaning is that the MyDiskFix program cannot complete its operation due to the use of a flash drive by another application.
I did not notice the use of this flash drive by another application, so I had to restart the computer and start the system in safe mode with network drivers loaded (you should press F8 when starting the computer). There MyDiskFix also "cursed", but did its job.
Final verdict. That's actually all. MyDiskFix will offer format already the “correct” flash drive, what needs to be done, and then for especially accurate people, I recommend auditing this flash drive again in the h2testw program . After no problems have been identified, you can use the flash drive for its intended purpose.
Chinese flash drives: how to find out the real size, restore and return the real volume of a Chinese memory card or flash drive
If you are reading this text, then I dare to assume that you have become the proud owner of a Chinese flash drive. If so, then you've come to the right place.
Cunning yellow-faced brothers make the firmware of a Chinese flash drive so that the computer sees 16, 32, 64GB, etc. available memory on the flash drive, although the actual size is much smaller.
A large amount of information is copied onto it, as it were, but you will not be able to read it all later. Here they are, Chinese USB flash drives, and not only USB, but all kinds of memory cards.
Why are Chinese flash drives bad?
Cheating with Chinese flash drives may be due to rejected NAND memory.
How it's done: they buy defective memory chips from factories or landfills. They are sold by weight, and the price is about $ 0.5 per chip after the selection of completely dead microcircuits. It can be not only 16 Gb chips - any capacity will do. There may be two of 8, or one of 64, but with a bunch of defective pages. Everything goes into "production" - scraps of large chips, combining several small chips inside one device, combining scraps of large chips
Cheating with Chinese flash drives may be due to NAND memory less than the declared capacity:
How it is done: they buy chips with a small amount of memory, and increase the capacity to the required one through the passport, that is, with the “get ID” command, the flash drive will give as many gigs as it is written on it. To prevent the deception from being detected immediately, the recording on such a device is either looped (a gigabyte has run out - we start writing again), or emulated (a gigabyte has run out - we pretend that we are writing, but we are not writing anything).
Such flash drives can be used for everyday needs: music in the car, watching a movie on TV, and the like. The main thing to remember is that any time a Chinese flash drive restored using the method described below, may refuse.
So how do you restore the real size of a Chinese flash drive?
In this case, you need to do the following:
1. Determine the actual volume of the Chinese flash drive.
For this we use the program h2testwver 1.4 ().
The verification process consists of two stages: - writing special files 1.h2w, .h2w, etc., 1 GB each, to the USB flash drive until the entire volume is completely filled and reading the recorded file.
The media is likely to be defective.
7.5 GB OK (15924224 sectors) - remember these numbers somewhere.
7.9 GByte DATA LOST (16776192 sectors)
Details:0 KByte overwritten (0 sectors)
0 KByte slightly changed (< 8 bit/sector, 0 sectors)
7.9 GByte corrupted (16776192 sectors)
0 KByte aliased memory (0 sectors)
First error at offset: 0x00000001d5fa2000
Expected: 0x00000001d5fa2000
Found: 0x0000000000000000
H2test version 1.3
Writing speed: 3.97 MB/s
Reading speed: 10.2 MB/s
H2testv v1.4
We see that 7.5 GB OK is the actual size of a Chinese flash drive.
2. formatting Chinese flash drives for real size.
Programming will help us with this. MyDiskFix (MyDiskFix download from the link at the bottom of the page). It has problems with encoding, so the sequence of actions is as follows.
In the upper window, select your Chinese flash drive.
On the left, move the dot down (means low-level formatting).
In the window on the right (where 0) we enter the sector number - in my case 15924224
Press the top button to the right of the "Debug" button - the button (YEG and & PYUeg)
