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How To Remove A Virus From A Flash Drive
How To Remove A Virus From A Flash Drive
Drive
Two Methods:Removing Shortcut VirusesRemoving Autorun VirusesCommunity Q&A
Due to their portability, USB devices are convenient vessels for spreading viruses. USB devices
are vulnerable to two major types of viruses: the shortcut virus and the autorun virus. We will
discuss how to remove each virus with antimalware software and manually entered commands.
Read on to learn about the measures Windows is taking to protect your computer from the
autorun virus.
Method 1
3. Remove the shortcut virus with a command prompt. You can manually remove the
virus from your flash drive within a command prompt window. To open the command
prompt window, click “Start” and search for “cmd.” Right-click on the “cmd” or
“Command Prompt Window” result and select “Run as Administrator.” In the command
prompt window:
Type in your USB’s letter and hit ↵ Enter . To determine the drive’s letter, open
“My Computer” and identify the letter listed next to the removable drive.
Type del *.lnk and hit ↵ Enter .
Type attrib -s -r -h *.* /s.d/l/ and then hit ↵ Enter .
Open your flash drive. All of your files should return to normal.
2.
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4
Backup your files. After removing the virus from your drive, you may wish to reformat
your thumb drive. Reformatting your USB drive will remove all existing data from the
drive, providing you with a clean, virus-free device. Before you reformat your drive,
backup all of the files on the USB. Scan through the items on your pen drive and delete
any unfamiliar files and folders. Move all of the files from your USB to a folder on your
desktop.[4]
3.
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5
Reformat your drive. Click “Start” and type “cmd” into the search bar. Launch the
“Command Prompt Window.” Type in the letter associated with the thumb drive and hit
↵ Enter . Type format /q /x [INSERT YOUR DRIVE’S LETTER]: and hit ↵ Enter .[5]
Method 2
1. 1
Understand the autorun virus. Originally, when you inserted a USB drive into a port,
the USB drive automatically opened. If your USB drive was infected, this process
executed a file called autorun.inf, which housed the autorun virus. As a result, when the
USB drive automatically opened, it would activate the autorun virus. On Windows XP
models and newer, USB devices are no longer opened automatically, which in turn means
that the autorun.inf file is no longer executed automatically. This measure protects your
computer from the virus.[7]
2. 2
Scan the drive for a virus. If you are concerned about the integrity of your pen drive,
scan your drive for viruses before use. Click Start > My Computer. Right-click on the
removable drive and select “Scan for Viruses.” If a virus is detected, follow the provided
instructions to remove it.
If you are using Windows RT 8.1 or newer, your computer is equipped with
Windows Defender. To scan for viruses, open Windows Defender. Click Settings
> Advanced. Check the box next to “Scan removable drives.” Every time you run
a full scan, your USB drive will be checked for viruses.[8]
Some anti-malware software will automatically scan your USB drive every time it
is inserted into your computer’s port.[9]
If your Windows computer is not equipped with anti-virus software, download a
reputable program.[10]
3. 3
Remove the autorun virus. To rid your portable drive of the virus, you need to delete
the autorun.inf file and restart your computer. Click Start > Run. Key in “Cmd” and hit ↵
Enter . In the Command Prompt Window, type in the letter associated with your drive
followed by ↵ Enter . Type attrib -r -h -s autorun.inf and hit ↵ Enter . Type del
autorun.inf and then press enter ↵ Enter . Restart your computer to complete the
process.[11]
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Tips
Always scan your computer after this procedure as the virus could migrate from the
external USB storage device to your main drive.
Try scanning all of the files you would like to copy to your computer to see if they're safe
and not infected. If it's a picture you love and it's infected, print it out before deleting it,
then scan it back to your computer. You'll thank yourself.
Warnings
Every file you copy could be infected, if you can't afford to lose an infected document or
picture, print it out and scan it back to the computer from paper.
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Sources and Citations
1. ↑ http://www.trickseek.net/remove-shortcut-virus/
2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ovrb51xf2_U
3. ↑ http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/how-find-remove-virus
Article Info
Categories: External Storage Devices
In other languages:
Deutsch: Einen Virus von einem USB Stick entfernen, Português: Remover um Vírus de um Pen
Drive, Español: eliminar virus de una USB, Italiano: Eliminare un Virus da un Dispositivo
Rimovibile, Français: éradiquer un virus d'un disque flash, Русский: удалить вирус с флеш
диска, 中文: 删除U盘里的病毒, Bahasa Indonesia: Menghapus Virus Dari Flash Drive
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