"Solutions to 'Chkdsk Cannot Open Volume for Direct Access' in Windows 10/8/7/XP/Vista"

"Four Methods to Solve the Issue of Chkdsk Unable to Access the Volume Directly"

When you use the /chksk command with the /f option, it's supposed to look for and fix errors. If anything prevents it from doing so, you'll get an error message that chkdsk can't access the volume directly. When you first encounter the issue, try restarting your computer. Then, continue reading to learn about four advanced troubleshooting solutions.

1. Step 1: Recover Data from the Damaged Drive 2. Step 2: Format the Damaged Drive 3. Step 3: Disable Suspected Third-Party Apps and Services 4. Step 4: Run chkdsk in a Clean Boot Environment 5. Step 5: Repair Bad Sectors

"chkdsk cannot open the volume for direct access" Error Overview

The CHKDSK command can be used as a hard drive repair tool, as it allows you to fix damaged USB drives, external hard disks, or Micro SD cards. However, sometimes, when you use it to schedule a disk check, you might get the “The volume cannot be checked directly” error. This issue can occur on any version of Windows, including Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP, Server 2008, or others, and it prevents you from fixing your corrupted device.

Possible causes for chkdsk to be unable to access the volume directly include:

The most probable cause for this issue is a damaged MBR (Master Boot Record) on your hard drive, which prevents direct access to the volume. Another factor could be software capable of blocking system processes, such as an antivirus program. Lastly, physical damage to your hard drive could also make it inaccessible.

Actually, the solution to "chkdsk cannot open the volume for direct access" is quite similar to fixing a RAW hard drive, which involves recovering files from the problematic disk to a secure location and then formatting the HDD. Besides formatting, this article also summarizes other feasible methods.

Preparation: Recover Data from Damaged External Hard Drive/SD Card/USB Drive

When your hard drive fails, the first thing you'd want to do is access the files on it, but you can't because it's damaged. Fortunately, a reliable Data Recovery Wizard tool can come to the rescue. Also, since formatting a hard drive removes all existing files from the device, it's recommended to recover data beforehand from the problematic hard drive or external storage device.

Data Recovery Wizard is a top-notch tool in the data recovery field.

• Recover deleted files from Recycle Bin, HDD, SSD, USB, flash drive, SD card, external hard drive, etc.
• Restore data from inaccessible, damaged, formatted, and RAW hard drives
• Repair corrupted files while recovering data on Windows 11/10/8/7
• Retrieve over 1000 types of files, including photos, videos, documents, emails, and more

See How to Recover Data from a Damaged Disk for instructions.

Step 1. Run the Disk Drill data recovery wizard on your computer. Select the disk with lost files and click "Search for lost data". If your lost files were located on an external storage device, connect it to your computer first.

Select the location to scan

Step 2: The software will quickly scan the deleted files and then perform a deep scan to find more lost files. After the scan, you can use the "Filter" to quickly filter files of specific types.

Select the files to recover

Step 3: Click the “Preview” button or double-click on a file for full-screen preview. Finally, select the files you need and hit “Recover”. Choose another secure location to save all your files at once.

Solution 1: Format the Damaged External Hard Drive/SD Card/USB Drive

When you run CHKDSK on a hard drive partition and encounter the notification “The volume cannot be accessed directly,” you should realize that your device's file system is corrupted. Thus, formatting to assign a new file system to the device can help restore the normal functioning of the hard drive or external storage device. Formatting a storage device can be done in several ways:

Method 1: Using File Explorer

Step 1: Open This PC.

Step 2. Right-click on the drive or partition that you wish to format.

Step 3: Click on "Format".

Step 4: Choose your new filesystem and set the other options.

Step 5: Wait for the process to complete.

Method 2: Use Disk Management

Step 1. Open This PC > Manage > Disk Management.

Step 2: Right-click the partition you want to format and select "Format."

Step 3: Set your options and begin the formatting process.

Method 3: Use Third-Party Software

You might think it's unnecessary to use a third-party tool to format your hard drive. Actually, with the help of a free partition manager – AOMEI Partition Assistant, you can do much more to better manage your computer. Similar to CHKDSK, its “Check File System” feature can help you check and fix disk issues. It also works as a formatter to format hard drive. Plus, it offers other features like OS migration, disk cloning, partition merge, and more, which will be very helpful when managing your PC.

Download the partition manager tool – tools Partition Master, and follow the guide below to learn how to check file system and format a partition.

Use the Partition Master tool to check the partition:

Step 1: Right-click the problematic target partition.

Step 2. Select Advanced > Check File System.

Step 3. Choose whether or not to hide the partition.

Step 4: In the "Check File System" window, select the option to "Try to repair errors if found."

Click “Start” to begin checking for errors on your partition.

Format a partition or device with Partition Master:

Step 1: Run Partition Master, right click the hard drive partition you want to format and choose "Format".

Step 2: In the popped-up window, set the "Volume Label", "File System" (NTFS/FAT32/EXT2/EXT3/EXT4/exFAT) and "Cluster Size" of the partition to format, then click "OK".

Step 3: You will then see a warning message. Click “Yes” to proceed.

4. Click “Run 1 Task” to review the changes, and then click “Apply” to begin formatting the hard drive partition.

After you recover your files, you can copy them back to the device and use them as normal.

In most cases, you can fix the “The volume for a file has been externally altered so that the opened file is no longer valid” error by formatting your drive. If the problem persists, try the additional methods below.

Solution 2: Disable suspicious third-party apps/services

Some people believe that disabling third-party apps or services that might lock partitions can help fix the “Chkdsk cannot run because the volume is in use by another process” error. They think that the problem is caused by a third-party application, such as a virus scanner or a disk monitoring tool that locks the partition. However, this method is unconfirmed and isn't guaranteed to work. (We've included it below for completeness, if you want to try it.)

To disable a service, you can:

Step 1: Click the "Start" menu, and type Services.

Step 2: Select the Services app in the search results.

Step 3: Here you'll see all the services on your computer. Right-click on any suspicious ones and select "Properties."

Step 4. Under "Startup type," select "Disabled" from the drop-down menu.

Click OK, and then exit Services.

Solution 3: Run CHKDSK in a clean boot environment

A clean boot allows your computer to start using only the required drivers and startup programs, so you can run diagnostic tests in a normal startup environment to determine whether a background program is causing the issue.

Step 1: Press the "Windows + R" keys, then type in msconfig.

Step 2: In the System Configuration window, switch to the Services tab.

Step 3: Check the box next to “Hide all Microsoft services,” and then click Disable all > Apply > OK.

Step 4. Next, go to the “Startup” tab and click “Open Task Manager.”

5. Click on each item and select “Disable.”

Step 6: Restart your computer and run CHKDSK again.

Solution 4: Repair bad sectors

Bad sectors on the storage device will certainly lead to minor or severe issues. The error "chkdsk cannot open the volume for direct access" might be due to bad sectors. Hence, fixing bad sectors on the device is also a solution. You can refer to this article to fix bad sectors: How to Fix Bad Sectors on Hard Drive in Windows 10/8/7.

Bottom line

If the “chkdsk cannot open volume for direct access” error is due to a corrupted DBR, it can be easily fixed with the right software. When files on your storage device become inaccessible, you should first use a data recovery tool to safeguard your information. If none of these methods resolve the “cannot open volume for direct access” issue, then your hard drive, USB drive, or SD card might have physical damage, and you'll need to send it in for manual repairs.