SD Card shows the right size, but no file in the folders!

I copy 20 GB data to SD Card.
In Windows Explorer, I click on the drive (G: ) and it says that 20 GB is used.
I go to the main folder that I copied the files (G:\My Files), it shows as 7 GB.
I go to the sub folders, and (just examples) folders A, B, C, D shows the files correctly, but folders E, F, G, H, even though it shows the folders, there are no files in it. (It just shows G:\E, not G:\E\folder1)
No file is hidden. I tried formatting and using different machines (and a phone).
If the files are not there, how come 3 computers shows the size correctly on the drive; if the files are there, where are they?
How can I solve this problem.
Thanks.

Test it with H2testw v1.4 SD Card Tester to make sure you've not been sold a fake which shows larger capacity than it really has. Download available here http://www.heise.de/ct/Redaktion/bo/...2testw_1.4.zip

A bit more reading here GoPro User Forum ? View topic - SD Card testing: please get involved

What size is the SD card? 64GB??

And is it formatted FAT32 or NTFS??

Windows has a problem with FAT32 and larger than 32GB, depending on the device used as the "reader" or "writer". If the card is in your phone or portable music player player then it's a function of the firmware in that device whether or not a FAT32 card larger than 32GB will be properly seen and supported.

Best bet (and 100% guaranteed success) if you must have FAT32 on a 64GB card is to:

(1) use an external USB card reader such as this one for all WRITE operations, including FORMAT.

(2) use GUIFormat to FORMAT the card to FAT32 (while it is in the external card reader)

Once the SD card has been formatted and/or written-to using the external card reader, don't forget to "safely remove hardware" and then unplug the reader, and remove the card, and reinstall it into your portable music player or phone.

My experience (with a Cowon J3 music player, which was designed to support only a 32GB microSDHC card) is that it WILL accept and READ a 64GB FAT32 card only that has been written to via an external card reader. Using the J3 itself as the "reader/writer" (which is fine for a 32GB FAT32 card) will fail with a 64GB FAT32 card. So all of the maintenance of the music files on my 64GB card are handled with the card inserted into the external card reader, rather than with it inserted in the J3.

Theoretically Windows and FAT32 support large cards (e.g. 64GB and larger), but the firmware of the device in which the card is read/written is really the issue, and how it presents information (correctly or incorrectly) to Windows is where the problem starts. But going through an external USB card reader like the one I linked to above seems to be universally 100% successful in dealing with large FAT32 cards.

Card seems to be defective according to the test.
Ok, that can be.
But how come Windows Explorer shows the exact size as it should be on the drive.

G:\ = Used Size: 20GB (As it exactly should be)

G:\Folder = Size: 7GB

How come?
How come the drive is 20 GB full and the only folder in it has 7 GB and the files are not hidden or anything?

And

G:\Folder\Subfolder1 = All files there.
G:\Folder\Subfolder2 = All files there.
G:\Folder\Subfolder3 = All files there.
G:\Folder\Subfolder4 = All files there.

G:\Folder\Subfolder5\F1\FF1 = Empty
G:\Folder\Subfolder5\F1\FF2 = Empty
G:\Folder\Subfolder5\F1\FF3 = Empty
G:\Folder\Subfolder5\F1\FF4 = Empty

G:\Folder\Subfolder6 = Empty
G:\Folder\Subfolder7 = Empty
G:\Folder\Subfolder8 = Empty
G:\Folder\Subfolder9 = Empty

Where are the rest of the files are going in the drive. THe drive shows the exact used size both in different computers and phones as 20GB, but files do not show up.

The card can be defective, my questions are mostly technical right now, just to learn that how both Windows and Phone software can show the right size and even the main folders, but not the files or subfolders in it. Where are those gone? They must be in the drive as the right size appears in Windows Explorer.

Cards are 32 GB and 64 GB for technical info.
The heise.de test showed the 32 GB defective. Haven’t tested 64 GB yet.
Tried with external drive and formatting with guiformat. (Did the heise.de test after these).

As I said, I just want to learn that how come the right size appears, as for years when an SD Card is corrupted, usually the files seems to be gone completely (not showing any folders) and the size dissappears also, but in these ones right size is there and the folders are there, just no files.

(Sorry for the repeats, it is a habit I couldn’t change -yet-)

Can't help you with the technical side of thiings but I bought a Sandisk 32GB card from ebay a couple of years ago and the H2testw v1.4 SD Card Tester results showed the following

Warning: Only 31987 of 31988 MByte tested.
The media is likely to be defective.
1.9 GByte OK (3991552 sectors)
29.3 GByte DATA LOST (61517824 sectors)
Details:47.1 MByte overwritten (96576 sectors)
0 KByte slightly changed (< 8 bit/sector, 0 sectors)
29.2 GByte corrupted (61421248 sectors)
17.8 MByte aliased memory (36608 sectors)
First error at offset: 0x0000000079cf8000
Expected: 0x0000000079cf8000
Found: 0x0000000000000000
H2testw version 1.3
Writing speed: 1.90 MByte/s
Reading speed: 3.68 MByte/s
H2testw v1.4

It turned out the 32GB card was in fact a 2GB card with counterfeit firmware on it (made in China) making it appear to Windows as a 32GB card until you got past the real 2GB limit of the card.

Both the packaging and card looked authentic but further confirmation that it was a counterfeit card was obtained when the barcode on the packaging was scanned and showed the item did not exist. Needless to say I obtained a full refund and the seller was banned. Apparently these counterfeit cards are not uncommon so I now always buy from a reputable source......lesson learned!

Must be counterfeit.
Yes, got at a good price, but lost the money I guess (I am in a different city now).
I was hoping that they would work at least in ntfs format, but if they are not real at all, it wouldn’t work either.
Thanks for the help and advices.
(Still will check the 64 gb now, but not much hope)

Still: How come after 20GB copying on it, Windows Explorer is showing that the card is 20 GB full even after removing the card and putting it on a different machine or a phone?
That part is still a question on my mind.
(Maybe it is just corrupted data as shown in the test)

IMAyNeed said:

Still: How come after 20GB copying on it, Windows Explorer is showing that the card is 20 GB full even after removing the card and putting it on a different machine or a phone?
That part is still a question on my mind.

My guess is that the real existing 2GB covered where the file system sectors had been written, even though none of the corresponding data was ever written to where it was supposed to go since that area didn't actually exist.

So if you look at the "table of contents", it looks like the data is using so much of the capacity. But when you go out and then try to read the data, it's not there to be found.

Hey, how does one create a "fake" 32GB-appearing device when it only has 2GB for real? How can it be engineered so that the WRITE operations appear to be successful, and yet nothing actually got written?? I don't know, but these counterfeiters clearly know what they're doing.

Anyway, just write it off to experience. And be thankful for H2Testw.