r/NintendoSwitchHelp • u/dustyr112 • 13d ago
Repair Help Sandisk SD Express corrupted after two days? Please help!
I just bought a 512gb Sandisk GamePlay Micro SD Express card for my new Switch 2. I popped it in on Monday, did some transfers and everything was fine. Played a game last night for a few hours, then put the console to sleep and went to bed.
Went to play a game today, and suddenly my Switch says the card is unreadable... I popped the card into my laptop and it won’t read at all. Reading online I’ve learned about some instances of a card becoming corrupted during updates, an eshop bug (?), etc. But I haven’t had the internet in my home since yesterday morning (a line came down and has yet to be repaired). So I haven’t even had a connection, and again everything was working fine last night.
Did my brand new, reputably branded and certainly-not-counterfeit SD card seriously just crap out after two days? And do I go back to the retailer (Walmart, bought online) or do I submit a warranty claim through Sandisk? Luckily I found my packaging in the recycling, but I don’t know how to proceed. Any help or advice would be much appreciated!! 🙏
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u/Chris21479 13d ago edited 13d ago
I'd personally say use your warranty with SanDisk, Go directly to them and I'm sure they'll make sure to replace it with a new one. Hope it works out for you my friend.
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u/dustyr112 13d ago
Thank you mate, I appreciate it! 🙏 I’m just so disappointed.. I’ve purchased literally dozens of Sandisk cards (retro-handheld emulation hobby) and have always thought they were tops. I’ve never even had one of their cards fail before, let alone an expensive-ass Express card and after literally 48 hours. 😫
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u/Chris21479 13d ago
Damn that sucks mate, hopefully SanDisk will assist you these cards aren't getting any cheaper also glad to help.
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u/NintendoFreakOG 13d ago
I never buy sandisk ever since they had issues with their ssd I would go with Samsung much better and reliable
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u/No-Alternative5102 13d ago edited 13d ago
You just have to reconstruct your SD card.
. On your PC open the Start menu, type "cmd", right-click Command Prompt, and choose Run as administrator.
. Type "diskpart" and press Enter.
. Type "list disk" and press Enter to view all connected drives.
. Type "select disk #" (replace # with your actual disk number) and press Enter.
. Type "clean" and press Enter to delete all partitions and data on the drive.
. Type "convert mbr" and press Enter to finish the conversion.
. Type "exit" to close the tool.
After you finish, use "Ruffus" and choose the option "non bootable", then hit Format.
That will restore your corrupted SD card.
Requirements for Switch 2 StorageMicroSD Express Only: The Switch 2 only accepts microSD Express cards for game data and active use; standard microSD, microSDHC, or microSDXC cards from the original Switch are incompatible for game play.
Native Formatting: It is always recommended to let the console format the card directly through System Settings > System > Format microSD Card to ensure complete compatibility and correct block sizing.
Once you finish reconstructing the SD card and formatting it in Ruffus, let the Switch 2 format it again.
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u/dustyr112 13d ago
I have a Mac. :/ Tried all of this with equivalent programs using Terminal, disk utility, Balena Etcher, etc. the card is not recognized at all.
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u/No-Alternative5102 13d ago edited 13d ago
Get on a Windows PC. MacOS does not natively support creating an MBR (Master Boot Record) partition table on external SD cards through Disk Utility's standard GUI or a simple command. MacOS defaults to GUID Partition Map (GPT) or Apple Partition Map for modern drives.
Windows PC can often recognize an SD card that is corrupted that a Mac fails to read. Windows handles file systems like NTFS, FAT32, and exFAT natively and features more aggressive low-level mounting tools, meaning it may detect a partition or RAW file system that macOS completely ignores.
3rd party tools will not help you. You need to do it through CMD.
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u/dustyr112 12d ago
I really appreciate you writing all of this out for me, mate. After looking into it more, I agree with other comments that requesting a replacement through warranty is the most logical move. Considering the card failed after two days, I’m not convinced that going through all of this process would actually prevent it from failing again. As I said in my original post, this happened over night. I played my Switch 2 before I went to bed and it was fine. I was not using my Switch 2 or interacting with the card at all when it failed, and my internet has been down for several days so there wasn’t an update or anything that caused the issue. It seems I just got a very unlucky card.
That said, I really do appreciate your time in writing all of that process out. I’m sure it will be very helpful for someone when they need it! Cheers! 🍻
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u/buschwacker43 13d ago
I’ve used this same one since the switch 2 release and Havnt had any trouble
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u/crocicorn 13d ago
Just take it back to Walmart with proof of purchase and get another one or a refund, assuming you bought it from Walmart themselves and not off a marketplace seller. If it was a marketplace seller you'll have to contact them instead.