Partition type Ox7 - what is it and why can't I format it?

I am reusing a Sammy EVO SSD that was formerly used as a boot drive. Samsung Magician reports it as healthy. Windows recognizes it as empty but is unable to format it such that it can have files copied to it.
I've looked around a bit, and tried using disk part on it from the command line, where it is also recognized, but not formatted. Free Partition Magic won't do it either.

How can I get this SSD back into service?

What diskpart commands did you try?

You should start with:

If you get an error, then try booting from a Windows 10 installation USB flash drive, use Shift+F10 to get into a command prompt and try it from there.

NavyLCDR said:

What diskpart commands did you try?

You should start with:

Code:

diskpart
list disk
select disk # <-replace # with the actual disk number of the SSD
clean <- this will completely erase the disk selected above, make sure it is the SSD.

If you get an error, then try booting from a Windows 10 installation USB flash drive, use Shift+F10 to get into a command prompt and try it from there.

Click to expand...

Thanks @NavyLCDR
I was able to disk part clean successfully during my first attempts. Windows still reads it as Ox7, File System (other), i.e not NTFS.

Have you tried Samsung Magician software to secure erase the drive?

Another way I clean drives is with a Linux computer with GPARTED installed, a bootable Linux LiveDVD, LiveUSB or with the bootable GPARTED LiveCD, able to delete all partitions including those that Windows has problems with.

If all else fails try DiskGenius.Portable version is available. DiskGenius Download Center | Free Download DiskGenius
You can find its user guide under 'support' at the top of the page.

Berton said:

Another way I clean drives is with a Linux computer with GPARTED installed, a bootable Linux LiveDVD, LiveUSB or with the bootable GPARTED LiveCD, able to delete all partitions including those that Windows has problems with.

Click to expand...

Live bootable Gparted has a terminal and a minimal web browser in it too -- so one can always use the CLI as a last resort.

Any Windows install media is usually OK too -- just boot up -->repair system-->command mode. You are automatically in administator mode,
then Diskpart --- List disk select disk ---clean --create partition etc will fix it -- other problems could be the disk is off line -- then in diskpart just online the disk. If the problem is a clash of ID's e.g identical GUUIDS you can change those too -- howver in that case using GPARTED is probably easier.

Cheers
jimbo

Check the disk and volume GUIDs. Carefully.


If the disk has the 'wrong' GUID, you won't be able to format it.

I'm curious as to how to managed to get a partition with a type of 0x07, that should be NTFS on MBR disks. You may need to convert the disk to GPT partitions and then format that way.

There are multiple types of drive tests.

A drive can display pass on one test and fail on another.


1) Had any recent chkdsk scans completed?


2) Which test(s) were performed using Samsung Magician?


2) Run diskpar info > post a share link into this thread


3) Run Sea Tools bootable Long Generic test:

SeaTools Bootable | Seagate US

https://www.seagate.com/content/dam/...lsBootable.zip

Take pictures > post a share link into this thread


4) Post images or share links displaying the results from Samsung Magician Diagnostic Scan > full scan

NavyLCDR said:

Have you tried Samsung Magician software to secure erase the drive?

Click to expand...

x BlueRobot said:

I'm curious as to how to managed to get a partition with a type of 0x07, that should be NTFS on MBR disks. You may need to convert the disk to GPT partitions and then format that way.

Click to expand...

Thanks all.
Secure Erase did the job. The SSD was a boot drive on another machine. I don't recall exactly but I might have put a GPT partition on it at one point.

Glad you got it fixed!

I'm not sure why under DiskPart the Clean command didn't wipe the disk? Does Clean also not clean an encrypted drive? Does DiskPart also work without being Admin? Not sure myself.

Have you tried Samsung Magician software to secure erase the drive?

Click to expand...

If there isnt an oem program specific to the disk in question, solidigm software will work for any brand.

BamaInArk said:

I'm not sure why under DiskPart the Clean command did wipe the disk? Does Clean also not clean an encrypted drive? Does DiskPart also work without being Admin? Not sure myself.

Click to expand...

The disk part clean command said it was successful, but windows still could not format it. Secure erase did so, although I had to make a USB boot device as a part of the Samsung process, I suppose because Magician is only in existence to facilitate boot disk cloning. I am speculating there was a GPT partition involved that disk part wasn't able to deal with, but Magician was. Or something. Over my head.

kiwiaz said:

The disk part clean command said it was successful, but windows still could not format it. Secure erase did so, although I had to make a USB boot device as a part of the Samsung process, I suppose because Magician is only in existence to facilitate boot disk cloning. I am speculating there was a GPT partition involved that disk part wasn't able to deal with, but Magician was. Or something. Over my head.

Click to expand...

Ah okay. When you use the Clean command it completely wipes the disk to the point Windows doesn't recognize it. You need to bring up Disk Management and up will pop up a dialog asking whether you want to make the drive a MBR or GPT. Once that is accomplished you can format the drive from within Disk Management or let Windows do it in other ways.