AOMEI Partition Assistant
[Full Guide] How to Fix Security Tab Missing in Drive Properties
If you find the Security tab missing in drive properties, please follow this full guide to fix the issue. These can be helpful for USB or other external hard drives.
By Irene / Updated on February 27, 2025
In Windows, the Properties dialog provides detailed information about files, folders, and drives. You can access it by right-clicking an item and selecting Properties from the menu. Among its various tabs, the Security tab is particularly important as it displays access permissions for the selected file, folder, or drive.
This tab shows which users have access and what actions they can perform. If you are an administrator, you can modify these permissions by granting or restricting access to specific users.
However, some users have reported that the Security tab is missing when viewing the properties of an external hard drive or USB. This makes it difficult to manage file permissions. If you are facing this issue, don’t worry—this guide will explain the possible reasons behind it and how to resolve the problem.
Why is the Security Tab Missing on an External HDD or USB?
Before fixing this issue, it helps to understand what might be causing it. Based on user reports and common troubleshooting findings, here are some possible reasons:
● Corrupt or Unstable USB Driver – A faulty driver can cause system issues, including missing options in Properties.
● Outdated Windows Version – If your operating system isn’t up to date, it might not fully support all features.
● Power-Saving Settings – Windows may put your external drive into a low-power state, which could cause certain options to disappear.
● Old CPU – In rare cases, an outdated processor might not support some system functions properly.
● Problematic USB Controllers – If the USB controllers are corrupted or unstable, they can interfere with how the system recognizes external drives.
Now that we know what might be causing the issue, let’s go over how to fix it.
How to fix Security tab missing in drive properties?
5 fixes can be used to fix Security tab missing in drive properties. You can follow the specific steps in this section to solve the problem.
Fix 1. Convert the File Format from FAT32 to NTFS
If the Security tab is missing from your external hard drive or USB properties, the most likely cause is the file system format. This issue often occurs when the drive is formatted as FAT32. To resolve it, you can convert the file system to NTFS. Windows built-in tools like CMD usually require formatting the drive, which results in data loss. If you want to keep your files intact, here’s a better option.
AOMEI Partition Assistant is a reliable and user-friendly tool that allows you to convert FAT32 to NTFS without formatting or losing data. Follow these steps to convert FAT32 to NTFS without data loss using AOMEI Partition Assistant:
AOMEI Partition AssistantThe Best Windows Disk Partition Manager and PC Optimizer
Step 1. Install and run AOMEI Partition Assistant. Right-click the drive you need to convert. Select “Advanced”> “Convert to NTFS”.
Step 2. In the pop-up window, NTFS is selected by default. Click “OK”.
Step 3. Now the USB drive is with NTFS file system. Click “Apply” to execute it.
After following the steps above, the conversion is complete. There's no need to restart your computer—how convenient! These methods work for converting FAT32 to NTFS on a USB drive or external hard drive, as long as the device is recognized by Windows.
Fix 2. Check for Windows updates
If you're using an outdated version of Windows, it could also cause the Security tab missing from file properties issue. To fix this, you can try updating Windows. Here’s how:
Step 1. Click the Start menu and click the gear icon to open Settings.
Step 2. Go to Updates & Security and click Check for Updates. Then, Windows will do its thing automatically, wait patiently.
Step 3. Click Check For Updates button multiple times until it says there's nothing available.
Fix 3. Disable USB Selective Suspend Setting
The USB selective suspend setting is designed to save battery power, similar to the computer's sleep mode. It's especially useful for laptops and tablets. However, if you’re using a desktop, it’s not really necessary. This feature can sometimes cause issues like the "USB device not recognized" error. It can also lead to the “Security tab missing for external hard drives or USB” issue. If this is the case, you can try disabling it. Here’s how to do it:
Step 1. Click Start menu and type power plan in Search box. Then click Choose a power plan from searching result. Select Change plan settings of Balanced(recommended). Then click Change advanced power setting.
Step 2. Double-click USB setting box, then choose USB selective suspend settings.
Step 3. Choose Disabled from the drop-down list. Then click Apply->OK button to save changes.
Fix 4. Update/uninstall the device driver in Device Manager
If the "Security tab missing for External HDD or USB" issue is due to an unstable or corrupted USB driver, you can try uninstalling the driver and reconnecting your external hard drives or USB. This solution is also recommended by Microsoft’s error code files.
It mentions that you might be asked to provide the driver path. If you don’t have it, you can download the latest driver from the hardware vendor’s website. If the “Security tab missing” issue is due to an unstable or corrupted USB driver, you can try uninstalling and reconnecting the external HDD or USB.
Step 1. Enter “Device Manager” in the search bar and open it.
Step 2. Go to Disk Drives and right-click on your selected drive. Then select the “Update Drivers” option.
Step 3. Select the “Search automatically for drivers” option. Please wait patiently.
Fix 5. Reinstall USB controllers
If uninstalling and reconnecting the USB cannot help you fix the “Security tab missing in drive properties” issue, you can try reinstalling USB controllers. Here’s the guide:
Step 1. Connect your USB to the computer. Enter “Device Manager” in the search bar and open it. Then click the “Universal Serial Bus controllers” button.
Step 2. Right-click on your USB controllers, then click Uninstall device > Uninstall.
Once the uninstallation is done, restart your PC. The machine will reinstall all the USB Controllers. Plugin USB device and it should install without any trouble.
Conclusion
If the Security tab missing in drive properties of an external hard drive or USB, it is likely due to the file system format (FAT32), outdated Windows version, corrupt USB drivers, or power-saving settings. To fix the issue, you can convert the file system to NTFS, update your Windows version, disable USB selective suspend settings, or update/reinstall drivers. By following these steps, you should be able to restore access to the Security tab and manage file permissions effectively. If you are a Windows Server user who want to solve this issue, please turn to the AOMEI Partition Assistant Server edition.
