{"id":60927,"date":"2020-07-15T09:59:33","date_gmt":"2020-07-15T09:59:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/?p=60927"},"modified":"2025-05-12T10:58:13","modified_gmt":"2025-05-12T10:58:13","slug":"disk-unknown-not-initialized-in-windows-10","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/disk-unknown-not-initialized-in-windows-10\/","title":{"rendered":"Fix Disk Unknown Not Initialized in Windows 10"},"content":{"rendered":"<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><p>When you connect an external drive to the system to copy some files from it to your system, or to create a backup of the system data, sometimes you get a <em>&lsquo;Disk Unknown Not Initialized&rsquo;<\/em> error (See Image 1). This error on your disk makes the drive unreadable, due to which, you are unable to access your data stored on it. However, you may take help of a <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/windows-data-recovery.php\" target=\"_blank\">data recovery tool<\/a> to get back your data. And to fix the error, try attempting the methods given in this blog post.<\/p><p><strong>Why &lsquo;Disk Unknown Not Initialized&rsquo; Error Occurs?<\/strong><\/p><p>There could be several reasons due to which <em>&lsquo;Disk Unknown Not Initialized&rsquo;<\/em> error message may occur, which are mentioned as following:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Corrupt\/ Incompatible\/Outdated Driver<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>MBR Corruption<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Missing or lost partition<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Bad Sectors<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Corrupt File System<\/li>\n<\/ul><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"best-ways-to-fix-disk-unknown-not-initialized-in-windows-10\"><strong>Best Ways to Fix Disk Unknown Not Initialized in Windows 10<\/strong><\/h2><p class=\"has-vivid-red-color has-very-light-gray-background-color has-text-color has-background\"><strong>Method 1: Update Device Driver<\/strong><\/p><p>As explained above, an outdated, corrupt or incompatible device driver may be the cause for this error. You may fix it by updating the latest driver or uninstalling the problematic one, and then reinstalling the compatible driver for the device. Follow these steps to update the device driver:<\/p><p>a. Press <strong>Windows + X<\/strong>, locate and open&nbsp;<strong>Device Manager<\/strong>. (<strong>See Image 1<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"267\" height=\"610\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/go-to-device-manager.jpg\" alt=\"open-device-manager\" class=\"wp-image-60928 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:219px;height:499px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/go-to-device-manager.jpg 267w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/go-to-device-manager-131x300.jpg 131w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 267px) 100vw, 267px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 1: Open Device Manager<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>b. Select the category of the devices and double-click on the one you want to update driver for.<\/p><p>c. Right-click on the driver. If you see the <strong>Update driver<\/strong> option, select it.<\/p><p>d. Choose &lsquo;<strong>Search automatically for updated driver software&rsquo;<\/strong> and Windows will find the latest one. (<strong>See Image 2<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"837\" height=\"644\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Select-automatically-for-updated-driver-software-1.jpg\" alt=\"search-automatically-for-updated-driver-software\" class=\"wp-image-60931 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:463px;height:356px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Select-automatically-for-updated-driver-software-1.jpg 837w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Select-automatically-for-updated-driver-software-1-300x231.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/Select-automatically-for-updated-driver-software-1-768x591.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 837px) 100vw, 837px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 2: Search automatically for updated driver software<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>e. If you see <strong>Properties<\/strong> option on right-clicking the driver, click&nbsp;<strong>Driver<\/strong>&nbsp;tab on the open window.<\/p><p>f. On the next prompt, click&nbsp;<strong>Update Driver<\/strong>. (<strong>See Image 3<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"414\" height=\"458\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/update-driver-under-driver-tabe.jpg\" alt=\"update-driver\" class=\"wp-image-60935 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:326px;height:361px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/update-driver-under-driver-tabe.jpg 414w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/update-driver-under-driver-tabe-271x300.jpg 271w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 414px) 100vw, 414px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 3: Update driver<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>g. Proceed by clicking &lsquo; <strong>Search automatically for updated driver software&rsquo;<\/strong>.<\/p><p>When Windows will find you a latest driver for the device, update it. If you couldn&rsquo;t see any latest driver software available for the device, you may uninstall the corrupt one and re-install the compatible driver to fix the error.<\/p><p class=\"has-vivid-red-color has-very-light-gray-background-color has-text-color has-background\"><strong>Method 2: Rebuild MBR Boot<\/strong><\/p><p>If the error occurs due to the MBR corruption, you may fix MBR (Master Boot Record) with the help of the following steps:<\/p><p>a. Open Command Prompt and type the following commands:<\/p><ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>bootrec \/fixmbr<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>bootrec \/fixboot (<strong>See Image 4<\/strong>)<\/li>\n<\/ul><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"517\" height=\"168\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/fix-mbr.jpg\" alt=\"fix-mbr\" class=\"wp-image-60938 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:442px;height:144px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/fix-mbr.jpg 517w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/fix-mbr-300x97.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 517px) 100vw, 517px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 4: FIX MBR<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>b. Once done with the process, close the Command Prompt.<\/p><p>c. Check if the error still persists.<\/p><p class=\"has-vivid-red-color has-very-light-gray-background-color has-text-color has-background\"><strong>Method 3: Initialize Disk<\/strong><\/p><p>Try fixing &lsquo;<em>Disk Unknown Not Initialized&rsquo;<\/em> error in Windows 10 by initializing disk with the help of the following troubleshooting steps:<\/p><p>a. Open <strong>Disk Management<\/strong> and locate the drive, which is not initialized. The drive will show as unallocated. (<strong>see Image 5<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"649\" height=\"409\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/unallocated-drive-in-disk-management-1-2.jpg\" alt=\"the-device-appears-as-unallocated\" class=\"wp-image-60942 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:472px;height:297px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/unallocated-drive-in-disk-management-1-2.jpg 649w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/unallocated-drive-in-disk-management-1-2-300x189.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 649px) 100vw, 649px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 5: The device appears as unallocated<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>b. Select the unallocated disk, right-click on it and click <strong>Initialize Disk<\/strong>. (<strong>See Image 6<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"650\" height=\"171\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/initialize-disk-2.jpg\" alt=\"initialize-disk\" class=\"wp-image-60943 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:428px;height:112px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/initialize-disk-2.jpg 650w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/initialize-disk-2-300x79.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 6: Initialize disk<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>c. Select between an <strong>MBR and GPT.<\/strong> It is recommended to select GPT and click <strong>OK<\/strong> to proceed. (<strong>See Image 7<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"649\" height=\"409\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/choose-between-MBR-GPT.jpg\" alt=\"choose-between-MBR-and-GPT\" class=\"wp-image-60944 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:479px;height:301px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/choose-between-MBR-GPT.jpg 649w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/choose-between-MBR-GPT-300x189.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 649px) 100vw, 649px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 7: Choose between MBR and GPT<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>d. Once this process is done, you will be back to the main window. The drive will be listed as <strong>Online<\/strong> and <strong>Basic<\/strong>.<\/p><p>e. Go to <strong>This PC <\/strong>and check if you can access the drive.<\/p><p class=\"has-vivid-red-color has-very-light-gray-background-color has-text-color has-background\"><strong>Method 4: Assign a Drive Letter<\/strong><\/p><p>If you see your drive in Disk Management as UNALLOCATED, you may assign a drive letter and a file system to the drive to fix it. To do so, follow the steps given below:<\/p><p>a. Go to Disk Management and find <strong>Unallocated drive<\/strong>.<\/p><p>b. Select the disk drive, right-click on it and select <strong>New Simple Volume<\/strong>. (<strong>See Image 8<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"650\" height=\"105\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/select-new-simple-volume.jpg\" alt=\"create-new-simple-volume\" class=\"wp-image-60950 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:440px;height:70px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/select-new-simple-volume.jpg 650w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/select-new-simple-volume-300x48.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 8: Create New Simple Volume<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>c. Click <strong>Next<\/strong> and then click <strong>Next<\/strong> on the next prompt to specify the volume size. (<strong>See Image 9)<\/strong><\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"499\" height=\"413\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/specify-drive-value-size-1.jpg\" alt=\"specify-the-volume-of-the-drive\" class=\"wp-image-60951 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:386px;height:319px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/specify-drive-value-size-1.jpg 499w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/specify-drive-value-size-1-300x248.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 499px) 100vw, 499px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 9: Specify the volume size of the drive<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>d. Click &lsquo;<strong>Assign the following drive letter&rsquo;<\/strong>, choose a letter from drop-down list, and click <strong>Next<\/strong>. (<strong>See Image10<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"499\" height=\"419\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/assign-the-drive-letter-1.jpg\" alt=\"assign-the-drive-letter\" class=\"wp-image-60952 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:413px;height:347px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/assign-the-drive-letter-1.jpg 499w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/assign-the-drive-letter-1-300x252.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 499px) 100vw, 499px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 10: Assign the drive letter<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>e. Choose &lsquo;<strong>Format this volume with the following settings&rsquo;<\/strong>. Provide the drive a <strong>NTFS<\/strong> file system and click <strong>Next<\/strong> to proceed. (<strong>See Image 11<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"499\" height=\"429\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/choose-ntfs-as-file-system-and-format-the-drive-1.jpg\" alt=\"format-the-drive-and-choose-NTFS-as-a-file-system\" class=\"wp-image-60953 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:428px;height:368px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/choose-ntfs-as-file-system-and-format-the-drive-1.jpg 499w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/choose-ntfs-as-file-system-and-format-the-drive-1-300x258.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 499px) 100vw, 499px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 11: Format the drive and choose NTFS as a file system<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>f. Select <strong>Finish <\/strong>to complete the procedure and close the window. Once done, check if the error is fixed.<\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#f3f4f5\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>CAUTION<\/strong>: Performing this method will result in data loss as it will require you to format the drive. So, if you have data stored on the drive, you may recover it by using a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/windows-data-recovery.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">data recovery tool<\/a>.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure><p class=\"has-vivid-red-color has-very-light-gray-background-color has-text-color has-background\"><strong>Method 5: Run CHKDSK Command<\/strong><\/p><p>This error may occur due to bad sectors on disk drive. To fix the corrupt drive or drive with bad sectors, you may run CHKDSK command utility. Follow the given steps:<\/p><p>a. Go to Start by pressing <strong>Windows + X,<\/strong> find and open <strong>Command Prompt (Admin)<\/strong> (<strong>See Image 12<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"318\" height=\"466\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/open-command-prompt-admin.jpg\" alt=\"open-command-prompt-admin\" class=\"wp-image-60956 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:240px;height:352px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/open-command-prompt-admin.jpg 318w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/open-command-prompt-admin-205x300.jpg 205w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 318px) 100vw, 318px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image 12: Open command prompt (admin)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>b. Type <strong>chkdsk \/f \/r d:&nbsp;<\/strong>in the Command Prompt, and hit&nbsp;<strong>Enter<\/strong>. (<strong>See Image 13<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"624\" height=\"578\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/chkdsk-command.jpg\" alt=\"run-chkdsk-command\" class=\"wp-image-60957 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:384px;height:356px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/chkdsk-command.jpg 624w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/chkdsk-command-300x278.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image 13: Run CHKDSK command<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>This command line utility fixes if there is any corruption with the disk. However, it also finds and marks down the bad sectors on the disk. This utility helps Windows understand not to store or read data stored on the bad sectors. Doing so, will make you lose any data stored on those sectors.<\/p><p><em><strong>Hence, if you run this command to fix &lsquo;Disk Unknown Not Initialized&rdquo; error and lost data due to this, use a powerful data recovery software such as <\/strong><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/windows-data-recovery.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong><em>Stellar Data Recovery Software.<\/em><\/strong><\/a><em><strong> This Do-it-yourself tool can recover data from a formatted, or corrupted Windows PCs and external storage devices like HDDs, USB, SD, and SSDs, etc.<\/strong><\/em><\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Lost Data? Don&rsquo;t Worry! Watch How to Recover It!\" width=\"750\" height=\"422\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/CP63jbScig8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure><p class=\"has-vivid-red-color has-very-light-gray-background-color has-text-color has-background\"><strong>Method 6: Run Diskpart Utility<\/strong><\/p><p>You may also try to fix &lsquo;Disk Unknown Not Initialized&rsquo; by using Diskpart utility. This utility helps to quickly format the drive partition or change the disk partition to NTFS or FAT32.<\/p><p><strong>NOTE: <\/strong><em>This method requires you to format the partition that leads you to data loss situation. Therefore, before proceeding further, either create a backup of your data or keep a data recovery tool handy to restore the data.<\/em><\/p><p>Follow the given steps and to fix the error:<\/p><p>a. Open Run window by pressing <strong>Windows + R,<\/strong> and type <strong>cmd<\/strong> to open Command Prompt.<\/p><p>b. In the command prompt window, type <strong>diskpart<\/strong>, then type <strong>list disk<\/strong>, and hit <strong>Enter<\/strong>.<\/p><p>c. Now, type <strong>Select Disk 0<\/strong> (Where disk 0 is the disk showing error) and hit <strong>Enter<\/strong>. (<strong>See Image 14<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"709\" height=\"429\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/type-select-disk-1.jpg\" alt=\"type-list-disk-and-select-disk\" class=\"wp-image-60961 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:477px;height:288px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/type-select-disk-1.jpg 709w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/type-select-disk-1-300x182.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/type-select-disk-1-407x247.jpg 407w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 100vw, 709px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 14: List and select disk<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>d. Type <strong>clean<\/strong> and hit <strong>Enter<\/strong>.<\/p><p>e. Type <strong>create partition primary<\/strong> and hit <strong>Enter<\/strong>.<\/p><p>f. Type<strong> format fs=fat32 quick <\/strong>or<strong> fs=ntfs quick<\/strong> and hit <strong>Enter<\/strong> to proceed. (<strong>See Image 15<\/strong>)<\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"709\" height=\"429\" src=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/format-drive-partition-1.jpg\" alt=\"create-partition-primary\" class=\"wp-image-60963 apply-gradient-on-post-images\" style=\"width:483px;height:291px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/format-drive-partition-1.jpg 709w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/format-drive-partition-1-300x182.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/format-drive-partition-1-407x247.jpg 407w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 709px) 100vw, 709px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Image 15: create partition primary<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div><p>g. Let the process finish, type exit and hit Enter.<\/p><p>h. Reboot the system and check if you are facing the error with the disk.<\/p><h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-recover-lost-data-with-data-recovery-software\"><strong>Recover Lost Data with Data Recovery Software<\/strong><\/h3><p>Due to &lsquo;Disk Unknown Not Initialized&rsquo; error, you will not be able to access your drive. Even, in an attempt to fix this error by applying some of the methods mentioned above, you may end up losing data stored on the drive. Regardless of the reason of losing data, you may get it back with the help of a powerful data recovery software such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/windows-data-recovery.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Stellar Data Recovery<\/strong><\/a>. This do-it-yourself (DIY) software can recover lost documents, email files, photos, videos, and more. It supports multiple file formats on different storage devices. The data can even be recovered from formatted and corrupted Windows PCs and external drives.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"conclusion\"><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2><p>In this blog, we have discussed what you can do when your system or an external drive encounter &lsquo;Disk Unknown Not Initialized&rsquo; error. Performing the aforesaid methods may help you fix the error. However, methods such as diskpart utility or fixing unallocated space require you to format the drive, wiping out the data stored on it. To avoid losing data on the drive, you may use a data recovery tool such as <strong><em>Stellar Data Recovery software<\/em><\/strong>. The tool can efficiently extract lost files, folders, documents, photos, and more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When you connect an external drive to the system to copy some&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.stellarinfo.com\/blog\/disk-unknown-not-initialized-in-windows-10\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Fix Disk Unknown Not Initialized in Windows 10<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":37,"featured_media":60978,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[692],"tags":[207,922],"class_list":["post-60927","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-windows-data-recovery-standard","tag-data-recovery-software","tag-windows-data-recovery","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Different Ways to Fix Disk Unknown Not Initialized in Windows 10<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"How to fix \u2018Disk Unknown Not Initialized\u2019 error in Windows 10. 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