Windows 10: How to make removable disk act like permanent hard disk in Win 10 Pro?

I'm setting up a Toshiba Encore 2 Tablet for a family member. I've already updated it to run 32-bit Windows 10 Pro 1607. It came with a very small amount of internal EMCC storage (24 GB available, NTFS formatted), but fortunately it also includes a MicroSD slot, which I've populated as a 128 GB NTFS drive. I've successfully installed and run many applications to/from this MicroSD disk ("D:\").

But this disk apparently is seen by Windows as a removable drive and so it does NOT include a Recycle Bin and Windows refuses to list this disk as available to store Restore Points, both of which I want to enable. How can I accomplish this? Am I correct in suspecting that if I can somehow force Windows to see the D:\ drive as a non-removable hard drive, it will automatically setup or enable a Recycle Bin and also allow me to turn on System Protection for the drive? If not, how can I do what I want?

Thanks!

:)

 

Removing redundant disk stops Win 10 from loading.

Have upgraded to Windows 10 which I like. When I remove redundant disk, Win 10 stops working 'til I replace redundant disk

Per Disk Management

Disk 0 is redundant drive I want to remove, shows as E: This originally had Win 7

Disk 1

Disk 2 has Win 10 programs, shows as c:

Disk 2 has 4 partitions. d: ; c: (Healthy, Boot, Page file, Crash Dump, Primary Partition); blank:Healthy Recovery Partition; f:

Disk 3

BIOS set to first boot from Disk 2

Background

Disk 0 was main disk using Win 7

Disk 2 a new drive bought at same time as Win 8 DVD install disks

Used upgrade feature of Win 8 (to preserve existing data) & installed Windows on Drive 2

Subsequently upgraded to Win 8.1 then Windows 10.

What changes do I have to make to my system so I remove redundant disk?

 

SSD not being shown in disk management

Western Digital got back to me and this solved my problem:

Thank you for your continued response.

Please perform the steps mentioned below to run Diskpart. Please note that following steps will erase all the data on the SSD including partitions and boot sector.

1. Open Command Prompt, Click on Start - Run - Type cmd and hit Enter.

2. Type diskpart, and then press ENTER to open the diskpart tool.

3. Type list disk, and then press ENTER. A list of available hard disks is displayed.

4. Type sel disk #number, and then press ENTER. Number is the number of the hard disk that you want to clean. The hard disk is now selected.

5. Type det disk, and then press ENTER. A list of partitions on the hard disk is displayed. Use this information to verify that the correct disk is selected.

6. Make sure that the disk does not contain required data, type clean all, and then press ENTER to clean the disk. All the partitions and all the data on the disk is permanently removed.

7. Type exit, and then press ENTER to close

 

Not possible. Just backup drive regularly.

 

Thanks for your reply, but the family member in question can't really perform backups and the like herself.

And for the record, however, it seems that at least some people have managed to trick Windows into treating at least some removable storage devices (typically removable USB flash drives and the like) as if they were fixed disks. I, myself, have a strong memory of using some third-party software to do this a while back, even though I don't remember the name of the tool.

Some people have solved this using hard links, but I don't want to go that route (at least until I've exhausted all other options). Others have used various hacks to flip the "removable" bit -- some using special software tools and others by installing special filter drivers that report to Windows that the device in question is a fixed disk.

Here's a link that describes a solution for certain device types and situations (but none of them address my highly specific needs of MicroSD under Windows 10):

http://agnipulse.com/2012/03/filter-drivers-removable-media-fixed-disk-windows/


But I still think there is probably a solution/hack that will accomplish what I need...

 

the removeable bit solution has not worked for several years.

You could just buy a win to go certified flash drive which is seen as a fixed drive.

 

There is a Recycle Bin on every External drive in Windows, but it is a hidden file. However, it is associated with the Recycle Bin on the C: drive. If you accidentally or on purpose delete a file on the external drive, you can restore it from the recycle bin on the C: drive.
System Restore does not restore personal items (ie) Documents, Pictures, Music etc. It only restores Windows System Files, Programs and Drivers. So running a System Restore to restore accidentally deleted files on an external drive will do no good, as there are no Windows files on an external drive.
You can set up an automatic backup to another drive, and if something is deleted, they can restore it from the backup.

 

Uh, Spunk, I hesitate to contradict you but I don't think your statement is true. I've been battling this problem for years and just ran a test based on your statement,

"There is a Recycle Bin on every External drive in Windows, but it is a hidden file. However, it is associated with the Recycle Bin on the C: drive. If you accidentally or on purpose delete a file on the external drive, you can restore it from the recycle bin on the C: drive."

I have a Surface Pro 3 with a micro SD card in it's slot. I modified the Windows explorer view options to include hidden and system files. I saved a test text file in the root level folder and then deleted it. The delete message was, "are you sure you want to permanently delete this file?" I said yes and the file is gone. It's not in the C:\RecycleBin. There is no recycle bin on the sd card. I've searched repeatedly for a solution to this. It's the only thing that keeps me from using the sd card. I've lost things I couldn't recover - even with file recovery software.

 

Not quite sure if I understand you or know what you're getting at. "permanently delete this file" means exactly that, you certainly aren't going to find it in any recycle bin.

 

The point is that this message ONLY occurs if there is no recycle bin. Spunk said, "There is a recycle bin on every External drive in Windows...". And while I'm well aware that MS differentiates between "External" and "SD" drives in the strictest sense, the original question revolved around, "MicroSD" drives. You really should read the whole thread. The frustration comes from the fact that Windows doesn't set up and manage a recycle bin on SD cards and the original question asks if there is some bit to change withing Windows to allow this to happen. And yes, it is obvious that the user should pay thoughtful attention to a message saying the file will be permanently deleted. It is also human to hit the damn enter key as a reflex and regret it a millisecond later. I assume that was the one of the original reasons for a recycle bin to exist.

I have a pretty good handle on the definition of "permanently". But since the data is still out there on the SD card with the file table entry marked as "deleted" - it wasn't really so "permanent", was it? It's just a hassle to have to use a file recovery utility to recover it - and hopefully it wasn't overwritten in the meantime.

Here's another definition for you:
2. thoughtful (adj.)

acting with or showing thought and good sense

 

Yes, thank you for your follow up response to my response. I apologize for not assuming you could speak English. There are many Nationalities on this forum. Hence my definition.

 

Hi spunk,

You are correct to point out System Restore tool does not restore users personal files but we can use ShadowExplorer program to restore lost or damaged files from Shadow Copies. However, it is by no means a replacement for traditional backups!

 

Just a thought. Right click on the C:recycle bin and check that the option to select to permanently delete files instead of send to the recycle bin hasn't somehow become checked

 

No. If that were checked no deleted files would ever go into the Recycle Bin.

This issue has been outstanding since SD cards started being used. I've seen it addressed on other forums too. I've never seen a solution. And believe me, I've tried.

I bought a Surface Pro 3 several years ago and was in hopes I could use the built-in microSD slot as the D: drive for documents; keeping the C: drive for programs. I set it up that way initially but got so burned so many times with inadvertent deletes that now I hardly use the D: drive at all. Between the touch screen and clumsy fingers on the touch pad, it's incredibly easy to make a mistake. The microSD slot a huge waste of what could have been a great resource.