How to mount removable storage devices in Windows 10

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The ability to use a microSD card as a permanent storage solution in Windows 10 for when the base storage of your Windows 10 PC fills up can be a useful solution if you need more storage. The ability to add extra storage to your Windows 10 PC to store your documents, pictures, and videos allow you to utilize your PC’s main storage for apps and games. A bonus of the Microsoft Surface line is that they all have a MicroSD card slot available (Surface Book 2 has a full SD card slot) to add additional storage space.

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Even if your Windows 10 PC does not have a MicroSD or full SD card slot, you can also add additional storage via a USB drive or use cloud storage services such as OneDrive. However, cloud storage services don’t often work well as a permanent storage solution in Windows 10. USB drives and microSD cards are better storage options because they don’t require internet access to sync.

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First, you need to format your removable storage device to act as a permanent drive in Windows 10. Warning: This step will erase all the files from the removable storage. Be sure to back-up before doing this step.

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1. Insert your removable storage into your Windows 10 PC.
\n2. Format your removable storage to NTFS.

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Next, you need to create a new folder on your main drive in Windows 10.

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1. Open File Explorer (keyboard shortcut Windows Key + E)
\n2. Right-click and create a New Folder in your Main drive. Name the folder whatever you want. In this case, I named the new folder, “SD Card.”
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Next, you need to mount the formatted drive in Windows 10.

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1. In the Windows 10 search box, type and click on “Create and format disk partitions.”
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\n2. The Disk Management window will open. Find the drive of your removable storage device. Hint: Your removable storage device will be listed as “Removable.”
\n3. Right-click on the drive of your removable storage and choose “Change Drive Letter and Paths...”
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\n4. Choose Add and choose the new folder you created.

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5. Click OK.

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6. Close the Disk Management window.

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If you want to check to see that your removable storage device was mounted correctly, follow these steps:

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1. Open File Explorer

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2. Go to the folder you created on your main drive.

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3. You should see the folder on your drive, but it is no longer represented by a folder icon. If you right-click the folder and go to Properties, you should find information similar to this:

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When you go inside the folder you will see that you are inside your removable storage device, instead of having a different volume path, it is now mounted to your main drive. Now, you can set the path for any new software, apps, or files to the folder you just mounted to your main drive.

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Here are the Amazon links to the SanDisk SD card and the BaseQi microSD drive holder for my Surface Book 2 I used for this tutorial.

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SanDisk 200GB Ultra microSDXC UHS-I Memory Card with Adapter

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BASEQI Aluminum MicroSD Adapter for Microsoft Surface Book 2 15″

\n\nFurther reading: Microsoft, OneDrive, Storage, Surface Book 2, Windows 10, Windows Settings