Microsoft recently confirmed that some Windows users with Samsung devices had lost access to their C: drive. Acknowledging the issue is one thing, but at the time the company did not have a fix or a workaround for those affected by the worrying issue.
But now, following collaborative work with Samsung, Microsoft has provided recovery instructions to help regain access to the vanish partition.
Microsoft has published an article entitled “Recovery steps: Samsung Galaxy Connect or Samsung Continuity Service might cause loss of access to the C: drive” which details step-by-step what needs to be done.
The steps to get things back to normal are quite lengthy, and they are not something everyone will necessarily be comfortable doing.
The steps in full are as follows:
Before you start
- Plan for 10–15 minutes to complete these steps.
- You must sign in to Windows using an Administrator account.
- If you are uncomfortable doing this, contact Samsung Support and ask them to perform the “C: drive permissions restore” steps.
Step 1: Start the affected system
- Turn on (start) the affected device.
- Sign in to Windows.
Step 2: Remove the Samsung app
- Select Start > Settings.
- Select Apps > Installed apps.
- Find Samsung Galaxy Connect (or Samsung Continuity Service)
- Select the app and choose Uninstall.
- Restart your device.
Step 3: Temporarily allow Windows to repair drive permissions
- Open File Explorer.
- Select This PC.
- Right-click Local Disk (C:), and then select Properties.
- Select the Security tab, and then select Advanced.
- Next to Owner, select Change.
- Type the following, and then select OK:
Everyone
- Select Yes if prompted.
Step 4: Add a temporary permission
- In Properties, select Security > Edit.
- Select Add.
- Type the following, and then select OK:
Everyone
- Select OK, and then Yes if prompted.
- If multiple security alerts appear, press Alt + C to continue.
Step 5: Restore Windows default permissions
Create the repair file
- Open Notepad.
- Copy and paste the following text:
icacls c: /grant BUILTINAdministrators:(OI)(CI)(F)
icacls c: /grant “NT AUTHORITYSYSTEM:(OI)(CI)(F)”
icacls c: /grant BUILTINUsers:(OI)(CI)(RX)
icacls c: /grant “NT AUTHORITYAuthenticated Users:(OI)(CI)(IO)(M)”
icacls c: /grant “NT AUTHORITYAuthenticated Users:(AD)”
icacls c: /setowner “NT ServiceTrustedInstaller”
icacls c: /remove everyone
pause
- Select File > Save as.
- Set Save as type to All Files.
- Name the file RestoreAccess.bat.
- Save it to your Desktop.
Run the repair
- On your Desktop, right-click RestoreAccess.bat.
- Select Run as administrator.
- Select Yes if prompted.
- Wait until the process completes.
- Restart your device.
After restarting your device
The following should be true:
- Local Disk (C:) opens normally.
- Windows system behavior returns to normal.
- Drive ownership is restored to Windows (TrustedInstaller).
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