Cfadisk Inf | 90% AUTHENTIC |
The standard cfadisk driver has been around for a long time and is no longer actively developed by its original author (Hitachi). This has led to a community-driven effort to modernize it. The developer Simon Owen, known for other low-level Windows drivers, has been actively updating cfadisk to be easier to use and compatible with newer Windows versions. This includes an ambitious plan to have the driver properly signed, eliminating the need for the "Disable Signature Enforcement" workaround altogether.
The driver was originally developed based on Hitachi Microdrive technology to trick Windows into recognizing USB drives as fixed drives, similar to how an IDE or SATA drive is recognized. Prerequisites Before Using Cfadisk.inf
[Version] Signature="$Windows NT$" Class=DiskDrive ClassGuid=4d36e967-e325-11ce-bfc1-08002be10318 Provider=%HGST% DriverVer=12/14/2002,1.0.0.1 [Manufacturer] %HGST%=cfadisk_device [cfadisk_device] ; This is the line you must edit with your device's ID %Microdrive_devdesc% = cfadisk_install,USBSTOR\Disk&Ven_LEXAR&Prod_JD_LIGHTNING&Rev_1100 [cfadisk_install] CopyFiles=cfadisk_copyfiles [cfadisk_copyfiles] cfadisk.sys,,,2 [cfadisk_install.Services] AddService=cfadisk,2,cfadisk_ServiceInstallSection [cfadisk_ServiceInstallSection] DisplayName="Hitachi Microdrive Filter Driver" ServiceType=1 StartType=3 ErrorControl=1 ServiceBinary=%12%\cfadisk.sys LoadOrderGroup=PnP Filter [Strings] HGST="Hitachi Global Storage Technologies" Microdrive_devdesc="Hitachi Microdrive" Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard How to Customise Your File Cfadisk Inf
Click the Property dropdown menu and select .
is a powerful, lightweight portable utility that allows you to manipulate the partition tables of USB drives directly. It features an option to flip the Removable Media Bit via software allocation or rearrange partition visibility on the fly, making it much safer than modifying system .inf files. Summary Troubleshooting "Driver is not digitally signed" The standard cfadisk driver has been around for
The cfadisk.inf file is not a magical hack. It is a derived from Microsoft’s own driver model for ATA/ATAPI devices.
| Issue | Detail | |-------|--------| | | CF cards have no garbage collection. Performance degrades over time. Use industrial CF cards (e.g., Transcend, Swissbit) with built-in wear leveling. | | No Driver Signing (x64) | For Win 8/10/11 64-bit, you must permanently enable Test Mode ( bcdedit /set testsigning on ) or use an older, self-signed version. | | Windows 10/11 Updates | Major updates (e.g., 22H2) may overwrite the driver. You must reapply it. | | Not for SD cards | This driver is specifically for CF (CompactFlash) . For SD cards, use a different solution (e.g., dummydisk.sys ). | | SATA Hotplug | May cause blue screens if you remove the card without safely ejecting (because Windows now thinks it's a fixed HDD). | This includes an ambitious plan to have the
It acts as a bridge, telling the Windows operating system to ignore the "removable" flag sent by the USB controller and instead treat it as a hard disk drive (local disk).
