Usb Storage Device Restricted

[swiltshire]

Up Until Now My Usb Pen Has Worked Perfectly On My Computer Running On Xp Home But Suddenly I Have Been Prevented From Opening My Usb Device And I Get The Following Message

"this Operation Has Been Cancelled Due To A Restriction In Effect On This Computer. Please Contact Your System Administrator."

I Am An Administrator And Do Not Recall Changing Any Settings That May Have Caused This.

If I Log On Under My Girlfriend's User Account The Usb Pen Works Fine, So Does It On My Sister's Computer.

Does Anyone Know How To Remove This Restriction?

Thanks

[Digitalic]

Try logging on to an account that the pen does work on and check if there are any security settings preventing you from using it or if the pen is write protected.

edit: Another quick thought, see if you have any problems under your account with any other USB devices which might help nail down the cause.

[swiltshire]

I have tried my digi camera and I am able to extract photos using camera's software. I tried to open the file through 'Explorer' but I got the same message about a 'restriction in effect', (able to open it in other user's account)
You have mentioned logging on to an account that the pen works on and looking for some kind of security setting. I have done this and looked in the properties for the pen drive but cannot see anything that will prevent me from using it under my account. I assume this is what you mean about security settings or is there somewhere else?

Thanks

Swiltshire

[Digitalic]

Yes I was referring to security settings that may have been enforced within another account.

Have you checked if the file has been encrypted? Try putting another file on the drive from another sccount and see if the same thing happens.

[swiltshire]

Thanks for the reply.
When I have my camera plugged in to the computer it is recognised as drive 'E' which is the same when I have my usb pen drive plugged in. So whilst the camera was still plugged in, I plugged in my usb stick and it was recognised as drive 'F' and I can access it and use it as normal. Now the problem is that I cannot access drive 'E' through Explorer.

Is there a way to rename what letter is given to each drive and also what restrictions might apply to that drive?

Thanks again

Swiltshire

[glc]

You can reletter the drives in Disk Management.

[swiltshire]

Thanks for that.

If I reletter the usb pen to 'E' (as it was initially) then I am restricted from opening it again, but if I reletter it anything else then I am able to access it.
Is there a way of applying rules to a specific drive letter?
Also I have found out that another usb pen drive was used on my account recently and it seems that since then the problem started. Is it possible that this usb pen had some kind of protection on it which automatically created this restriction? If so would it help to plug it in again to see if I can find some kind of security protection in its properties?

[glc]

Is there any reason it HAS to be drive E? You have a lot of letters to pick from. I know this doesn't fix the problem, but it's an easy workaround.

[swiltshire]

Fair comment!!! I guess I just liked to know why it has happen and how to correct the problem.

[Digitalic]

Security restrictions can be imposed on drives just like files and folders.

[rjfvillarosa]

Fair comment!!! I guess I just liked to know why it has happen and how to correct the problem.
Like yourself I would need to know why this was happening, can you get hold of that other pen drive and explore it to check for any security settings?
Also plug it in when your camera is plugged in and see if it then restricts the access to the "F" drive.

[swiltshire]

I have resolved this issue!

When I plugged in this other pen drive Explorer labelled it as 'F' and I could not see any security properties that may have caused my problem. I then noticed Explorer showed drive 'E' named 'AutoRun' and a cd icon next to it. If I tried to open the 'E' it dissapeared, if I refreshed it would reappear. I looked in the properties and it was described as a 'cd drive'. I then uninstalled the driver for 'E' and relettered drive 'F' to 'E' and removed the stick. I then plugged in my own stick and it was referenced as drive 'E' and was fully functional again.

Everytime I plug in this other stick it appears as two drives in explorer, one being a removeable storage device and the other a cd-drive, after which it prevents me from opening any other drive designated with the letter 'E'. Is there a way to prevent this from happening so it only appears as one drive?

Many thanks for all your help so far.

[glc]

What exact model pen drive is this? I could see this happening with something like a Lexar Secure Drive that has 2 partitions - one open and one encrypted.

[swiltshire]

I am not sure on the make, it was a freebie from a medical company, so just had their name on it. It had the option to partition the drive but it had not been done.