How to empty corrupted SSD

[JasperR]

Hi. I have an SSD laying around that I would like to plug in to my system. Last year I was using it for my Windows disk and some storage. At some point it only had a few MBs left of space on there and I accidentally rebooted with a Windows Update. After that it never booted up because of the windows update it never succeeded to install. Now I would like to empty this SSD in order to use it as extra storage.
Can I plug it in my system (runs 1 SSD and 1 HDD) and then empty it? Won't it cause any trouble because there's a Windows installation on there?

 

[jasonkaler]

You can just connect it to your system - it should show as an additional drive. You can format the drive just by right-click and choose format.
It doesn't matter if there is an old windows install on there, your pc will boot to the disk specified in the bios.
Just check your boot order in your bios to make sure you boot from your HDD

 

[JasperR]

Thanks for the answer. I tried to plug it in after finding an extra SATA DATA cable and plugging it in. However, now the screens just stay black and it never seems to boot up. Took it out again and the system worked as normal.
I currently have one HDD for storage (1TB) and one SSD mainly for the OS (128GB). It always boots to the SSD and I checked the boot priority, it was only pointing to my optical drives it seemed.

 

[jasonkaler]

Thanks for the answer. I tried to plug it in after finding an extra SATA DATA cable and plugging it in. However, now the screens just stay black and it never seems to boot up. Took it out again and the system worked as normal.
I currently have one HDD for storage (1TB) and one SSD mainly for the OS (128GB). It always boots to the SSD and I checked the boot priority, it was only pointing to my optical drives it seemed.

If the screen just stays black when you plug it in, it might mean it's faulty. That normally indicates an electrical short.
Does it try boot if its the only drive?

 

[JasperR]

I'm a little hesitant on plugging in a corrupt SSD to a working system as the only drive. Nothing else we can try? How about hotplugging it?

 

[jasonkaler]

I'm a little hesitant on plugging in a corrupt SSD to a working system as the only drive. Nothing else we can try? How about hotplugging it?

You can try hot plugging it. SATA is supposed to be hotpluggable but this isn't always the case.
That won't help you much though - even if you get it to format that way, you will still have a problem at your next boot.

Check your sata settings in the bios. Some systems have options like IDE and AHCI. I've seen having the wrong setting selected be a problem.
Changing these could potentially cause problems with your existing OS though, so you're in a bit of a bind if you don't want to disconnect your working drives while you troubleshoot this drive.

 

[helpstar]

check boot priority again, while the ssd is plugged in. If the screen stays black, try another data cable and sata port

 

[Boogieman_WD]

Hey JasperR.

First, thanks to @Jason for bringing this thread to my attention. Basically everything he said is correct and the suggestions are on point. However there might be an issue with the corrupted OS partition on your old SSD (unless it's really a faulty drive, which can cause such discrepancies with your system) and for some reason it could disrupt the booting process. Perhaps it tries to finish the update or something.
If hot-plugging the SSD does not help, you could try connecting it as the only drive (as already suggested). It shouldn't be able to boot if the OS was installed on a different computer, however, my idea is to try and access it via Windows installation media and reformat its partitions without installing an OS. When this is done just reconnect your old drives and boot to Windows as usual with your working SSD, to see if you'll find the old one in Disk Management.
Another option would be to give it a try with an external connection, to see if this would help. You could go for an external enclosure, a dock station, or a SATA to USB adapter.

Note that if the update process didn't fail because of the low disk space, you might really be facing a faulty SSD.

Please keep us posted.
Boogieman_WD

 

[JasperR]

I'm a little hesitant on plugging in a corrupt SSD to a working system as the only drive. Nothing else we can try? How about hotplugging it?

You can try hot plugging it. SATA is supposed to be hotpluggable but this isn't always the case.
That won't help you much though - even if you get it to format that way, you will still have a problem at your next boot.

Why would formatting it during a hotplug still cause problems at the next boot? My current Windows installation is on a different SSD that has been in my system for a few months already. I'm trying to clear a second SSD.

Check your sata settings in the bios. Some systems have options like IDE and AHCI. I've seen having the wrong setting selected be a problem.
Changing these could potentially cause problems with your existing OS though, so you're in a bit of a bind if you don't want to disconnect your working drives while you troubleshoot this drive.

I see what you mean. But if my current system would crash and stop working, even for a few days, that would have quite big consequences for my work. Sorry for being such a hardass. 😀

check boot priority again, while the ssd is plugged in. If the screen stays black, try another data cable and sata port

I never got to the BIOS if the SSD is plugged in. I'll go look around for some extra cables.

Hey JasperR.

First, thanks to @Jason for bringing this thread to my attention. Basically everything he said is correct and the suggestions are on point. However there might be an issue with the corrupted OS partition on your old SSD (unless it's really a faulty drive, which can cause such discrepancies with your system) and for some reason it could disrupt the booting process. Perhaps it tries to finish the update or something.
If hot-plugging the SSD does not help, you could try connecting it as the only drive (as already suggested). It shouldn't be able to boot if the OS was installed on a different computer, however, my idea is to try and access it via Windows installation media and reformat its partitions without installing an OS. When this is done just reconnect your old drives and boot to Windows as usual with your working SSD, to see if you'll find the old one in Disk Management.
Another option would be to give it a try with an external connection, to see if this would help. You could go for an external enclosure, a dock station, or a SATA to USB adapter.

Note that if the update process didn't fail because of the low disk space, you might really be facing a faulty SSD.

Please keep us posted.
Boogieman_WD

Thanks @Jason indeed! I will try that hotplugging in a few. I'll be sure to report back with the results.

The SSD never booted up after that windows update, hence my conclusion. It's just a guess from my side because it made the most sense to me.

Thanks everybody for the help!

 

[JasperR]

I just plugged the SSD in while the system was running and nothing happened at all.

 

[JasperR]

I managed to empty the SSD entirely on a different system. When connected to my main computer, it still won't get past a black screen at all. I tried different cables as well. Is it possible my main computer remembers the SSD from before and therefore tries to boot from it? Even though it's nearly empty (like 3 or 4 files I couldn't get removed related to certificates).

 

[helpstar]

Which motherboard is it?

Reset the bios via jumper

 

[JasperR]

The mobo of my main PC is an ASUS Sabertooth Z77 (LGA1155).

 

[helpstar]

did you reset your BIOS of the motherboard?

did you try all sata data ports on the motherboard?

brown, black and gey ports are on there.
2 x SATA III, brown (recommended)
4 x SATA II, black
2 x SATA III, grey (ASMedia® ASM1061 controller)

 

[JasperR]

I did not reset the BIOS, I'm a little afraid it might break stuff. Do you think the BIOS remembers the SSD as something that breaks boot when it's connected?

I tried the sata data ports, yes.

 

[helpstar]

You can´t break stuff by a simple BIOS reset. Only thing to do is eventually set the boot priority right after it.

Maybe the boot record is still on the SSD and the motherboard tries to boot from it.
Insert a installation DVD or USB device where Windows is on. Try booting from it

 

[JasperR]

After formatting it again on a different system a few times, it started working again on my main system. I suppose this means my main desktop's motherboard somehow remembered the SSD to boot from and it still had some Win files on it (only a handful).

Thanks for all the help!