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USB Flash or Thumb Drives

Last Update: 1/3/08

USB flash or thumb drives are very useful tools, but they have limitations. They may fail without warning so you should NEVER keep the only copy of a file on a flash drive. Keep a copy on your hard drive or a server like Excelsior. If neither are available, you can use a second flash drive. To help prevent flash drive failures, you should always disconnect power from the drive before pulling it out.

Windows

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1. In the lower right-hand corner of the screen you'll find an icon with a green arrow whenever one or more USB devices are connected. To remove a device, click on the icon and then click on the "Safely remove ..." box that appears. If multiple devices appear, you need to click on the correct one. If you don't know, see step 3.
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2. When you get the message shown above, it's safe to remove the flash drive. If you get a message saying it cannot be stopped, close all files and/or windows associated with the flash drive and try again. If it continues to say it cannot be stopped, you should shut down the computer before removing the flash drive.
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3. If you need assistance in knowing which device is the flash drive, click the Start button, right-click My Computer, and select Open.
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4. A window will open to display all the drives. Flash drives will appear under the Removable Storage heading.

Macintosh

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Drag the Desktop icon to the Trashcan and release. When the icon disappears from the screen, it's safe to remove the flash drive.