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Zip Drive Troubleshooting

Problem: Cannot Delete Files

Possible Solutions:

The disk may be locked into a read-only state using Iomega's software. Use the software to unlock the disk.

If you are in a student lab, try a different computer.

Problem: Drive not present in My Computer

Possible Solutions:

Reboot PC and try accessing the drive again.

Right-click the My Computer icon on your desktop and choose Properties. Click on the Hardware tab and click the Device Manager button. Verify the zip drive is listed under Disk Drives. If it is not, a technician may need to visit your PC. Contact the Help Desk.

Problem: Cannot eject disks

Possible Solutions:

Zip drives have a software eject rather than a hardware eject like a floppy drive. If the PC is locked up or sotware not responding you may not be able to eject the disk by pressing the eject button.

Some options to try:

  1. Open My Computer or Windows Explorer; right-click the drive and choose eject
  2. Reboot computer--usually the disk will eject on bootup. If it doesn't, try pushing the eject button as it boots.
  3. If you have an older model zip drive, there may be a manual eject--it appears as a small pin hole on the front of the drive. Unbend a paper clip and insert it into the manual eject, pressing firmly.

If none of these options work, contact the Help Desk.

Problem: Cannot read files

Possible Solutions:

Try accessing on another computer. Make sure the size of the disk is not bigger than the disk drive you are inserting it in. Try a different disk on the same PC to see if the problem lies with the disk or the drive. Take note of any errors you may receive.

Zip Compatibility Chart

    Drive Size
    100MB 250MB 750MB
Disk Size 100MB Read/Write Slow Read/Write Slow Read Only
250MB Incompatiable Read/Write Slow Read/Write
750MB Incompatiable Incompatiable Read/Write

Problem: Cannot write to disk

Possible Solutions:

If you get an error that your disk is full while copying files to it but there is free space for the files:

Make sure you are not trying to copy more than 512 files into the root of the disk. You can only have up to 512 files in the root directory of the zip disk. The disk can hold many more than that, but they must be separated into subdirectories--probably better organized that way anyhow! Subdirectories can hold more than 512 files also, it's only the root directory that has this limitation.

If you just had a disk in the drive that was full, the PC may still think that disk is in the drive. Reboot the PC and try accessing the second disk again.

Try copying/moving all files from the disk to a folder on your PC. Long format the disk using Iomega software in the corresponding drive (100MB disk in a 100MB drive, 250MB disk in a 250MB drive, etc.) Copy all files back to the disk.