This feature requires removable media – Password reset error on Windows 11

If you’re locked out and unable to access your administrator account on your Windows 11/10 PC and when you try to reset the admin password you receive the error message “This feature requires removable media“, this post will help you. In this post, we will provide the solution that you can try to effectively resolve this issue.

When you encounter this issue, you’ll receive the following error message;

No Drive. This feature requires removable media, such as a USB flash drive. Please connect a USB flash drive, and then try again.

This feature requires removable media

The reset password requires that you previously (recommended after you complete your Windows device setup) create a password reset drive first (like a USB drive) as a backup.  This way, only someone with that drive (which you should lock up or keep hidden) could get into your computer.

Since you never created a password reset drive, then you cannot use this feature.

Nevertheless, since you’re faced with the This feature requires removable media, such as a USB flash drive issue, you can try either of our recommended solutions presented below to resolve the issue.

1. Use the inbuilt Administrator account to reset your password
2. Create a new Administrator account
3. Use System Image Recovery to change your Password

Let’s take a look at the description of the process involved concerning each of the listed solutions.

1] Use the inbuilt Administrator account to reset your password

To use the inbuilt Administrator account to reset your password, do the following:

• Boot into Safe Mode.

Now that you are in Safe Mode, you can use the built-in Administrator account to perform any necessary recovery. The inbuilt Administrator account should not be used for any other purpose, or it won’t be available in situations like this when you need it.

• At the login screen, click the arrow icon and select the Administrator account.
• On the desktop environment, press Windows key + R, to invoke the Run dialog.
• In the Run dialog box, type control and hit Enter to open the Control Panel.
• In the Control Panel, locate and select the User Accounts option.
• In the User Accounts window, select Manage another account.
• In the Manage another account window, select your administrator account.
• In the next window that opens, click the Change the password link.
• In the Change Administrator’s password window, type in the desired password in the New password field, and input the same password in the Confirm new password field.
• Click the Change password button.
• Restart the PC into normal mode.

On boot, see if you can log in with your administrator account with the new password. Otherwise, continue with the next solution if This feature requires removable media issue persists.

2] Create a new Administrator account

You can try this solution if Solution 1] above didn’t work for you for some reason or the other, most especially if your administrator account that is locked out is corrupted.

This solution requires you to log in to Windows 11/10 with the default/inbuilt administrator account, then delete the corrupt account and create a new Administrator account.

Here’s how:

• Boot into the Recovery Environment (WinRE) on Windows.
• In the Windows Recovery Environment, on the Choose an option screen, click Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Command Prompt.
• In the CMD prompt, type the command below and hit Enter.

net user administrator /active:yes

• Next, type exit and hit Enter.
• Reboot your PC.

On boot, log in (does not have a password) with the default/inbuilt administrator account. Once you’re successfully logged on, navigate to the Accounts page, and create a new user account.

• Next, open the Control Panel, locate, and select the User Accounts option.
• In the User Accounts window, select Manage another account.
• In the Manage another account window, select your corrupted administrator account.
• Click the Delete the account link.

Now, you can proceed to disable the inbuilt administrator account.

Here’s how:

• Press the Windows key + R to invoke the Run dialog.
• In the Run dialog box, type cmd and then press CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER to open Command Prompt in admin/elevated mode.
• In the command prompt window, type the command below and hit Enter.

net user administrator /active:no

Afterward, you can exit the command prompt and restart your Windows 10 device.

Once the system restarts, you can now log in with the newly created user account.

3] Use System Image Recovery to change your Password

Another way to fix when you see This feature requires removable media error is to use system image recovery to change the password. This process involves multiple steps. First, you need to enter the System Recovery mode and rename the CMD to Utilman and Utilman to some other name you can remember easily. Then, you need to open the CMD and change the password.

To get started, boot into Windows Recovery Environment and select Advanced Options > Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > System Image Recovery.

It will open System Image Recovery Windows. Click Next. Then, click on Advanced > Install a driver and click OK. Locate the drive where Windows is installed and select it. Go to Windows and System32 folder. Locate utilman and rename it to something you can remember like utilman1 or something. Then, locate CMD and rename it to utilman. Now, exit all and boot into Windows.

On the login screen, click on the Ease of Access button. It will open Elevate Command Prompt as you have renamed the system files earlier. To reset the password of a user type the following command and press Enter. Replace the account name with the user name.

net user "account name"*

Now, type the new password and press Enter. Type again and press Enter for confirmation. Now, close the command prompt and go to the login screen, and enter the new password you have set. After successfully logging in, go to the System32 folder and rename utilman to cmd and utilman1 to utilman as you have renamed earlier.

That’s it! The solutions presented in this post should help you resolve the This feature requires removable media, such as a USB flash drive issue on Windows 11/10.

Why do I need a USB to reset my password?

As a security measure, a USB drive is needed to reset a password. Creating a password reset disk on a USB drive ensures that password recovery can only be done with the physical drive, protecting your account from unauthorized access. Without it, the reset feature remains inaccessible.

What can I use if I don’t have a Password Reset disk?

If you lack a password reset disk for Windows, use another admin account to change your password. Access User Accounts via the Control Panel, select ‘Manage another account’, choose the account needing a reset, and proceed to change the password with a new one, ensuring you add a hint.

Related read: How to bypass Administrator password in Windows.