Android phones usually have an option for extended storage in the form of an SD card in case the inbuilt memory renders insufficient. Having an SD card slot is a blessing for people who love to play games and store memories in form of pictures and videos. But at times, an SD card can give you hard time. Wondering how? You must have seen the notification of 'SD card not detected in mobile or memory card not showing in mobile' on your phone.
Common reasons behind the phone not recognizing sd card could be the installation of fake memory card, broken memory card, mishandling of sd card, outdated software, etc. The very first thing that you can do to fix this problem is taking out the sd card and putting it back in the memory card slot. If the problem of android not recognizing sd card persists, try the below-listed solutions:
1. Easiest Way- Reboot your phone
Reboot your android to fix the problem of the SD card not detected in the phone. Now pull out the battery as well as the memory card. Put both of these back in the phone carefully. Switch on the phone and check if your phone can detect the sd card.
2. Use a card reader and computer to fix the problem
In case your phone is not recognizing an SD card, repair the card by using your computer. How can you do that? Follow the below-listed steps:
- Insert the memory card into the card reader, followed by inserting the card reader in the system.
- Click on My Computer and now find SD Card/Disk Drive
- Right-click on the disk and now choose the option of Property
- Now click on Tools
- In the section of Error-checking, click on Check then Repair Drive
- Once the drive is repaired, eject the memory card. Now put it back on phone and check if your phone is detecting it.
3. Repair SD card not detected in mobile by CHKDSK Command
If there are any internal errors, your android may not be able to detect the memory card. In this case, try the following steps and find a solution to this problem.
- Click on This PC or My Computer > Manage > Disk Management
- Now find the SD card in the drive viewer and check if your system can detect the SD card.
- Press Win plus R then Type the following: cmd, followed by hitting enter
- Now type chkdsk D: / f and finish the process by hitting enter
4. Unmount the SD Card
On your android phone, open Settings followed by choosing the Storage option. In storage, find the SD card part. Over there it will show an option to "Unmount SD Card"/ "Mount SD Card". Press on the same to fix the problem of android not recognizing sd card. While you carry out this process, ensure that the phone is not connected to the PC.
Now re-mount the memory card, switch off your phone, and reboot it. Once the phone restarts, check if the problem is fixed and if your phone can detect the SD card.
5. Updating The SD Card Driver
If your SD card driver is not up to date, your android might fail to recognize the SD card. Follow the below-listed instructions to make your SD card detectable once again.
- Connect the memory card or SD card to the computer
- Click on This PC or My Computer > Manage
- On the left in the taskbar, click on device manager
- Now click + next to USB Serial Bus controller, a yellow exclamation mark will appear
- Right-click > Update Driver Software > click search for updated driver software automatically
- Now, wait for the driver to be installed patiently. Restart your PC and check if the phone can detect the SD card or not.
6. Formatting the SD Card
If none of the above methods work, it is recommended to format the memory or SD card. Formatting the card will lead to loss of data, so make sure you have created a backup to avoid any such scenario.
Connect the SD card with the PC and follow the following steps:
- Open This PC/My Computer and locate the SD card which you've just interested in
- Right-click on SD Card > Format
- Set the file system - FAT32
- Check the box with Quick Format and begin the process of formatting the SD card by clicking on Start.
- Once done, unplug the SD card from your system and insert it in the phone to check if the problem is resolved.
These were the quick fixes that you can follow if your phone is not able to detect the SD card. Sd card is an important accessory for people who believe in managing data perfectly well. Hence, the problem of it being undetectable can be serious. We hope the above-listed solutions will come to your rescue in case you are stuck in a problem where your android decides on not recognizing the memory card.