Sometimes, you can simply wipe the drive then setup as normal. dd if=/dev/zero of= bs=512k It will wipe with zeroes until completed. Then your drive should be clean. That will rule out whether there is a chip making it read-only or the partitioning scheme. I do this drive wipe every day on drives and it works pretty well. Those "secure" drives are a different story as they have a firmware based 1MB partition you cannot "delete" via traditional means. On Thu, 2009-10-29 at 08:17 -0700, Lisa Kachold wrote: > > > On Mon, Oct 19, 2009 at 3:16 PM, mike Enriquez > wrote: > I have a 4GB PNY thumb drive that has issues? It has become > "Write > Protected". It is an Optima pro Attache. I searched the net > and nothing > that I have found has helped me out. > Has any one in the group had this happen to them and how did > you remove > the write protection. > I cannot see any special files on it except 2 of my own. > Any suggestions out there? > Thanks > > Mike Enriquez > > Hi Mike! > > There are a load of Window$ type repair suggestions here (Since this > is a known bug in Xp SP2): > http://www.techspot.com/vb/all/windows/t-18654-USB-Flash-Drive-Write-protection.html > > Linux solutions are going to be basic drive management: > > plug in usb flash drive and mount (if you don't have automouter) > > dmesg to verify the device: > > # dmesg > # mkdir /mnt/usbwork > # mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/usbwork > (it might whine that you didn't specify the type if so:) > # mount -t vfat (or NFS) /dev/sda1 /mnt/usbwork > # cd /mnt/usbwork > Copy off your old files > # cp -r * $HOME > # umount /mnt/usbhome > # fdisk /dev/sda > > Remove all the partitions using the "d" command. > create new partitions using the "n" command (you only really need one > big one) > set the file type "W95 FAT32 (LBA)" (or ext3 if making a bootable > Linux distro) "t" (types will display) > if this is going to hold a distro set the bootable flag "a" > check your work: "p" > save "w" > > Lay on a file system (that matches your file type): > > mkfs.vfat -I -n USBDRIVE /dev/sda1 > > Your drive should work now just fine! > > Reference: http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=346737 > -- > Skype: (623)239-3392 > AT&T: (503)754-4452 > www.obnosis.com > > > > > > > > > > > > --------------------------------------------------- > PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us > To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: > http://lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss --------------------------------------------------- PLUG-discuss mailing list - PLUG-discuss@lists.plug.phoenix.az.us To subscribe, unsubscribe, or to change your mail settings: http://lists.PLUG.phoenix.az.us/mailman/listinfo/plug-discuss