Most users who prefer to use flash drives to quickly transfer data from one computer device to another, sooner or later face a clear slowdown in their work, not to mention similar situations in the case of using outdated drives released 10-15 years ago. At the same time, even the smallest files are copied for a very long time, although this might not have been observed before. Let's try to figure out how to speed up a flash drive, focusing on the simplest methods and solutions available to any user.
Reasons for performance degradation in flash drives
Before you take any optimization steps, you should briefly dwell on some aspects related to the reasons for slowing down the drive. Naturally, there can be quite a lot of them, but among the most basic and most common situations, one can single outthe following:
- infection with dangerous viruses;
- wrong file structure;
- Incorrect operating system settings;
- using unnecessary BIOS settings;
- damage to firmware and controllers;
- physical deterioration of the drive.
We will not consider the last point, since each user should understand that it is much easier to buy a new flash drive than to repair a damaged or outdated one. Fortunately, now new USB-drives, even of very large volumes, are quite inexpensive. But after all, such cases have been noticed when working with modern or newly purchased storage media! How to speed up the flash drive in this case?
Virus scan
First of all, be sure to pay attention to the possible presence of viruses on the flash drive, because it's no secret that it is on removable drives that threats “like” to settle most often. To get started, just check the media with some portable scanner (if the standard antivirus does not detect anything). In addition, very often a flash drive may contain viruses in the form of Autorun.inf autorun files, which are hidden. They can be removed manually, but only using unlocking utilities like Unlocker.
How to speed up copying to a USB flash drive: preferences in choosing a file system and USB interface
Often, the difference in file systems used on a flash drive and a computer also affects the slowdown in copying the necessary information.
It is believed that for removable devices in all the latest modifications of Windows, it is best to use NTFS to achieve the optimal data transfer rate (you can change the type of file structure even when performing a quick format using Windows tools). But for Linux it is better to leave FAT32.
Often the reason for the slowdown can be the wrong choice of the port to which the removable device is connected (sometimes even the OS itself issues notifications that the connected drive can work faster). Most often this is due to the fact that the user plugs a USB 3.0 high-speed USB flash drive into a 2.0 port.
Therefore, you can speed up the transfer of copied files to a USB flash drive by choosing a different interface. But at the same time, you should make sure that the drive itself supports its use. If the flash drive is not designed for such a standard, it will not “jump” above the read/transfer speed limit set for it, no matter how hard you try.
Optimizing drive performance using Windows
In the operating systems themselves of all the latest generations, the settings used for removable devices are often not set in the best way by default. Considering questions related to how to speed up a flash drive, we can recommend changing some options. To do this, through the properties of the flash drive (disk) in "Explorer", go to the hardware tab, and then use the click on the properties button (the same can be done in the "Device Manager").
Now move to the policy tab, activate the optimal performance item and save the set options. In theory, the increase in speed when copying files will be noticeable immediately.
How to speed up a flash drive through the BIOS?
Finally, another rather serious problem is that legacy BIOS primary I/O systems are configured by default so that Legacy USB Support is Enabled. Using this option was necessary before, but in relation to modern flash drives, activating it only slows down the work of removable drives.
To optimize, simply disable this option by setting it to Disabled, then save changes on exit (F10 + Y).
Formatting and restoring the firmware
Finally, let's see how to speed up a flash drive, say, an old-style one or one that can cause fatal errors.
As one of the most powerful means, low-level formatting (for example, using the HDD LLFT program) can be advised. Also, with the help of special utilities from the manufacturers themselves, you can try to restore the original factory firmware. For manual recovery, you will need to define special identifiers VID and PID (for example, in the ChipGenius application), then search for them as much as possible.appropriate firmware, download it to your computer and install it yourself.
