Are you one of them who are facing the issues of USB devices not recognized in Windows 7,8, and 10? It is the common problem so you don’t need to worry about it. In this tutorial article, we have several various methods to overcome this problem. You have to go through each of them and try one after another method. I believe that any method will works for you from it. 

How you find USB device not recognized problem in Windows 7, 8, and 10

It is an important thing to figure out the problem before you find the solution for it. There is no solution without a problem. So, we have some steps for you to follow to diagnose the problem of “USB device not recognized” in Windows 7,8, and 10.

Sometimes, when you plug a USB device into a Windows PC, you may receive the “USB device not recognized” error message that appears in the upper right corner of the taskbar. When an error occurs, the USB flash drive will not appear in the file explorer, which means that if the device is a storage device, you will not be able to access the files on the device. In addition, this problem is not related to a specific version of Windows and may occur in all current versions of Windows. This is one of the most common errors in USB devices and usually frustrates users. The following is the exact content of the error message:

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USB Device not Recognised error in windows 10

So, In the above image you can see exact error message which you are getting. Now, how to find where is the exact problem. Read continue this article below I have written all steps to check it.

First, you need to check that the USB device is properly connected with your computer device or not!!! 

  1. Open the file explorer in the Windows system and check if you find a removable disk here.
  2. If you find then don’t need to follow these steps move ahead in the article. 
  3. Now, what if you don’t see the USB device. Open search bar. Try to search “disk management” or “create and format hard disk partition“. Open it. You will see a control panel open on your windows system screen.
  4. Check here, if you find the USB drive as a removable disk according to the size of your USB drive, or sometimes you will find it marked as removable.
  5. Even though if you don’t find a USB hard drive here then you have to insert it properly because it is not connected with your device.

Now, Go ahead if you have found a removable USB drive connected to your device and follow the below steps.

  • Some external hard drives have their own power switch or a separate power cord. If you use a larger unit, make sure it doesn’t have its own power switch or power cord that you need to connect.
  • Try disconnecting the external drive and plugging it into another USB port on the computer. A particular USB port on the computer may be invalid.
  • If you connect the USB drive to a USB hub, try connecting it directly to one of the USB ports on the computer. The USB hub may not provide enough power.
  • Try to insert the USB drive into another computer to see if the other computer detects it. If the computer does not see the drive when you insert it, the USB drive may be dead even in the Disk Management window.

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Solutions for “USB device not recognized” problem

1. Update your Windows Operating system to latest Version

This is the quick and easiest solution to this problem. When you will update the whole Windows operating system it will also update the USB controller to the latest version. So, you might be able to fix the issue.

  1. Select the “Start” button, type Windows Update in the search box, and then select Windows Update in the results pane. 
  2. Choose to check for updates. After the scan is complete, select View optional updates. 
  3. Select the check box next to the update, and then choose to install the update. If prompted, review the license agreement, and select I accept. 
  4. Follow the instructions on the screen to download and install the update. If prompted, restart the computer.

Move on the second method if you can’t fix the issue. 

Also Read:- How to Make Bootable USB in Windows

2. Reinstall USB controllers

In this method, we will reinstall or update USB controllers. It maybe happens that your USB controller has some glitches or errors. So, to remove these glitches and errors you just need to reinstall USB controllers.  

  1. Open the search bar in any Windows operating system. Then type device manager in the search box, then select device manager. 
  2. Extended Universal Serial Bus Controller. Long-press (or right-click) on the device and select uninstall. Repeat this for each device. 
  3. After completes, reboot your Windows system. 
  4. Now, Your USB driver will be installed automatically and it will be helpful to remove glitches from it.
Device manager in windows

Still you have a problem, move on third method.

3. Uninstall and reconnect USB drive again

This method will remove some glitches from your USB device driver.

  1. open the search menu in your Windows operating system and type device manager in the search box. Press Enter key or click on it to open it.
  2. At this moment, Select the disk drive from the hardware list. 
  3. Expend the disk drive hardware list. Press and hold (or right-click) on the USB external hard drive in the list, and then select Uninstall option. 
  4. After uninstalling the hard drive, disconnect the USB cable from your system. Wait for few moments and now connect again the USB cable. 
  5. The driver should load automatically. Finally, Check for the USB drive in the Windows File Explorer menu.

At last, if you found a USB drive in the Windows File Explorer menu then It’s good news for you. Maybe you are not able to resolve the issue then it’s ok. We have the fourth method for you. Move to it.  

4. Remove External devices and Unplug your computer

This is a super simple solution! If this solution works, you will save a lot of time. Unplugging the computer does not mean simply turning off the computer with the power button. That’s because most computers aren’t actually completely turned off and the motherboard still has power. Therefore, you need to turn off the power of the laptop or unplug the power cord from the back of the computer case.

Sometimes it also happens that you have connected any device to your system so that it is not able to connect to a USB drive.

  1. First, turn off your desktop or laptop system and remove all external devices which you have connected to other USB ports also.
  2. Now, If you are a laptop user then remove the charging cable and battery from the laptop. For the desktop users, remove power cord from the backside of the CPU.
  3. Now, wait for 60 seconds.
  4. Finally, insert the battery into the laptop and Power cord to the CPU if you are a desktop user and restart your system again. Make sure you have not connected any USB device before you have restarted the system.
  5. Finally, try using reconnecting the USB drive maybe you will get success to overcome your problem.

Nowadays, laptop battery comes non-removable. So, Your laptop’s battery is also non-removable then this method will not work for you. You have to move on the fifth method.

5. By fixing USB root hub in device manager

Sometimes “USB device not recognized” issues caused due to power management system failure. we will fix it and do some changes to the power management system settings.

  1. To move on with this process open the search menu of your Windows operating system and type “Device manager“. Click on it to open it.
  2. Now, find the “Universal Serial Bus Controllers” hardware drive and expand it. 
  3. You will see here the “USB Root Hub” option. Right-click on it and choose properties to open it.
  4. Now, select the Power Management tab in the properties window and uncheck Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power. 
  5. At last, press Enter or Ok button to exit from that menu. 
usb root hub in windows

If you are using multiple USB root hubs then you have to repeat this process for all USB root hubs. This method doesn’t work for you move on to the next and try it wisely.

6. Disable USB selective suspend setting

The USB selective suspend setting is a function used to assign certain USB ports to a power-saving mode, similar to the suspend mode of a computer. This kind of feature is very useful when your laptop or tablet is only battery powered. However, if you are using a desktop computer, this feature is not necessary and can sometimes cause problems with USB devices that are not recognized. 

Follow these instructions to disable it.

  1. Open the search menu on your Windows operating system and  type a power plan  then select “Edit a power plan.”
  2. Now, you have to select Change plan settings in your currently selected plan.
  3. Choose to change advanced power settings.
  4. Here, select the box to expand USB Settings> USB Selective Suspend Settings.
  5. Select plugged in and then you have to select the drop-down menu, and then select disabled. This is only for desktop users.
  6. If you are using a laptop, select battery, select the drop-down menu, and select disable.
  7. Now, press enters or click the ok button to take an exit from it.

Hey, check again have you solved the issue of “USB device not recognized”? Well, we have still another method to try to resolve using it.

Also Read:- How to Fix sound Problem in Windows 10

7. Try using the Uninstalling the useless device

  1. Actually, Windows Device Manager will not show all the devices installed on your computer. it will only show the device on which you are working. Sometimes some hidden devices can conflict with the connected devices and cause problems. Then we can see all the hidden devices and uninstall the useless devices to avoid any problems.
  2.  To uninstall a hidden device firstly you need to launch a command prompt as an administrator. Open the search menu and type “Cmd” into it and right-click on the “command prompt” option. Select Run as administrator. It will be open now.
  3. Write these commands into a command prompt or copy and paste from here and paste it.   set DEVMGR_SHOW_DETAILS=1

set DEVMGR_SHOW_NONPRESENT_DEVICES=1

start devmgmt.msc

  1. Now, you will be able to see the device manager on your screen. Click on the View menu and choose the option  Show hidden devices.
  2. Here, you need to check all devices. If you found any unknown device then right-click on it and uninstall it. You have to repeat this action till you will uninstall all devices which creates conflict. 

Now, check if you have resolved the problem. This is the last method in our list which you can implement at home to fix USB devices not connected issue. If this method will not work then you have to replace some hardware and to do that instructions given on the next method.

8. Fix the issue in the motherboard’s drivers

In some cases, problems occur with the motherboard’s chipset drivers. It can happen you have not updated that driver. This is the last option we have if any of the above methods will not work for your problem. 

  1. Check your computer’s user manual, which should include the name of the motherboard manufacturer.
  2. Visit your computer manufacturer’s support website. 
  3. Browse their website to find a suitable driver for your motherboard. If you need help, contact your computer manufacturer.
  4. Another option you have is that visit the nearest computer repairing store and update the driver of the motherboard from there.

Conclusion

In this article, I have written a couple of methods to resolve the issue of “USB device not recognized”. Also, all methods are proven methods to resolve this issue. Moreover, check your USB drive also if any single method from the above did not work for you.