Removing a USB drive from Windows 11 without safely ejecting it first can lead to data corruption. If the “Safely Remove Hardware” icon tells you the drive is currently in use, you need to force close the interfering processes.
How to Fix a Stuck USB Drive
- Close all File Explorer windows and any applications that might have files open on the drive.
- If it still won’t eject, open the Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc).
- Find Windows Explorer in the list of processes.
- Right-click it and select Restart. Try ejecting the drive again.