# USB devices no longer detected! About to smash things!



## JS76 (Feb 27, 2007)

Sorry - didn't know which section my problem falls into... Anyhow:

For no apparent reason all 6 of my USB ports, aside from the one my mouse is using, have stopped working - nothing happens when I plug any of my various USB devices in.

Here's what I have tried:

1. Gone into the BIOS and made sure USB is enabled - they are.
2. Gone into Device Manager - all of my previously working USB devices are now listed (under USB Controllers) as "Unknown Device"
3. I have tried uninstalling all of the unknown devices in Device Manager. Each time I do this I immediately get the small yellow popup message that Windows has found a new device, then get the message that the device is unknown.
4. I have tried plugging a variety of devices into all the USB ports and they are all coming up as unknown devices (I've tried my camera, phone, ipod and flash drives). All of these things were working perfectly not 2 days ago.

I am mainly trying to get my Seagate external USB hard drive working again - I went to the Seagate website and it says no drivers are necessary.

The thing that confuses me the most is that my USB mouse is still working fine. 

Please help! You will have my eternal gratitude!


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## speedster123 (Oct 18, 2006)

Welcome
Try the first utility:
http://www.usb.org/developers/tools.html

Have you tried system restore yet?
Have you used any registry cleaners?
Give us your full system specs including the power supply age, model, and wattage


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

The system restore that Speedster has suggested will fix the problem if it has occurred recently.


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## JS76 (Feb 27, 2007)

Have tried a few of your suggestions and got mixed results. BTW my system specs are P4 3.05GHz with 736MB of RAM. System is about 3 years old. Unsure of motherboard without some serious digging around in old paperwork. I am not sure where to find the wattage?

I downloaded the USB utility suggested above. When I ran the utility it gave me a message that said "Please wait for stack switch". When I clicked ok all of my USB devices magically came back to life - but as soon as I closed the utility they all died again.

I then downloaded a freeware registry cleaner (called Clean My Registry), scanned and fixed a bunch of errors, but then could not get back onto this website to notify you guys of the results. So I then reversed the registry changes and internet explorer started working again.

I then tried System Restore. I first tried restoring to a week ago, then 2 weeks ago, then to about 9 weeks ago - it came back the same each time saying it couldn't restore because there have been no changes to the system in that time.

After all this I restarted and lost USB altogether, including the mouse. Mouse is now working sporadically after a couple more restarts.

So I am now back to more or less where I started, except my USB devices all work while USB Command Verifier is running.


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## TheMatt (May 9, 2006)

First, run Windows Update. Go to http://update.microsoft.com. Install all the updates it finds. It may ask to restart, do so even if it doesn't.

Once you log on, go into the Device Manager and find all your unknown devices. Select one, and click Install... or Update...

When you get the add new hardware wizard, say you are connected to the internet (only if you are). Then, on the next screen, select Install the Driver from a specific location. 

On the next screen, un-check the box labeled Search Removable Media and put a check in the box labeled Include this Location in the Search. For the location, choose "C:\WINDOWS\inf\" (if the "inf" folder does not appear, go into Start > Settings > Control Panel > Folder Options > View > Show Hidden Files and Folders) Then, click next. It should find the driver.

If it doesn't, un-check the box labeled Include this Location in the Search, and put a check in the box labeled Search Removable Media. Now, pop in the CD that came with the device you are trying to install if it has one. Have it search that.

Once it finds and installs the driver, repeat the process for each unknown device. This will reinstall each device.


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## JS76 (Feb 27, 2007)

Appreciate the help so far guys but still having no luck I'm afraid. I performed all of the Windows Updates, of which there weren't many. I then uninstalled all the unknown devices and followed the instructions as above. Everything I plug in is still coming up unknown and I don't have installation CDs for most things.

As I said above - the problem is completely solved while the USB Command Verifier software is running. Why would this be the case? Not that I have much knowledge or experience, but I would assume this means that it's definitely a software problem and not a hardware problem.

Could it be some kind of virus that Norton isn't picking up? Or some kind of corruption somewhere?

Thanks again - I'd much rather try to solve this with your help than taking it in and being without it for days.


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## JS76 (Feb 27, 2007)

Solved! Embarrasingly simple in the end. I just turned the computer off at the wall, pulled the plug out and gave it a few minutes. Everything detected and working fine again. I read on another forum that this worked for someone else.

Thanks again for your help anyway.


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