Why Did My SD Card Suddenly Stopped Working? Fixed!

Sometimes, users might encounter the issue of their SD cards suddenly stopped working. In this scenario, the top priority is to prevent the existing SD card from data loss because the repair process of faulty SD cards might delete everything. After that, you’re ready to fix your SD card.

If you’re also bothered by this issue, you might want to know the following questions:

• Why did my SD card suddenly stopped working?
• How to recover files from an SD card that stopped working? If possible, how to recover deleted files from SD cards?
• How to fix my SD card suddenly stopped working?

How to recover files from an SD card that stopped working?

If there’s no deletion on your SD card, you only need to extract all the existing SD card data before repair. On the contrary, you’d better continue referring to the second part to recover deleted files from SD cards.

Part 1. Make file backups via AOMEI Backupper Standard

As the title suggests, this section aims to extract all the existing SD card data by creating file copies via AOMEI Backupper Standard.

This free Windows backup software is good at backing up files, folders, partitions, disks, or systems to internal or external hard drives, USBs, Networks, or Cloud drives.

Notes:✎...

AOMEI Backupper Standard supports Windows 11, 10, 8.1, 8, 7, XP, and Vista PC. It recognizes different types of SD cards such as SD, SDHC, SDXC, Micro SD, Micro SDHC, and Micro SDXC.

It offers daily incremental backups and differential backup options as you prefer.

Step 1. Install and run AOMEI Backupper Standard on your Windows > click Backup > select File Backup.

Step 2. Click “Add File/Folder” to add the SD card files or folders you want to back up.

Step 3. Select “Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Event triggers, or USB plug in” to enable the backup period. Then click the “Start Backup” button.

Part 2. Recover deleted files from SD cards via SD card data recovery software

Is there a way to recover deleted files from SD cards without backups? Of course, there is. You can turn to professional SD card data recovery software for help.

Supported by its advanced scanning method and high data recovery rate, MyRecover is good at recovering deleted and missing files from different types of SD cards (Samsung, Sandisk, Kingston, Transcend, etc.) and other local storage devices.

• Please stop loading new files to your SD card to prevent data coverage. After data erasure, it can decrease its SD card data recovery rate.
• After SD card data recovery, please remember to save your retrieved files in a new path instead of the original SD card.
• Upgrading MyRecover is a more cost-effective choice for those users who prefer to recover plenty of deleted or missing SD card files.

★Key features of MyRecover:

Recover 200+ types of files: images, audio, videos, MS Office files, WPS files, folders, compressed files, websites, etc.

Combined scanning method: MyRecover can automatically run Quick Scan and Deep Scan to detect all the recoverable files on your selected local drive.

Easy-to-find: After recovery, MyRecover can keep the original format, filename, path, and size for the deleted files.

Excellent compatibility: Support Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, or Server PC and 4 file systems (NTFS, FAT32, exFAT, and ReFS).

Step 1. Connect your SD card to the Windows PC > run MyRecover on your Windows > hover the mouse over your connected SD card > click Scan.

Step 2. After clicking Start Scan, MyRecover can automatically run Quick Scan and Deep Scan to search all the retrievable SD card files.

During scanning, you can filter/preview your desired SD card files according to Filename, Document Type, Path, Size, Date, etc.

• Name: Enter the filename of your wanted USB files to narrow the search area.
• Date modified: Set the date (today, yesterday, last 7/30 days, etc.)
• Size: Filter file size (<128KB, 128KB~1MB, 1MB~512MB, etc.)

Step 3. Under the Other Missing Files folder, select the SD card files you intend to retrieve > click Recover x files.

Why did my SD card suddenly stopped working?

As stated earlier, many factors can cause your SD card suddenly stopped working. Let’s get an overview of common reasons below.

Reason 1. File systems issues

The damaged file system is one of the common reasons for your unresponsive SD cards. What’s worse, a corrupted file system itself is also common.

📑 Unsupported file systems: Windows OS can read NTFS, exFAT, and FAT32 file systems. Other file systems can cause prompts for formatting or give rise to errors in the process.

💻 Improper ejection: If you suddenly eject your SD card as it reads/writes data, it can lead to file corruption.

🚦 Improper formatting: Any interruptions during formatting can give rise to implications. After disk formatting, it can set up new file systems and write new data because formatting SD cards deletes everything.

Reason 2. Faulty adapters or SD card slot connectors

The natural process of wear and tear, damage, and even the presence of basic dust and debris can hinder your computer’s ability to accurately interpret the information on your SD card. There are scenarios where the system might not detect your SD card.

Reason 3. Write protection

The activation of write protection serves as a safeguard measure against the copying of data to the SD card by computers. If your SD card won’t format, it might be its activated write-protection feature.

🔐 Write switch lock: There exists a physical lock on the SD card that can turn on its write protection. To add new files to SD cards, you need to unlock SD cards.

📖 Read-only settings: An SD card set to read-only mode prevents data from being written to it, and it also restricts users from making edits or deleting files.

📷 A failing SD card: In the event of an SD card experiencing failure, Windows OS might automatically engage write protection as a precautionary measure to prevent potential data loss for users.

Reason 4. Physical damage

Similar to other local storage devices, SD cards also are not immune to physical damage. SD cards can be damaged in various ways and these damages can lead to the symptoms we talked about earlier. Please get an overview of the common causes of SD card issues.

💧 Water damage: Among all electronic devices, water stands as the top adversary. Your device might still function if it hasn’t been connected to power while getting wet. Please ensure it’s dry before reuse.

🔥 Extreme temperatures: Undoubtedly, extreme cold/heat definitely can harm the metal components of the SD card.

🧷Damaged ports: When pins on your SD card are bent or broken, its functionality might be compromised. Additionally, wear and tear also affect your computer’s ports, causing potential issues.

Reason 5. Malicious viruses or malware

Viruses and various forms of malware impact devices diversely. For example, they can hinder SD card functionality or recognition, erase data entirely, hold your data hostage, or even enact a combination of these outcomes and more.

How to fix my SD card suddenly stopped working?

According to the above causes, there are five feasible methods to fix this issue.

Fix 1. Check your SD card connection

A poor connection can discourage your connected SD card from being detected by your Windows OS. Please try to clean your ports with a clean cloth. If it is useless, try another port or card reader.

Fix 2. Repair bad sectors on your SD card via error checking tool

After connecting your SD card, if there is a problem with this drive, you can make good use of a Windows built-in error-checking tool to check and fix detected bad sectors.

Notes:✎...

If the Disk Check could not be performed, please get more details on another page.

Step 1. Connect your SD card to the Windows > press Win + E to open File Explorer.

Step 2. Right-click on your SD card > select Properties > click Tools > Check.

Step 3. Click the “Scan drive” to begin scanning.

Fix 3. Remove write protection on SD cards

As you can see, the read-only mode cannot enable you to write new data or modify your SD card. If you intend to modify your SD card data smoothly, you need to remove write protection on SD cards via the following steps.

Step 1. After connecting your SD card to the Windows PC, press “Win + X” and select “Windows PowerShell (Admin)” from the pop menu.

Step 2. Type the following command prompt in turn. Please remember to hit “Enter” after typing each command line.

diskpart

list disk

select disk x (x refers to the disk number of your connected SD card.)

attributes disk clear readonly

Step 3. After seeing Disk attributes cleared successfully, you can type “exit” in the window to end this process.

Fix 4. Format your SD card via Disk Management

If your SD card is severely corrupted or infected by viruses, you can try to format it via Disk Management because this built-in tool is designed to perform advanced Windows storage tasks.

Step 1. Connect your SD card to the Windows. Then press “Win + X” and select “Disk Management” to open this utility.

Step 2. Right-click on your SD card > select Format.

Step 3. Select the NTFS file system and click “OK” to save your changes.

Fix 5. Seek help from professional data recovery services

The presence of a hardware problem or controller failure within your disk likely leads to the inability of your system to recognize memory cells. In this scenario, seeking help from professional data recovery services like the Geek Squad SD card recovery service becomes imperative.

Yet, it’s essential to be prepared for potentially higher costs associated with this solution due to its specialized equipment and data recovery professionals.

Wrapping up

“Why did my SD card suddenly stopped working and how to fix this issue?” How to recover files from an SD card that stopped working? After reading this passage, you can find the right answers from the corresponding part.

Before repairing SD cards, you’re advisable to make regular file backups to prevent all the existing SD card data from being lost. For deleted SD card files, you can use the top recovery software for SD cards like MyRecover to retrieve them.