Eliminating U3 System Stuff from SanDisk ruzer thumb drive
AES
USB thumb drive to make it into a totally vanilla external USB volume
that can be read and written to on either Macs or PCs?
That is, objective is to totally eliminate all the "U3" or whatever
system stuff it is that shows up on a Mac or PC, including a separate CD
volume that has to be ejected separately, in addition to the drive
itself.
Can this be done on a Mac (OS 10.4.11)? If, so what options to make the
reformatted drive also readable on PCs?
Or does this have to be done on a PC?
anonrob
or is downloaded from the SanDisk site
Paul Fuchs
Not trying to be rude, but there was a thread a few months ago covering
this in detail.
--
Never believe anything until it's officially denied.
Tom Harrington
A few months? Things can change in that time.
Of course, this time they didn't, but that's a different matter.
--
Tom "Tom" Harrington
Independent Mac OS X developer since 2002
http://www.atomicbird.com/
Mike Rosenberg
> Not trying to be rude, but there was a thread a few months ago covering
> this in detail.
You mean this thread?
http://preview.tinyurl.com/62cxew
It was a long time ago, over 5 weeks, and he may never have even read
it. ;-)
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AES
paulfuchs@porkain'tkosher.oink (Paul Fuchs) wrote:
> AES <sie...@stanford.edu> wrote:
>
> > Is there a straightforward way to reformat a SanDick Cruzer 2 GB or 4GB
> > USB thumb drive to make it into a totally vanilla external USB volume
> > that can be read and written to on either Macs or PCs?
> >
> > That is, totally eliminate all the "U3" or whatever
> > system stuff it is that shows up on a Mac or PC, including a separate CD
> > volume that has to be ejected separately
>
> Not trying to be rude, but there was a thread a few months ago covering
> this in detail.
These gadgets seem to be on display racks everywhere these days, at very
attractively low discount prices per GB compared to other thumb drives.
(Is this maybe because the additional "U3" stuff has turned out to be
unpopular even with PC users?)
I guess I'm still hoping that since this gadget presumably contains only
a purely passive memory card, there must be some brute force way even on
a Mac to use Disk Utility or ??? to totally erase the entire unit down
to bare or empty memory and reformat that memory . . . or is the "U3"
stuff in some kind of separate chip that can't be erased?
Jolly Roger
AES <sie...@stanford.edu> wrote:
Could it be it uses some custom hardware configuration that strays
enough from the standard USB specifications (in order to save money on
production costs) that it requires custom drivers to work rather than
relying on standard USB drivers in most computers?
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Fred Moore
Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
> In article <siegman-DB2A83...@news.stanford.edu>,
> AES <sie...@stanford.edu> wrote:
> > I guess I'm still hoping that since this gadget presumably contains only
> > a purely passive memory card, there must be some brute force way even on
> > a Mac to use Disk Utility or ??? to totally erase the entire unit down
> > to bare or empty memory and reformat that memory . . . or is the "U3"
> > stuff in some kind of separate chip that can't be erased?
So far as I know, and I have done some research as well as personal
experimentation with these U3 devices, there is no way to clear them via
the Mac OS. You have to take them to a D'Ohs machine and run the
mentioned uninstaller.
Microcenter is selling these at very attractive prices: 1,2,4,8,16GB for
$7,9,14,25,50 respectively, with a nominal lifetime guarantee. Last I
looked U3 was installed on the 4GB and up. Wherever you buy these they
surely will have a D'Ohs machine onsite and _should_ have the
uninstaller available. Before you buy them ask if they will clear the U3
stuff. If not, buy from someone else.
> Could it be it uses some custom hardware configuration that strays
> enough from the standard USB specifications (in order to save money on
> production costs) that it requires custom drivers to work rather than
> relying on standard USB drivers in most computers?
As far as I can tell, these drive use the standard USB driver, unless
they load something special into RAM when they mount. You can delete
some of the U3 info, but not the core read-only partition which contains
the encoding executables. I have to say I'm impressed that SanDisk has
made that partition so resistant to alteration, though it's yet another
unnecessary D'Ohs PITA for Mac users.
--Fred
Wes Groleau
> Could it be it uses some custom hardware configuration that strays
> enough from the standard USB specifications (in order to save money on
> production costs) that it requires custom drivers to work rather than
> relying on standard USB drivers in most computers?
Probably not. Since Mac OS 10.3 and Windows 200/XP mount them without
installing anything.
--
Wes Groleau
Genealogical Lookups:
http://groleau.freeshell.org/ref/lookups.shtml
Jolly Roger
Wes Groleau <grolea...@freeshell.org> wrote:
> Jolly Roger wrote:
> > Could it be it uses some custom hardware configuration that strays
> > enough from the standard USB specifications (in order to save money on
> > production costs) that it requires custom drivers to work rather than
> > relying on standard USB drivers in most computers?
>
> Probably not. Since Mac OS 10.3 and Windows 200/XP mount them without
> installing anything.
Right, but they can't *format* it.
Richard Maine
> Paul Fuchs <paulfuchs@porkain'tkosher.oink> wrote:
>
> > Not trying to be rude, but there was a thread a few months ago covering
> > this in detail.
>
> You mean this thread?
>
> http://preview.tinyurl.com/62cxew
>
> It was a long time ago, over 5 weeks, and he may never have even read
> it. ;-)
After all, it isn't as though the two threads were started by the same
OP. Um... err... well, scratch that. :-)
--
Richard Maine | Good judgement comes from experience;
email: last name at domain . net | experience comes from bad judgement.
domain: summertriangle | -- Mark Twain
Paul Fuchs
> Paul Fuchs <paulfuchs@porkain'tkosher.oink> wrote:
>
> > Not trying to be rude, but there was a thread a few months ago covering
> > this in detail.
>
> You mean this thread?
>
> http://preview.tinyurl.com/62cxew
>
> It was a long time ago, over 5 weeks, and he may never have even read
> it. ;-)
Since AES was the OP in both instances, I would surmise that he was
aware of the thread and not satisfied with the results.
Jolly Roger
paulfuchs@porkain'tkosher.oink (Paul Fuchs) wrote:
> Mike Rosenberg <mike...@TOGROUPmacconsult.com> wrote:
>
> > Paul Fuchs <paulfuchs@porkain'tkosher.oink> wrote:
> >
> > > Not trying to be rude, but there was a thread a few months ago covering
> > > this in detail.
> >
> > You mean this thread?
> >
> > http://preview.tinyurl.com/62cxew
> >
> > It was a long time ago, over 5 weeks, and he may never have even read
> > it. ;-)
>
> Since AES was the OP in both instances, I would surmise that he was
> aware of the thread and not satisfied with the results.
Cry me a river...
AES
paulfuchs@porkain'tkosher.oink (Paul Fuchs) wrote:
> Since AES was the OP in both instances, I would surmise that he was
> aware of the thread and not satisfied with the results.
A fair surmise. And sometimes -- in Usenet, and in marriage -- things
do get better the second time around.
Wes Groleau
> Wes Groleau <grolea...@freeshell.org> wrote:
>> Probably not. Since Mac OS 10.3 and Windows 200/XP mount them without
>> installing anything.
>
> Right, but they can't *format* it.
Ah, true. But he didn't want to format it.
He wanted to leave it usable (all of it) for space
readable by both Windows and Mac.
--
Wes Groleau
"In the field of language teaching, Method A is the logical
contradiction of Method B: if the assumptions from which
A claims to be derived are correct, then B cannot work,
and vice versa. Yet one colleague is getting excellent
results with A and another is getting comparable results
with B. How is this possible?"
-- Earl W. Stevick
Paul Fuchs
Abbott
Sandisk site and found an application that totally reformats the drive
AND permanently (possibly irreversibly) removes the U3 partition. I
think it was called "launchpadremoval.exe", and (obviously) it needs to
be run from Windows.
I have a Windows box sitting around, and was glad to find this use for
it. Both of my U3 drives now work like any other thumb drive.
In article <siegman-DB2A83...@news.stanford.edu>,
AES <sie...@stanford.edu> wrote:
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Fred Moore
paulfuchs@porkain'tkosher.oink (Paul Fuchs) wrote:
>
Windows->Windoze->Doze->D'Ohs, as in Homer Simpson and always plural as
in the number of D'Oh moments one experiences with Win-D'Ohs.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D'oh!>
and especially the link at the bottom expressing repeated satisfaction
with Win-D'Ohs:
<http://www.hal-pc.org/~joejr/32dohs.wav>
;)
--Fred
Mike Rosenberg
> I frustrated over this when I got my first U3 disk. Then I went to the
> Sandisk site and found an application that totally reformats the drive
> AND permanently (possibly irreversibly) removes the U3 partition. I
> think it was called "launchpadremoval.exe", and (obviously) it needs to
> be run from Windows.
True, but he's been told this several times now in several different
ways, including back in late May when he asked the first time.
Apparently, he hopes that if he keeps asking here the facts will change.
Actually, it _is_ possible that the facts will change, that SanDisk will
release a Mac utility to do the same thing, but I think it would be more
efficient to look on their site and maybe even contact them ask
directly. That's just me, though.
Daniel Cohen
> I frustrated over this when I got my first U3 disk. Then I went to the
> Sandisk site and found an application that totally reformats the drive
> AND permanently (possibly irreversibly) removes the U3 partition. I
> think it was called "launchpadremoval.exe", and (obviously) it needs to
> be run from Windows.
>
> I have a Windows box sitting around, and was glad to find this use for
> it. Both of my U3 drives now work like any other thumb drive.
Do you (or anyone else) know if this applies to all disks with a U3
partition, or only to Sandisk ones?
I do have a flash drive with a partition that I can't remove, but I
don't recall if it was technically described as a U3 or what files it
had on it originally.
--
http://www.decohen.com
Send e-mail to the Reply-To address;
mail to the From address is never read
Mr. Strat
<dan...@f2s.com> wrote:
> Do you (or anyone else) know if this applies to all disks with a U3
> partition, or only to Sandisk ones?
>
> I do have a flash drive with a partition that I can't remove, but I
> don't recall if it was technically described as a U3 or what files it
> had on it originally.
Go to u3.com, and they have a utility that will get rid of the
Mac-useless U3 functionality. You'll need a Windows machine though.
Daniel Cohen
> Go to u3.com, and they have a utility that will get rid of the
> Mac-useless U3 functionality. You'll need a Windows machine though.
Thanks.
Mike
dan...@f2s.com (Daniel Cohen) wrote:
> Mr. Strat <r...@nospam.techline.com> wrote:
>
> > Go to u3.com, and they have a utility that will get rid of the
> > Mac-useless U3 functionality. You'll need a Windows machine though.
>
> Thanks.
As a Mac user with no access to a windows machine, how do I get rid of
it?
--
Father of Blivit and a diversified multicultural postmodern
deconstructionist warlord.
Jolly Roger
Mike <hu...@worldwide.net> wrote:
> In article <1ijocg9.1nxh9pn1u6aaw6N%dan...@f2s.com>,
> dan...@f2s.com (Daniel Cohen) wrote:
>
> > Mr. Strat <r...@nospam.techline.com> wrote:
> >
> > > Go to u3.com, and they have a utility that will get rid of the
> > > Mac-useless U3 functionality. You'll need a Windows machine though.
>
> As a Mac user with no access to a windows machine, how do I get rid of
> it?
Throw it in the nearest trash can?
Jolly Roger
Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
> In article <huntm-762909....@sn-ip.vsrv-sjc.supernews.net>,
> Mike <hu...@worldwide.net> wrote:
>
> > In article <1ijocg9.1nxh9pn1u6aaw6N%dan...@f2s.com>,
> > dan...@f2s.com (Daniel Cohen) wrote:
> >
> > > Mr. Strat <r...@nospam.techline.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > > Go to u3.com, and they have a utility that will get rid of the
> > > > Mac-useless U3 functionality. You'll need a Windows machine though.
> >
> > As a Mac user with no access to a windows machine, how do I get rid of
> > it?
>
> Throw it in the nearest trash can?
Seriously, though, I have a couple Lexar JumpDrive USB thumb drives, and
the included Mac software lets you do just about anything you want with
them. If a company offers zero Mac support, they don't get my money -
simple as that.
Fred Moore
Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
> In article <jollyroger-17654...@individual.net>,
> Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
> > In article <huntm-762909....@sn-ip.vsrv-sjc.supernews.net>,
> > Mike <hu...@worldwide.net> wrote:
> > > As a Mac user with no access to a windows machine, how do I get rid of
> > > it?
> >
> > Throw it in the nearest trash can?
>
> Seriously, though, I have a couple Lexar JumpDrive USB thumb drives, and
> the included Mac software lets you do just about anything you want with
> them. If a company offers zero Mac support, they don't get my money -
> simple as that.
While I agree with you in principle, the underlying point is that the
thumb drives AES (I think he was the OP) was talking about are
attractive because they are REALLY, REALLY cheap generics. So if you
want to save the money in order to have a temporary transfer medium that
you don't care if it gets lost, you put up with the U3 stuff. It can
only be removed by running the uninstaller from a D'Ohs machine. BTW,
for those that don't know, these drives are perfectly useable without
clearing the U3 software. You can reformat most of the capacity as
read/write HFS+. It's just that you can't get rid of the small partition
containing the security software, so every time you mount the drive two
partitions will show up, mostly a cosmetic or aesthetic issue.
--Fred
Jolly Roger
Fred Moore <fmo...@gcfn.org> wrote:
> In article <jollyroger-21F7E...@individual.net>,
> Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
> > In article <jollyroger-17654...@individual.net>,
> > Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
> > > In article <huntm-762909....@sn-ip.vsrv-sjc.supernews.net>,
> > > Mike <hu...@worldwide.net> wrote:
> > > > As a Mac user with no access to a windows machine, how do I get rid of
> > > > it?
> > >
> > > Throw it in the nearest trash can?
> >
> > Seriously, though, I have a couple Lexar JumpDrive USB thumb drives, and
> > the included Mac software lets you do just about anything you want with
> > them. If a company offers zero Mac support, they don't get my money -
> > simple as that.
>
> While I agree with you in principle, the underlying point is that the
> thumb drives AES (I think he was the OP) was talking about are
> attractive because they are REALLY, REALLY cheap generics. So if you
> want to save the money in order to have a temporary transfer medium that
> you don't care if it gets lost, you put up with the U3 stuff.
Certainly. You do get what you pay for. : )
Jolly Roger
Michael Vilain <vil...@NOspamcop.net> wrote:
> In article <jollyroger-21F7E...@individual.net>,
> Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
>
> > Seriously, though, I have a couple Lexar JumpDrive USB thumb drives, and
> > the included Mac software lets you do just about anything you want with
> > them. If a company offers zero Mac support, they don't get my money -
> > simple as that.
>
> Since you can't typically install software on free library Windows
> boxes, your access to a Windows box is limited to the kindness of
> strangers if you want to clear this partition off you JumpDrive. Have
> you tried taking it back to the place of purchase and asking them to
> remove the partition?
Huh?? Did you actually read my message?
Again: I have a couple Lexar JumpDrive USB thumb drives, and the
included Mac software lets you do just about anything you want with them.
> I don't think you have many options besides living with the partition,
> returning it to the place of purchase and asking for a refund, charging
> back your credit card for this defective merchandise, or tossing the
> thing.
First, JumpDrives don't come with an extra partition to begin with.
Second, if they did, I could just use the included Mac software to
reformat them!
AES
> While I agree with you in principle, the underlying point is that the
> thumb drives AES (I think he was the OP) was talking about are
> attractive because they are REALLY, REALLY cheap generics. So if you
> want to save the money in order to have a temporary transfer medium that
> you don't care if it gets lost, you put up with the U3 stuff. It can
> only be removed by running the uninstaller from a D'Ohs machine. BTW,
> for those that don't know, these drives are perfectly useable without
> clearing the U3 software. You can reformat most of the capacity as
> read/write HFS+. It's just that you can't get rid of the small partition
> containing the security software, so every time you mount the drive two
> partitions will show up, mostly a cosmetic or aesthetic issue.
I was the OP, and that's an exactly correct statement of my motivation
for making the query 限 and also, apparently (and unfortunately) a
correct statement of the answer to my query.
Mike Rosenberg
> While I agree with you in principle, the underlying point is that the
> thumb drives AES (I think he was the OP) was talking about are
> attractive because they are REALLY, REALLY cheap generics. So if you
> want to save the money in order to have a temporary transfer medium that
> you don't care if it gets lost, you put up with the U3 stuff.
I absolutely agree with you in principle, but the issue is that the OP
does _NOT_ put up with the U3 stuff.
Jolly Roger
mike...@TOGROUPmacconsult.com (Mike Rosenberg) wrote:
> Fred Moore <fmo...@gcfn.org> wrote:
>
> > While I agree with you in principle, the underlying point is that the
> > thumb drives AES (I think he was the OP) was talking about are
> > attractive because they are REALLY, REALLY cheap generics. So if you
> > want to save the money in order to have a temporary transfer medium that
> > you don't care if it gets lost, you put up with the U3 stuff.
>
> I absolutely agree with you in principle, but the issue is that the OP
> does _NOT_ put up with the U3 stuff.
And the fact that the OP has create not one, but two individual threads
about the same issue recently is proof that he is not putting up with it
very well. : D
--
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Mr. Strat
> As a Mac user with no access to a windows machine, how do I get rid of
> it?
Well, then you're SOL.
It's not the fault of the flash drive manufacturers, it's the U3 spec.
Ted Lee
news:vilain-D2FD25....@comcast.dca.giganews.com...
>
> But you're quite right--if it doesn't support MacOS X, why buy it at any
> price?
>
I have one (supplied by my employer, which mostly uses PC's) that works just
fine on my Mac under OS X. I just ignore the U3 stuff. (Hey, I ignore the
U3 stuff when I'm on the PC too.) I vaguely recall once having a little
trouble dismounting it, but nothing that a reboot didn't solve. Of course I
chuckle when I bring it back to the PC and see all the hidden .Trashes and
.DS_Store files that OS X put on it when it read it.
--
Ted Lee
Minnetonka, MN
AES
Michael Vilain <vil...@NOspamcop.net> wrote:
> $49.99 for a 2-pack of 2GB drives
>
> My guess is that's what AES bought (or he got something similar at
> Fry's) and now is trying to get rid of the U3 partition.
>
> But you're quite right--if it doesn't support MacOS X, why buy it at any
> price?
It think it was more like 4 GB units on special for $24 each at a local
Radio Shack; if there was anything on the package about the U3 stuff it
was in a type face below the resolution limit of the human eye; and I
was naive enough to think that "Hey, SanDisk is a purportedly reliable
firm; and if it's a USB thumb drive, it's just a USB thumb drive, like
the millions of others floating around".
Mr. Strat
Michael Vilain <vil...@NOspamcop.net> wrote:
> But you're quite right--if it doesn't support MacOS X, why buy it at any
> price?
It's kinda tough to find flash drives that don't have U3.
Paul Fuchs
> In article <jollyroger-46E09...@individual.net>,
> Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
>
> > In article <vilain-DD9F32....@comcast.dca.giganews.com>,
> > Michael Vilain <vil...@NOspamcop.net> wrote:
> >
> > > In article <jollyroger-21F7E...@individual.net>,
> > > Jolly Roger <jolly...@pobox.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > > Seriously, though, I have a couple Lexar JumpDrive USB thumb drives, and
> > > > the included Mac software lets you do just about anything you want with
> > > > them. If a company offers zero Mac support, they don't get my money -
> > > > simple as that.
> > >
> > > Since you can't typically install software on free library Windows
> > > boxes, your access to a Windows box is limited to the kindness of
> > > strangers if you want to clear this partition off you JumpDrive. Have
> > > you tried taking it back to the place of purchase and asking them to
> > > remove the partition?
> >
> > Huh?? Did you actually read my message?
> >
> > Again: I have a couple Lexar JumpDrive USB thumb drives, and the
> > included Mac software lets you do just about anything you want with them.
> >
> > > I don't think you have many options besides living with the partition,
> > > returning it to the place of purchase and asking for a refund, charging
> > > back your credit card for this defective merchandise, or tossing the
> > > thing.
> >
> > First, JumpDrives don't come with an extra partition to begin with.
> > Second, if they did, I could just use the included Mac software to
> > reformat them!
>
> My response to your post was done during a "senior moment" while I
> confused your post with the OP's. Sorry about that. I don't use thumb
> drives even thought they're $49.99 for a 2-pack of 2GB drives that are
> "ultra chic for fashionistas" at CostCo.
>
> My guess is that's what AES bought (or he got something similar at
> Fry's) and now is trying to get rid of the U3 partition.
>
> But you're quite right--if it doesn't support MacOS X, why buy it at any
> price?
I just bought 10 1 GB drives from Hong Kong for $6 each including
postage. (The volume discount was only 50 cents each) We have a
discussion group here every week, and I got tired of burning CD's for
the goodies I found on the internet that others wanted. A lot of the
people don't have broadband. 1GB thumb drives are plenty big enough for
this stuff. BTW, they came without any U3.