cruzer mini not working...

[Byan]

I just tried to put my 256MB cruzer mini into my comp and it didn't recognize it at all, and then I tried to put it into my sisters comp and it said it didn't install correctly..

a few times at school they have locks on the taskbar, so you can't use safetly remove, so I have just pulled it out.., could this be the reason?

I put it in, the light goes on, but nothing happends...

I ordered it in January, does sandisk give any warrunties?

[chaszal]

Depending upon your O/S you may have to download a driver from the Sandisk site. I remember I had to. Did you try that?
I just checked my installation instructions; again depending upon your O/S it seems that there are different ways that you can "safely remove" the drive, but it doesn't say what happens if you don't.

[Byan]

I have windows XP PRO SP1, so it does not require a driver.., and it also worked fine before hand...

[chorro]

did you try different usb ports?? it could be a rare thing, but the one usb port that you're plugging your cruzer in may be defective.

[Byan]

I tired the two in front, one in back, and my sister's front one..

its the cruzer..

[DeltaEdge]

I am also having the same problem. I hope someone can help us.

[HAN]

Could the drive be defective? Unfortunately, yes it can. If you google for defective flashdrives, you'll certainly find examples. But IMO, it's relatively rare. I've been using them since last summer (numerous drives) on various Windows OS's (98 & up) and haven't had a drive go bad yet.

Could pulling the drive out from Win ME and higher have been the cause of the trouble? Yeah, it's possible but IMO, probably not. Win Me and higher uses write caching with these drives so if the data transfer is a little slow, Windows controls the transfer between the PC's hard drive and the flash drive. If the transfer isn't finished and you pull the drive, the transfer can become corrupted. If it's corrupted bad enough, things might not work right in the future.

If you have tested the drive over and over and it's just dead (can't be formatted or anything), then contact SanDisk and get them to replace it. (Hopefully it's still under warranty.)

FWIW, I've been carrying/using a 512Mb Cruzer Micro since Christmas and mine is still "cruzing"...

Oh...BTW, even with my taskbar locked, I can still disconnect my flashes. Curious you cannot???

[Byan]

with the taskbar locked you cannot use the safely remove devices option.., so you have to pull it out while risking corruption

I wonder, does it have a serial number on it.., I don't no where I put mine.., hmm.., I am going to see if I can find it.., and then see what I can do on sandisk's site

[DeltaEdge]

Well I e-mailed sandisk to see if there is something to fix it. If not I'll just RMA it to them or newegg (I just received it today). I plugged it in two computers and it worked, but on the original computer (third time) it would not work. Hopefully it just has something to do with the registry. When I plug mine in the light stays lite for a second, then remains dim. Do you get the same problem?

[chorro]

what chipset is your motherboard?? You might want to try updating your chipset motherboard drivers which include the latest usb2 drivers.

If the cruzer is working on the other 2 computers, I doubt that getting a new one will end your problem of the original pc recognizing it.

[DeltaEdge]

The first time and third time I used it was on the same computer. Right now I have the best BIOS for my mobo right now.

[HAN]

BTW, in XP (for sure), write caching for these drives can be turned off... but if the computer you're plugged into isn't yours, then disabling write caching isn't really an option. As I'm sure you're well aware of already, the Cruzer series blinks when being written to or read from. So if the light is steady and doesn't change for a while, and it looks like the file transfer is finished (based on any file transfer boxes Windows may have shown), then it should be safe to remove it (even if the warning box pops up when you do so.)

SanDisk mentions serial numbers at their support site but I know my Micro does not have one. Don't know about the Mini...

[DeltaEdge]

I wish I knew what is wrong. The cruzer is not in my computer or device manager.

[kxn]

The serial number might be on the drive itself on one of the six sides. My mini cruzer has on the "small" side.