Fix ERROR_DATA_NOT_ACCEPTED (0x00000250) on External Drives

When This Error Hits

You're copying a large file—maybe a movie or a backup archive—to an external USB hard drive. Midway through, Windows throws up ERROR_DATA_NOT_ACCEPTED (0x00000250). The transfer stops dead. The drive shows up in File Explorer, you can browse files, but write operations fail. I've seen this most often on Western Digital My Passport drives and older Seagate Expansion drives connected via USB 3.0 ports.

What's Actually Going On

This error means the drive's controller or file system rejected the data at the hardware level. It's not a simple permissions issue—your OS sent the data, but the drive said "no thanks." The root cause is usually one of three things:

Corrupted partition table or file system—bad sectors or a sudden disconnect scrambled the drive's mapping.
Driver conflict—Windows USB storage drivers (usbstor.sys) or the controller driver (like ASMedia or Renesas) got into a weird state.
Hardware fault—the drive itself is dying, or the USB cable/port is flaky.

I've fixed this on Windows 10 22H2 and Windows 11 23H2 the same way. The fixes below target software issues first because they're more common.

Step-by-Step Fix

1. Run a Quick CHKDSK

Open Command Prompt as Administrator—right-click Start, choose Windows Terminal (Admin) or Command Prompt (Admin). Find your drive letter (say, F:). Run:

chkdsk F: /f /r

This scans for bad sectors and fixes file system errors. The /r flag finds bad sectors and recovers readable data. It'll take a while—grab coffee. If chkdsk reports "Windows has made corrections" or fixes the error, reboot and try copying again.

2. Clean the Drive with DiskPart (Nuke Option)

If chkdsk didn't help—or threw its own errors—the partition table might be too corrupted. This wipes everything. Back up any data you can still read first.

Open Command Prompt as Admin.
Type diskpart and press Enter.
Type list disk—find your external drive by size.
Type select disk X (replace X with the disk number). Double-check! If you select the wrong disk, you'll wipe your system drive.
Type clean—this removes all partitions.
Type create partition primary.
Type format fs=ntfs quick.
Type assign (gives it a drive letter).
Type exit.

Now you've a fresh, healthy drive. Copy your data back. If the error recurs after this, the drive hardware is suspect.

3. Reset USB Drivers

Sometimes the host controller driver gets confused. This doesn't touch your data, so try it before wiping.

Open Device Manager (right-click Start > Device Manager).
Expand Universal Serial Bus controllers.
Right-click each entry that says Host Controller or Root Hub and select Uninstall device. Don't worry—Windows reinstalls them on reboot.
Restart your PC.

I've seen this fix the error on systems with ASMedia USB 3.0 controllers—common on older motherboards.

4. Check the Cable and Port

Don't skip this. I've spent hours debugging driver issues only to find a frayed USB cable. Try a different cable, preferably a shorter one (long cables drop signal). Also switch to a different USB port—ideally a port directly on the motherboard (back of the PC), not a front-panel or hub port.

If It Still Fails

The drive itself is likely toast. Check the S.M.A.R.T. status with a tool like CrystalDiskInfo (free). If it reports reallocated sectors or pending errors, back up whatever you can immediately and replace the drive. For a last-ditch try, connect it to a different computer—if the error persists there too, it's almost certainly hardware failure. I've had drives with this error that worked fine after a full format on a Mac, then failed again on Windows—the controller was dying.

One more trick: if the drive is under 2TB and you don't need NTFS, try formatting it as exFAT. Some external drives have iffy NTFS support at the hardware level. It's a stretch, but it's pulled a few drives back from the brink for me.

That's the full rundown. Start with chkdsk, then diskpart if needed, and always suspect the cable first. Good luck—I hope it's just a driver hiccup.