How to Create a “Safely Remove Hardware” Shortcut on Windows 11/10?

What is Safely Remove Hardware?

Safely Remove Hardware allows you to unplug or disconnect the removable storage to prevent accidental data loss if the data were still being copied or saved to or from the device. Those who use a USB thumb drive use the Safely Remove Hardware icon each time to remove the thumb drive. You can disconnect the device safely without using the Safely Remove Hardware notification icon if you have the removal policy for a device set to quick removal.

Moreover, You need to be more careful if you have enabled the Write-caching policy, and you must use the Safely Remove Hardware option to disconnect the device safely without any data loss.

You can curtail the Safely Remove Hardware procedure if you regularly use external USB devices and want to use the shortcut instead of going every time notification area to remove hardware safely.

This risewindows article will guide you on how you can create a Safely Remove Hardware shortcut on Windows 11/10.

How to Generate a “Safely Remove Hardware” Shortcut on Windows 11/10?

Follow the below-mentioned steps to make a Safely Remove Hardware shortcut on Windows 11/10:-

Step 1. You need to right-click or press and hold (for touchscreen device) on an empty area on your desktop and click/tap on New and then select the Shortcut option.

Step 2. Next, paste the following code in the “Create Shortcut” dialog box that opens:-

%windir%\System32\rundll32.exe shell32.dll,Control_RunDLL hotplug.dll

Step 3. After that, click on the Next button.

Step 4. Then, type Safely Remove Hardware for the name and click/tap on the Finish button.

Step 5. Now, a shortcut with Safely Remove Hardware is created on the desktop.

Step 6. Next, perform a right-click or press and hold on the new Safely Remove Hardware shortcut, and click/tap on the Properties.

Step 7. After that, click or tap on the Shortcut tab from the Properties dialog box.

Step 8. Then, click/tap on the None next to the Shortcut key field.

Step 9. Now, press S from the keyboard to assign Ctrl + Alt + S hotkey to Safely Remove Hardware Shortcut.

Note: You can press any other key in place of S to assign a separate hotkey.

Step 10. Next, click/tap Apply, then press the OK button.

Note: You can launch the Safely Remove Hardware window by pressing the Ctrl + Alt + S hotkey or the hotkey you assigned in the above step 9.

Step 11. If you want to change the, Safely Remove Hardware shortcut icon in step 9, click on the Change Icon button.

Step 12. After that, browse and select shell32.dll to see all the available icons in Windows 11/10 OS.

Step 13. Then, select any icon from the list and click on the OK button.

Step 14. Now, click/tap Apply, then OK.

Step 15. Next, Safely Remove Hardware shortcut icon changes.

Note: Right-click on it and select the Pin to taskbar option to access this shortcut quickly.

Step 16. After that, double-click on the newly created shortcut to launch the Safely Remove Hardware window.

Step 17. Then, select the USB pen drive entry in the Hardware devices section and click the Stop button.

Step 18. In the next window, again select the USB drive letter-number entry and click the OK button to remove it safely.

Step 19. You should see a message on the bottom right-side corner of the Windows Taskbar “Safe to Remove Hardware.”

Now you can remove your USB pen drive safely.

The above steps will help you remove your USB hardware safely if your Windows 11/10 PC, the “Safely remove hardware” icon, disappeared.