• Flash Drive Eject Error for Still In Use

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    #2776661

    I use flash drives every day. When done I close the drive and click the eject icon.

    EjectIcon

    Normally Windows then removes it from Explorer file display.

    However, if before I try to software eject, I had opened a .JPG file on the flash drive, then try to eject, I get this message:

    USB-Still-In-Use

    In order to clear this I always have to restart, which then correctly gives an all clear software eject. When I had NOT opened a .JPG file but only normal files the eject works fine.

    In the April updates there was some kind of fix for pictures. I think this fix or the original problem is the cause of this current problem as this has never happened before.

    Win 10 Home 22H2

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    • #2776666

      Save the .JPG first, then…
      If the .JPG is opening in the Pictures App, be sure to close the Pictures App.
      If the .JPG is opening in another program (check the default program for .jpg in Settings\Apps\Default Apps\Choose default apps by type), be sure that program is closed.

      1 user thanked author for this post.
    • #2776688

      BTDT, the trick to avoid this without having to restart is to open an image file on a different drive using the same graphics program before attempting to eject the flash drive.

      You should also check the Policy setting for the flash drive and ensure it’s actually set for Quick removal (which is suppose to be the default for all flash drives.)

      I bring that up because I use a couple of Kingston DataTraveler flash drives that, by default, were set for Better performance with write caching enabled instead of Quick removal.

      This happened because, for some “truly bizarre” reason, Kingston decided to configure them as fixed drives even though they’re removable flash drives?!?!

      1 user thanked author for this post.
    • #2777455

      If the .JPG is opening in another program

      It is opening in

      DafaultPhoto
      Yep, I always close whatever file I have open. This has always been the default as I never knew before now how to even specify a default – just what Win gave me from day 1. Never had a problem until couple Win updates ago.

    • #2777457

      he trick to avoid this without having to restart is to open an image file on a different drive using the same graphics program before attempting to eject the flash drive.

      Interesting. I opened a .jpg on the flash. Closed it on flash. Copied it to desktop. Open and close on desktop (thus a different disk). And like you said it ejected fine.

      You should also check the Policy setting

      I don’t think I have that ability as this is Win home version.

      • #2777509

        I don’t think I have that ability as this is Win home version.

        Quick removal isn’t a Group Policy setting, it’s a Device Manager setting and is available in all versions of Windows.

        Device Manager > Disk drives > Select the USB drive > Right-click and select Properties > Select the Policies tab.

        QuickRemoval

        Any drive set for Quick removal doesn’t have to be ejected; it can simply be unplugged.

        1 user thanked author for this post.
    • #2777466

      Couple of thoughts. I have never had this problem before until I “vaguely” remember Susan in the newsletter mentioning a fix for picture problems in the April update.

      I know absolutely nothing about how Win interfaces with USB drives but with that being said may I ask a “What If” question?

      What if Win has 1 indicator and 1 counter for each USB connected?

      1)  When usb A connects Win sets ind 1 to on “USB  A connected”. When usb A closes and exits, Win turns the ind off and tells the software eject icon to give the okay to remove usb A. This is there because the usb has to do housekeeping and if pulled out too fast, changes can be dropped. My flash instructions tell me to always use this to avoid corrupting the flash and I have found if I click the icon too soon it gives me the still in use popup. So I wait a few seconds and then get the all clear.

      2) When usb A opens a file on the flash drive perhaps Win stokes a counter by one. Another open, another stroke. When a file is closed the counter is decremented. The eject icon looks at this counter to see if it is zero. If not I get the flash still open popup.

      Now suppose my first file is a Word file. When I close Word it tells Win I have closed the file and Win decrements the counter. But What If the next open is with the Photo app. The counter is incremented. But What If when I close that picture the PHOTO App (which had changes a few months ago) fails to tell Win it has closed the picture. Then the eject icon see a postive number in the usb count and thinks a file is still open. The restart probably clears all the counters.

      I am not sure why opening the picture on a different drive works. Perhaps this what if counter is also kept within the photo app itself and when a different drive does a close it clears all its counters and advises Win of such. Remember, a bug can cause all kinds of weird results and fixes.

      All of this, just a thought.

    • #2777587

      Quick removal isn’t a Group Policy setting, it’s a Device Manager setting

      Thanks much for teaching me more stuff I did not know.

      I checked 3 different brand flash drives I have and all have the policy “Quick Removal” set as default.

      DefaultEject
      The QuickRemoval does say you can safely remove the device without using the icon.

      What leaves me between a rock and a hard place is that the user manuals on all three say similarly

      Eject1
      Just out of curiosity I asked Google if I needed to do a safe eject on flash drives and this is what an AI generated result produced,

      SafeEject

      I will add, at times I have clicked the icon while the flash drive led is flashing like crazy and the icon says not to eject. That sort of makes me wonder if the Windows Quick Remove without consulting the icon is really that safe. I sure would not want to corrupt my mega GB flash drive and lose all that data.

      But back to the original problem, the safe remove icon always worked perfectly for me until that picture app problem a few months back.

       

    • #2778480

      I now have the definitive proof that this is a problem with the MS Photo App. So you ask why should we care since Win 10 is going out of business in Oct? Because the Photo App is, I believe, the same App that is being used in Win 11. So why propagate a problem forever?

      What is the proof? Fortunately, I have an old Win 8.1 that was upgraded to Win 10. That PC still has the old Windows Photo Viewer installed.

      I went into Settings/Apps/DefaultApps/DefaultAppsByFileType (Learned about this setting from PKCano above) and changed the default for .jpg files to Windows Photo Viewer. (This old app only on my old machine but I understand still downloadable to OEM Win 10 PCs).

      I then tried opening and closing a .jpg on my flash drive (which now opened with the old app), closed the flash, waited a few seconds for the flash to do housekeeping shut down, clicked the Safely Remove Hardware icon and WALA, the all clear to remove was given.

      I really hope MS programmers will look into this because if this bug is there, then there may be even more serious bugs indirectly tied to this bug. (Win not knowing a file has been closed can leave an open hole).

      It would help the cause if others (especially Win 11 users) would report having the same problem. Thanks.

      1 user thanked author for this post.
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