A USB drive is a portable flash memory device that is integrated with a USB interface and is used to transfer and store data. It is also referred to as USB stick, pen drives, thumb drives or jump drives. The USB sticks are plugged to computers via USB port. They are common in the market with different a range of capacity between ,8 GB to 1GB and even 1TB.
Functions of USB drive
There are many uses of USB drive but most people use the USB flash drives to transport data from one device to another. They are also used for backup of sensitive information. Moreover, USB flash drives can be used as a RAM when the PC is running slowly and it is utilized in catching data over the USB hence providing an effective performance of the PC. Further, the USB flash drive is used to sync documents that can be accessed anytime through a customized application such as portableapps.com where they are stored through USB sticks. Additionally, the USB drive can provide a recovery tool kit that some people call USB storage to run different OS such as Linux as the systems could be corrupted by viruses while on the PC. Also, other portable apps and games can be copied and stored in USB Stick and then be installed from another device.
Besides, with a usb storage system, you can use it to lock or unlock the computer. In this way, the USB sticks are used as keys when turning your computer on. Consequently, this will prevent untrusted people from accessing the computer because they do not have your flash drive.
Elements of USB flash drive
There are five components that make a flash drive;
- Standard USB plug; this part offers the physical interface with space where it is connected with a USB port of different devices.
- USB mass storage controller; this is a small microcontroller for USB with a little amount RAM and ROM.
- NAND flash memory chip; The data is usually stored in this part.
- Crystal oscillator; The role of the crystal oscillator is to control data output via a phase-locked loop.
- Outer case; This is the outer cover that is made up of either metal or plastic to protect the internal chips’ mechanical damage. The other typical flashes may also include jumpers and test pins, LEDs that show the data transfers, reads, and writes. There also those have unpopulated space that offers space for a second memory chip. The second memory chip enables the manufacturer to inject a single printed circuit for many storage spaces for data.
How to connect a USB flash drive with a device?
Identify for a USB port on the computer or laptop and note their location may vary which could be at the back of the front or sideways. Plug the usb storage in the USB port and wait for a few minutes and the computer will automatically detect the drive and read it. The USB flash drive will then appear on the desktop and you can double click and browse and select to open any files that are available in different folders. When the flash drive is connected to the computers, you can use it to perform some tasks in some folders such as transferring data, deleting, or copying.
When you complete using the USB flash drive, ensure to remove it from the computer procedurally to avoid damaging the files of the gadget. This is done by right-clicking the flash drive and selecting eject. A USB flash can last for several years since there is no maximum number of reads. The speed of data transfer in a USB flash drive is determined by the version used, the speed that the USB controller reads and writes as well as the speed of the hardware bus.
