The “USB Device Not Recognized” error is one of the most common errors, often appearing during the process of connecting a USB drive on Windows XP, Windows 7, 8 and even Windows 10. In the article below, the guideonline will introduce and guide you with some solutions to fix this “USB Device Not Recognized” error quickly.
The cause of the error USB Device Not Recognized
Various reasons for the USB Device Not Recognized error include:
- The USB cannot be fully loaded in the system.
- The USB can contain any malicious files; so the system doesn’t read it.
- Due to low system battery, the Root hub setting may not recognize the USB.
- There may be any bugs in the driver that needs to be updated.
- Windows may need the latest patches and fixes.
Summary of some ways to fix USB Device Not Recognized errors on Windows 7, 8 and 10
1. Restart your Windows computer
In many cases the simplest way to fix errors on Windows 10 is to restart your Windows computer.
2. Disconnect computer power and reconnect after 15 minutes
This solution may sound silly, but in some cases can help you fix the USB device is not recognized error.
3. Connect the USB drive on a different port
This is only a temporary solution. If the “USB device not recognized” error occurs during the USB drive connection, you can connect the USB drive on a different port to see if the error is resolved.
4. Disable Fast Startup on Windows 8, 8.1 and 10
To disable the Fast Startup feature on Windows 8, 8.1 and 10
5. Update (update) USB driver
Step 1: Open Device Manager by right-clicking the Start button and then clicking Device Manager.
Step 2: Expand Universal Serial Bus and check for any unknown USB devices. If you see an unknown USB device, right-click it and then click Update Driver Software, then click Search automatically for updated driver software to let Windows 10 automatically download and install the latest driver version.
6. Update (update) Generic USB Hub(s) driver
Step 1: Open Device Manager by right-clicking the Start button and then selecting Device Manager. Then expand Universal Serial Bus to see if there are one or more Generic USB Hubs.
Step 2: Right-click on the first Generic USB Hub line (if there are multiple Generic USB Hubs), then click Update Driver Software => Browse my computer for driver software => Let me pick from a list of device drivers on my computer, select Generic USB Hub and then click Next.
Wait until the message “Windows has successfully updated your driver software” appears on the screen.
7. Reinstall the USB driver
– Open Device Manager. To do this, follow the steps below:
Press the Windows + R key combination to open the Run command window.
On the Run command window, enter devmgmt.msc there and press Enter.
– Next on the Device Manager window, expand the Disk Drives item.
Right-click External USB 3.0 Disk, then select Uninstall.
– Next, expand Universal Serial Bus Controllers.
Right-click the USB Mass Storage Device and select Uninstall. Also you can uninstall any unnamed USB device (Unknown USB Device) from this list.
– From the Action Menu, select Scan for hardware changes.
– After the scan is finished, open Windows Explorer and find your USB drive is connected.
If the Not Recognized error still occurs, then open the Device manager again and update the USB driver. To do this thing:
– Expand Disk Driver.
Right-click your USB 3.0 drive, then select Update Driver Software.
Wait for Windows to automatically find the latest driver version for your USB 3.0.
– Do the same to update the driver for USB Mass Storage Device.
Once done, check your USB 3.0 is recognized or not.
8. Restore Windows to its previous working state
If your USB 3.0 drive was previously recognized, then you can restore your computer to its previous working state to fix the error.
Restore Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 to a previous working state:
Access Windows 8 System Restore mode:
1. Move your mouse pointer to the bottom right corner of the screen to open Settings.
2. Hold down the Shift key, then click the Power button.
3. Select Restart.
4. When your computer restarts, click the Troubleshoot option.
5. On the Troubleshoot window, click Advanced options.
6. On the Advanced options window, click System Restore.
7. Select an account with Admin rights.
8. Enter the account password, then click Continue.
9. On the System Restore screen, click Next.
10. Select a previous restore point, then click Next.
11. Confirm your selection and then click Finish.
12. Wait until your computer is restored to the restore point you selected.
13. After the system restore is finished, restart your computer and you’re done.
9. Use support software
Using Microsoft’s official software and tools:
- Hardware and Device Troubleshooter: you open the path Control Panel > All Control Panel Items > Troubleshooting:
- Click Configure a device
These 2 tools will automatically find and fix USB connection errors for you.
Note:
If you are using one of the following versions of Windows:
Windows 8
Windows 8.1
Windows Server 2012 R2
Windows Server 2012
It is also possible that the USB device not recognize error will occur as above. The main reason is that after you unplug the USB using the Safely Remove USB feature (right-click the USB icon in the system tray > Eject Mass Storage), that USB port will be switched to Disabled mode. To fix it, download and install Microsoft’s HotFix below:
frequently asked Questions
1. How to reset USB port?
- Right-click the Windows button and select the “Device Manager” option.
- Click on the “Universal Serial Bus controller” option.
- A list of options for different ports will be available.
- Click the “Uninstall” option available.
- Now reboot the system and then Windows will reinstall the driver on your system.
2. How to check if the USB device is working?
- Right-click the Windows button and then click “Device Manager”.
- Click on ”Universal Serial Bus controller”.
- Click on the port setting to which the USB is connected.
- From the list of options, click Scan for hardware changes.
- Check the USB Device option to see if it works.
Hopefully the above steps will help you fix the USB Device Not Recognize error on Windows. The above method is applicable to USB drives, external portable hard drives, USB mice… in short, almost all devices connected via USB port.
Good luck!
