When an icon representing the file or files appears over the destination window, release the mouse button, and the files will be copied to that location. Using your mouse cursor, select the file (or files) you would like to copy, then click and hold the mouse button to drag the files to the USB thumb drive window. How to Copy Files by Dragging and Dropping

There are several ways to do it, but here are the two most common methods. What happens next depends on how you’d like to copy the files.

You should now have two windows open side by side. Use the new window to locate the files you would like to copy.Īfter you’ve located the files, return to the “This PC” window and double-click the USB drive icon to open it. While keeping the USB drive window open, press Ctrl+N to open a new File Explorer window. RELATED: How to Find Your Missing USB Drive in Windows 7, 8, and 10 Find the Files You Want to Copy If the USB drive doesn’t show up in your “Devices And Drives” list, you’ll have to perform some in-depth sleuthing to figure out what it going on. Note that the “C:” drive is almost always the main drive on your PC, unless you go very out of your way to change it.ĭepending on how File Explorer is configured (see the “Layout” options under the “View” menu), the style of the icons within this window may appear different on your machine. If your USB drive has been recognized correctly and is ready to receive files, it will appear in this location with a name and a drive letter assigned to it, such as “D:”, “E:”, or “F:”, or another letter. In the window that pops up, locate the section called “Devices And Drives.” If necessary, click the small carat-shaped arrow to the left of the section header to reveal a list of the drives. This is a direct shortcut to a list of drives attached to your PC in File Explorer. Then open the Start menu, type “This PC,” and hit Enter.

(These instructions will work for other external storage devices, too, including SD cards and USB hard drives.) Give your PC a minute to recognize the drive and automatically install any needed drivers for it. First, plug your USB flash drive into a USB port on your Windows 10 PC. Before we can copy any files, we need to make sure the flash drive is connected and ready to receive data.

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