The problem: flash drive freezes when copying files

Data transfer between external hard drives and computers happens frequently. We copy files from PC to SD cards, USB flash drives, HDDs or SSDs to backup important files and free up local disk space. We also copy files the other way, thus keeping the external data on the computer. However, the data transfer process does not always go smoothly. Some users find the external hard drive freezes when moving files. Here is a post about the problem:

“I’ve been trying to transfer files to several external hard drives of mine in order to clear up space on my HDD, however every time I do begin a transfer, it will only do so for about 2-3 seconds, and then the transfer rate will drop rapidly until it is 0mb/s. It remains stuck there until Windows notifies me that something went wrong during the transfer process. Has anyone else had the same issue/know how to remedy?”

How to resolve external hard drive freezes when copying files efficiently?

If you find the external hard drive crashes when copying files, you can refer to the following methods:

Method 1: change the way of copying files

Repetitive, quick drag/drop can result in a hard drive freeze. Try to use copy/paste or cut/paste to transfer files. Moreover, you may transfer files in small groups rather than a big chunk, thus improving the transfer rate.

Method 2: enable/disable write caching

If you are copying files to the external hard drive, you can fix the issue by enabling write caching in Device Manager:

1. Right click on the Start icon and select Device Manager.

2. Find the external hard drive, right click on it and select Properties.

3. Under the Policy tab, choose Better performance and click “OK”.

Tips: If you are copying files from the drive, choose Quick removal.

Method 3: repair bad sectors on the frozen external hard drive

1. Tap the Search button on the taskbar and type “cmd” in the search box. Right click “cmd” and select “Run as administrator”.

2. Type chkdsk F: /f /r /x and press Enter. You should change the drive letter “F:” to that of the frozen external hard drive.

Tips: The meaning of the parameters used—“/f” tells chkdsk to fix any errors it finds; “/r” tells it to locate the bad sectors on the drive and recover readable information; “/x” forces the drive to dismount before the process starts.

3. Type exit and press Enter to exit Command Prompt.

Quicker way to copy files from/to external hard drives

As you see, to fix the issue that external hard drive freezes when copying files, you should use copy/paste or cut/paste to transfer files, which would be very troublesome for transferring a large number of files. What’s more, enabling/disabling write caching each time you want to copy files from/to external hard drives is also annoying. Is there a more efficient way to transfer data without worrying about frozen hard drives?

AOMEI Backupper Standard, the best file sync software for free, can help you with quick data transfer between two locations.

Learn how to copy files from the computer to an external hard drive via AOMEI Backupper’s Sync feature below. 

1. Connect the external hard drive to the computer and make sure it is detected. Download, install and launch AOMEI Backupper.

Click “Sync” and select “Basic Sync”.

Name the task so that you can distinguish it from other sync tasks. Click “Add Folder” to select the folder you want to copy.

Tips: To sync more than one folder, you can click the “+” button after adding the first folder.

4. Click the folder shaped button in the second column to select the external hard drive as the destination path.

Click on “Start Sync” button to perform the operation. After the operation is finished, safely disconnect your drive.