[2025] Fix CHKDSK Is Not Available for RAW Drives​ Error

How to Fix CHKDSK Is Not Available for RAW Drives

You executed the CHKDSK command to correct a minor problem on your internal/external disk. But instead, you were slapped with the following error: ‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives​.’ 

You cannot believe how it could have happened, as your drive functioned perfectly just the day before. But don’t panic. In this tutorial, we’ll share how to fix your internal/external RAW drive on Windows 10/11 without losing its contents, depending on the disk’s situation.

Part 1: What Does ‘CHKDSK Is Not Available for RAW Drives​’ Mean?

The error ‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives’ on Windows 10/11 manifests when you try to use the cHKDSK utility on a drive that has no readable file system. It happens because:

• Connection Issue: If the drive is external, it might have a connection issue with the USB port of your computer. 
• Drive Driver Problem: Your disk drivers are damaged or outdated.
• Incompatible File System: The disk is not formatted to a Windows-recognizable file system, e.g, NTFS or FAT32.
• Corruption or Damage: The disk seems RAW due to issues with its file system, bad sectors, incorrect ejection, or corruption due to a power surge, viruses, or malware.
• New or Unformatted Drive: The disk might not be configured or formatted yet.

Part 2: How Do I Fix the ‘CHKDSK Is Not Available for RAW Drives’ ​Issue Quickly?

The ‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives’ fix can be divided into 3 phases. The first step requires you to check for a connection or driver issue. While the second needs you to rescue data before you proceed with the third step, which is formatting the disk. Here’s the detail for each step:

Phase 1: Check if It’s a Connection or Driver Issue

When the error ‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives’ appears for SD card/USB or an internal disk, check if the disk shows on Disk Management as RAW. If it does, this might indicate a connection or driver issue. So, here’s how to fix both problems:

Step 1: Examine Physical Connection

Here’s how to check if the error is caused by a connection problem:

For Internal Drives (HDD/SSD):

• Switch off your PC and pop open the case. Then, examine that the SATA/PCIe (for SSDs/HDDs) or M.2 connection is secure.
• Connect the RAW disk to a different SATA port or M.2 slot on the motherboard. 
• Replace the SATA/USB wire if you can.

For External Drives (USB/Flash):

• Switch to a different USB port (USB 3.0/3.1 if available) on your computer to connect the external RAW drive to. 
• If that doesn’t function, evaluate the RAW disk on another computer to rule out a port issue.
• Plug the RAW disk directly into your computer (don’t use a USB hub).

Step 2: Test in Device Manager (Driver Issue)

After ruling out the connection issue, update/reinstall the disk driver in the “Device Manager.” This will fix the driver issue, which might be resulting in the ‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives​’ error:

Step 1: Right-click the “Windows Start” icon. Then, choose “Device Manager.”

Step 2: Extend “Disk drives.” Right-click the outdated driver. Tap “Update driver.”

Step 3: Search automatically for an update. You can also download the correct driver update and install it manually.

Step 4: In case the disk driver is corrupted, right-click it. Then, pick “Uninstall device.” 

Step 5: Reboot your computer. Windows will automatically reinstall the disk driver.

Note: If the disk still displays as RAW in the Disk Management, then proceed to “Phase 2.”

Phase 2: Recover Data From the RAW Drive

If the type of file system is RAW for CHKDSK, then you’ll need to format the disk. However, this will result in wiping the entire disk clean. So, to access the RAW drive, you’ll need a specialized data recovery tool. 4DDiG Data Recovery is a competitive software for rescuing data from RAW/unreadable/inaccessible disks without trouble. Here’s what this tool can achieve:

• It can extract multiple RAW files, videos, images, documents, and much more from unreadable disks.
• This file recovery software can access lost, hidden, missing, and erased files from inaccessible disks.
• Supports both external and internal disks like SSDs, HDDs, USBs, SD cards, and much more.
• You can preview the recovered files by their name and path.
• No technical knowledge required.

Follow the steps below to extract data from a disk with an error like ‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives’ on Windows 10/11:

Step 1: Execute the recovery tool on your computer. Then, choose the RAW disk. Pick your desired file types, then start the scan.

Step 2: Stop or pause the scan to examine recovered files. You can select filter tags or input keywords in the search bar to find exact files. 

Step 3: Afterward, hit “Recover” to reclaim recovered data from the problematic disk. Secure the files on your computer or cloud drive account.

Phase 3: Format the Drive to NTFS or FAT32

After rescuing data, the best ‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives’ fix is to format the disk to a compatible file system like NTFS or FAT32. This will fix the file system issues, like incompatibility or corruption. Use the Windows-embedded Disk Management utility for this purpose. Here’s how to format the drive with ‘the type of file system is RAW’ for the CHKDSK error:

Step 1: Right-click the “Windows Start” icon. Then, choose “Disk Management.”

Step 3: Right-click the disk with the ‘Check Disk is not available for RAW drives’ problem. Choose “Format” for the RAW partition.

Step 4: Pick a “File system,” e.g, FAT32 or NTFS. Next, adjust the “Allocation unit size.” After this, choose a “Volume label.”

Step 5: Untick “Perform a quick format.” Hit “OK.” 

CHKDSK Is Not Available for RAW Drives​ FAQs

Q1: What is the CHKDSK alternative for RAW drives?

There’s no CHDKSK alternative to fix a RAW drive, as no repair tool will function on it. This is because a repair tool only operates on a disk that has a valid file system. A RAW drive, on the other hand, has no file system. So, no repair tool can function on it.

Q2: How to fix a RAW drive using CMD?

You can fix a RAW drive using a CMD tool like Diskpart. It can repair the disk by formatting it to a compatible file system, which will get rid of its RAW status. 

Q3: Can a RAW drive be recovered?

Yes. You can recover a RAW drive with the help of a professional file rescue tool like 4DDiG Data Recovery. It can retrieve 2000+ file types from RAW/inaccessible/unreadable internal/external storage devices and also allows you to preview them.

Wrapping Up

The ‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives’ error means Windows cannot read the drive because it has a missing or damaged file system. This manifests in the case of loose connections, faulty drivers, file system issues, or in instances when the drive has not yet been formatted.

In the event you continue to face ‘‘CHKDSK is not available for RAW drives’ on SD card/USB or an internal disk, format it. But as formatting will cause data loss, rescue your data first with a professional 4DDiG Data Recovery tool. It allows you to pick your desired file types to recover from RAW internal/external disks with high success.

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