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I have an external hard drive that I could not eject despite all programs being closed.

I followed the instructions explained in this answer to check which process was preventing the drive from being ejected.

I found two entries in the log:

  • The application \Device\HarddiskVolume5\Windows\explorer.exe with process id 21776 stopped the removal or ejection for the device USB\VID_0480&PID_0901\20211220017702F.
  • The application System with process id 4 stopped the removal or ejection for the device USB\VID_0480&PID_0901\20211220017702F.

What should I do? Should I kill explorer.exe? What is System? Should I kill that too?

Luca
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    I usually just sign off, wait 30 seconds, sign on and most of the time (90%) the drive can now be ejected. Best way. – John Oct 10 '22 at 22:13
  • Try `Ctrl+Alt+Del` to open Task Manager. Scroll to find **Windows Explorer**. Right click and select "Restart" to kill and restart explorer. Wait till Taskbar loads and try to eject. Tell us if this was successful – xypha Feb 17 '23 at 22:24

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