Have you ever tried safely ejecting your USB drive, only to be returned by a “The device is currently in use” error? This can be frustrating, especially when you are in a hurry. In this article, we will tell you how to find which program is blocking a USB device when ejecting.
Why Do Programs Block Drives from Ejecting?
When you move a file to or from your USB drive, open a document from it, or run an application directly from it, Windows creates a lock to prevent data loss or corruption while the file or application is still in use. This prevents you from ejecting the USB drive from the system. It would be best to close any programs that might be using the device or USB drive to remove this lock. However, sometimes, background processes can end up engaging the drive and creating a lock on it, preventing it from ejecting.
How to Find Which Program Is Using USB Device
Finding which program blocks the USB drive when ejecting can get tricky, primarily when a background process blocks the USB device. This section will examine tools and methods to determine which program blocks USB devices when ejecting. Here’s all that’s covered:
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- Using LockHunter
- Using SafelyRemove
- Using Windows Event Viewer
Let’s dive in to check out these USB blocking tool finders which are similar to deveject tools which was available arlier.
1] Using LockHunter
Lockhunter is free and easy-to-use software that lets you find which program blocks a USB drive when ejecting and unlock it when you want it.
The software is straightforward to use and feature-packed. You can use lockhunter to find all the details about the process blocking the USB Drive, delete the process or file, or kill the process. We found that the software works effectively in helping you eject the USB drive safely.
Features:
- Integrates in the right-click context menu.
- Detailed information on the process blocking the USB drive.
- Delete or kill the process to unblock the USB drive.
- Unload DLLs from processes.
Pros:
- Integrates into the right-click context menu.
- Easy-to-use interface.
Cons:
- Fails to kill processes sometimes.
Read: How to Make the USB Read Only When You Plug It Into Windows PC
2] Using Safely Remove
Safely Remove is another software with more features that allows you greater control over processes blocking the USB drive. The software allows you to find and kill the processes that block the USB drive. One feature that makes the software stand out is replugging a USB drive without reinserting it. The tool also has a command-line interface, allowing you supreme control over your USB drives.
Read: USB drive showing Unknown Capacity? Cannot Format Error Occur
Features:
- Find and kill processes blocking the USB drive.
- Command line interface for greater control over USB drives.
- Assign a hotkey to remove the USB drive safely.
- Save the USB drive from corruption.
- Organize drive letters.
Pros:
- Command line interface for total control over USB drives.
- Assign hotkeys to remove USB drives.
Cons:
- The interface can be complex for some users
3] Using Windows Event Viewer
Windows Event Viewer keeps track of everything happening on your system, including errors, processes, and changes. If you encounter the “The device is currently in use” error, you can use the Event Viewer to check which process is causing it.
- Search Event Viewer in Windows search and open it.
- In the left pane of the Event viewer, head to Event Viewer (Local) > Windows Logs > System.
- Head to the right pane in the System folder, and click on Filter current log.
- This will open a window; in it, change the field that says All Event Ids to 225 and click OK.
- Now, you will see the events where the USB drive was blocked from getting ejected.
- Open the one that coincides with when your USB drive was blocked, and you will see the process that blocked it.
- Use Task Manager to kill the process.
We hope that the steps in this article were easy to follow and you could find which program is blocking the USB drive when ejecting using these USB eject software.
Windows Can’t Eject My USB Drive. Is It Safe to Unplug It Directly?
While unplugging the USB drive will fix the issue, it is not recommended to unplug it directly without safely ejecting it, as you can risk file corruption and potentially even damage to the drive itself. Always close all the software using the drive, then safely eject it before plugging it in.
Why Does Plugging in My USB Drive Freeze Windows Explorer?
If plugging in your USB drive freezes Windows Explorer, then your drive might be laden with viruses or malware. Outdated drivers, file systems, corrupted drives, and hardware issues with the drive can also be behind the issue.
