Windows 10: Windows update will not use external storage

Discus and support Windows update will not use external storage in Windows 10 Installation and Upgrade to solve the problem; Windows update recognises that I have external storage attached but will not use it for updating to Feature Update 20H2 it simply continues to try to... Discussion in 'Windows 10 Installation and Upgrade' started by Robert~, Mar 13, 2021.

  1. ROBERT~
    Robert~ Win User

    Windows update will not use external storage


    Windows update recognises that I have external storage attached but will not use it for updating to Feature Update 20H2 it simply continues to try to 'Free up Storage' even though the external storage device is shown in the dialog see Below. The external device is a USB3 flash drive bought this year I have tried formatting the flash drive as NTFS and as FAT 32 with no result

    Windows update will not use external storage 4917f136-d280-4535-8db8-e0b86baa69a8?upload=true.png

    Windows update will not use external storage c84a6881-c3f1-45bd-8a2f-e6d804c5a932?upload=true.png

    :)
     
    Robert~, Mar 13, 2021
    #1
  2. HAZIQ JAMALUDIN
    Haziq Jamaludin Win User

    Update Assistant does not detect External Storage Device

    I am currently facing an issue with the update assistant. The problem comes from the prompt as seen from this webpage

    Free up space for Windows 10 updates

    The issue is in "Step 2: Connect an external storage device". It says to
    "Connect your external storage device and wait until you see it in the drop-down list" but the external storage device already connected to my device (and shows up on My PC) is not shown on the drop down list. Can you help?


    Windows update will not use external storage c6321704-8541-466f-88a9-ab5e75fbdf04?upload=true.png
     
    Haziq Jamaludin, Mar 13, 2021
    #2
  3. JENICEL DRI
    Jenicel Dri Win User
    Update Assistant does not detect External Storage Device

    Hi Haziq,

    To further isolate the issue, kindly answer the questions below:

    • Have you tried connecting your external device storage to different PC to make sure that it's not defective?

    • Have you tried connecting a different external storage device to your PC to check if you're still experiencing the same issue?

    • What troubleshooting steps have you done so far?

    For the meantime, you may try suggested troubleshooting that was provided by
    Andre Da Costa     from this link and check if it makes any difference.

    Update us with the result.
     
    Jenicel Dri, Mar 13, 2021
    #3
  4. XTSX
    xTSx Win User

    Windows update will not use external storage

    Error: Please Insert The External Storage Media And Press Ok

    My computer, HP 14-an013nr, said to do the Windows 10 update, but the storage was full so it suggested an external storage device... The problem is that now after using a usp drive and following the steps it is unable to reinstall the previous version. I've
    tried this multiple times and even when it says "Restoring the previous version of windows" it always comes back to the "error please insert the external storage media and press ok" message. I can no longer use the computer. It will do NOTHING. It won't restore
    the previous version of windows and only shows a black screen with the error message. Is there a way to save the thing or is it lost?
     
    xTSx, Mar 13, 2021
    #4
Thema:

Windows update will not use external storage

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