How do I determine if my Zip® disk is defective in Windows® 98/95?
Document # 30043.html

A system may not read a Zip® disk for a number of reasons. If the Zip drive will read other disks, the problem may be with only the one disk. If the Zip drive does not read all disks, there may be a problem with the drive or a conflict within the operating system. These steps are generic for all Zip drives to determine if the disk or the drive is at fault.

Use the following steps to resolve this issue:


STEP ONE - Move the Zip drive away from other electronic devices

    Monitors, power supplies and other electronics may cause interference with the Zip drive. Move the drive away from any devices, as far as the data cable will allow. If the problem persists, continue with the next step.


STEP TWO - Make sure that a correctly formatted disk is in the drive.
  1. Be sure there is a disk in the drive. If there is a disk in the drive, eject the disk and reinsert it into the drive.

  2. Look at the disk to see if it is a Macintosh® formatted disk. A Macintosh formatted disk usually has a small black dot on the label and will not be readable on your computer. If the disk is Macintosh formatted, perform a long format to make the disk readable on a PC. Please go to STEP FIVE for formatting instructions.

    What should I do next?

    Y If the disk is readable, the problem is resolved.

    N If you can still not access your disk, please continue with the next step.


STEP THREE - Check the disk for write protection
  1. Double-click the My Computer icon.

  2. Right click the Zip drive icon.

  3. Choose Protect from the menu.

  4. Choose Not Protected from the drop-down menu and click OK.

    If asked for a password, you will need to supply the password. If you do not remember the password, you will need to long format the disk. Please go to STEP FIVE for formatting instructions.

    What should I do next?

    If the disk is readable, the problem is resolved and you can now use the disk.

    If you can still not access your disk, please continue with the next step.


STEP FOUR - Try a different disk
  1. Insert a different Zip disk in the Zip drive.

    Caution: Use a blank disk or a disk with non-critical data.

  2. If the second Zip disk can be read without errors, the problem is with the first disk, continue with the next step.


STEP FIVE - Long format the problem disk

    Warning: Formatting a disk will remove all data from that disk. If the disk has data you do not want to lose, Iomega® can provide fee based data recovery for all Iomega disks. Please review the information at http://www.iomega.com/data_recovery/index.html if you need data recovery.

    Note: You cannot long format a Zip 100MB disk in a Zip 250MB drive.

  1. Make sure the Zip disk is inserted into the Zip drive.

  2. Double-click the My Computer icon.

  3. Right-click the Zip drive icon and select Format.

    My Computer right-click the Iomega drive

  4. Select Long Format with Surface Verify.

    Iomega Long Format Option

  5. Click the Format button.

  6. Click the OK button on the Warning screen to begin.

    Iomega Format Warning click OK to continue

    What should I do next?

    If the disk format is successful and you can now read from your Zip disk, the issue is resolved and you may now use the disk.

    If the disk cannot be formatted, please go to the Warranty page at http://www.iomega.com/support/returns/index.html for information about returning the first disk.

    If a second disk cannot be formatted or accessed, there may be a problem with the drive. Please go to the Warranty page at http://www.iomega.com/support/returns/index.html for information about returning the drive.



12 March 2001