Checking USB flash drives and flash memory cards for correct functionality
Test Run
USB memory sticks and flash memory cards are part of the equipment of almost every mobile IT user today, but media defects can cause data loss. A small tool by the name of F3 helps.
USB sticks and flash memory cards are small, lightweight, and available in a variety of storage capacities, but even though they have no mechanical components, and some sticks even have a metal housing, the memory is not completely wear-free. Some flash storage media, often offered for low prices online, can fail to reach the advertised capacity. This shortcoming is really annoying when your important data is suddenly gone or you can no longer access the medium because of memory cell failure.
To spare yourself this mishap, you need only two things: Linux and the F3 program. F3 uses a read and write test to verify the integrity of the memory cells of your flash media and thus prevent unpleasant surprises.
Get Started
The program, which hails from Brazil, is available from a no-frills website as a source code archive [1]. Start by downloading the ZIP archive and unpacking it in a directory of your choice. Next, change to the newly created f3-2.2 subdirectory and compile the software in a terminal using the make linux command.
[...]
Buy this article as PDF
(incl. VAT)
Buy Linux Magazine
US / Canada
UK / Australia
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
Red Hat Releases RHEL 10 Early
Red Hat quietly rolled out the official release of RHEL 10.0 a bit early.
-
openSUSE Joins End of 10
openSUSE has decided to not only join the End of 10 movement but it also will no longer support the Deepin Desktop Environment.
-
New Version of Flatpak Released
Flatpak 1.16.1 is now available as the latest, stable version with various improvements.
-
IBM Announces Powerhouse Linux Server
IBM has unleashed a seriously powerful Linux server with the LinuxONE Emperor 5.
-
Plasma Ends LTS Releases
The KDE Plasma development team is doing away with the LTS releases for a good reason.
-
Arch Linux Available for Windows Subsystem for Linux
If you've ever wanted to use a rolling release distribution with WSL, now's your chance.
-
System76 Releases COSMIC Alpha 7
With scores of bug fixes and a really cool workspaces feature, COSMIC is looking to soon migrate from alpha to beta.
-
OpenMandriva Lx 6.0 Available for Installation
The latest release of OpenMandriva has arrived with a new kernel, an updated Plasma desktop, and a server edition.
-
TrueNAS 25.04 Arrives with Thousands of Changes
One of the most popular Linux-based NAS solutions has rolled out the latest edition, based on Ubuntu 25.04.
-
Fedora 42 Available with Two New Spins
The latest release from the Fedora Project includes the usual updates, a new kernel, an official KDE Plasma spin, and a new System76 spin.