Partition sector doesn't have the endmark 0xAA55

How to use TestDisk to recover lost partition
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Author
wuopisht
Posts: 2
Joined: 08 Mar 2015, 12:58

Partition sector doesn't have the endmark 0xAA55

#1 Post by wuopisht »

Hello,
I have a corrupt PNY 64GB USB, and I am not interested in recovering contents; I just want to reformat it clean.

The first diagnostic message I get in TestDisk is this:
  • Partition sector doesn't have the endmark 0xAA55
Then, Both Quick and Deep Search result in this:
  • Disk /dev/sdb - 64 GB / 59 GiB - CHS 7782 255 63
    The harddisk (64 GB / 59 GiB) seems too small! (< 96 GB / 89 GiB)
    Check the harddisk size: HD jumpers settings, BIOS detection...
    The following partitions can't be recovered:
    Partition Start End Size in sectors
    > HPFS - NTFS 4 52 49 7787 29 50 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 8 73 2 7791 50 3 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 12 93 18 7795 70 19 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 16 113 34 7799 90 35 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 20 133 50 7803 110 51 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 24 154 3 7807 131 4 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 28 174 19 7811 151 20 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 32 194 35 7815 171 36 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 36 214 51 7819 191 52 125032448
    HPFS - NTFS 40 235 4 7823 212 5 125032448
    [ Continue ]
    exFAT, blocksize=131072, 64 GB / 59 GiB
After that, the only option left is Quit:
  • Disk /dev/sdb - 64 GB / 59 GiB - CHS 7782 255 63
    Partition Start End Size in sectors

    No partition found or selected for recovery
    >[ Quit ]
    Return to main menu
Is there any way to still format the USB? I do not need to recover any data.
Windows Format says that the USB is write-protected, but this USB does not have any physical switch of the sort.

Thanks a lot for any help!

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cgrenier
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Joined: 18 Feb 2012, 15:08
Location: Le Perreux Sur Marne, France
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Re: Partition sector doesn't have the endmark 0xAA55

#2 Post by cgrenier »

TestDisk can't reformat media. If Windows can't reformat your USB device, boot from a Linux LiveCD. If you still have the problem, it means the problem is hardware.

wuopisht
Posts: 2
Joined: 08 Mar 2015, 12:58

Re: Partition sector doesn't have the endmark 0xAA55

#3 Post by wuopisht »

Dear Mr. Grenier,
I am giving up, because I tried many kinds of things both in Windows and Linux, including gparted.
Thank you very much for the reply and congratulations for the great software that TestDisk is!
Best Regards.

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