Read what to do if Windows does not display the connected device. How to restore the functionality of such a device, if the reason is in it. A USB flash drive or any other USB drive should be automatically detected by the computer and displayed in Explorer and the "This Computer" folder after connecting to the USB port.
Content:
Problem Diagnosis
The first thing to do if connected USB disk not showing up in file Windows manager, you need to check the tool Disk Management.
In order to open Disk Management in Windows 8/10, right click on the menu Start and choose "Disk Management". In Windows 7, press the combination Windows keys+ R to open dialog box "Run" and enter the command in it diskmgmt.msc.
Check the list of disks in the window Disk Management and find the USB drive that is not detected. It should show up here even if it's not in the folder "This computer", and match in size. Sometimes it is defined as "Removable Device", but not always.
If you do not see your disk or flash drive even in Disk Management, then try the following:
- Turn on the disk, if there is such a function. Some external hard disks have a separate power cable or are switched on using a separate dedicated key.
- Connect the device to a different USB port. Disconnect the flash drive from this USB port and connect to another. One of the USB ports on your computer may have failed.
- Connect your device to a computer without a USB hub. If the flash drive is connected to the computer via an extension cable or USB hub, try disconnecting it from it and connecting it directly to the computer. Perhaps the reason is in the hub.
- Try another computer. Connect the flash drive to the USB port of another computer and see if it is recognized by it. If the device is also not detected by another computer, then most likely the problem is in it.
Solution
If the problem options described above do not apply to your case, then your problem will most likely be solved using one of the methods described below. Depending on what you found in Disk management, there are solutions to the problem that has arisen with the definition of an external storage medium.
If Windows sees the disk, but cannot read it, then it means that it has a file system that it does not support. In this case, the operating system will prompt you to format the drive before using it. But do not rush to do it! This will destroy all your data.
If other computers see a flash drive, but yours does not
In the event that other computers detect your USB drive, but yours does not, then most likely there is a problem with the device drivers.
To check this, open Device Manager and look for Disk devices and USB controllers. See if there are devices marked in yellow in these sections exclamation mark. If there is such a device, right-click on it and select Properties. The properties will contain information about the error and the status of the drivers.
To fix the problem with the driver, right-click on the device, select Properties / Driver / Refresh.
If the drive is visible in Disk Management
If the disk is visible in Disk management, but it doesn't have a letter, that's the reason why it might not show up in Windows Explorer. In order for the system to start displaying it in Explorer, such a disk must be assigned a letter.
To do this, right-click on it and select "Change Drive Letter or Drive Path". If there is no such item in the pop-up menu, then this may be due to the absence or unsupported type of media file system.
In the menu that opens, you will see that the drive letter is not assigned - assign it. To do this, select Add / / Ok.
If the disk is visible in Disk Management, but it is not allocated
If the disk is visible in Disk management, but it's Unallocated, which means it's not formatted. In order for such a disk to become operational, right-click on it and select "Create Simple Volume".
Select the maximum suggested partition size and assign a drive letter suggested by the system. After that, the disk will be normally detected by the system and ready for use.
If the drive is visible in Disk Management but cannot be formatted
If for some reason the disk cannot be formatted, then to restore its performance, it can be completely cleared, and then re-create the partition.
Note. As a result of such manipulation, all data from the disk (as well as flash drives or memory cards) will be permanently deleted. Therefore, take care of their safety in advance - scan a disk or flash drive using Hetman Partition Recovery, and save your data to a convenient place.
To clean up the disk open command line as administrator and clean it up with diskpart command − clean.
Almost everyone uses USB flash drives these days. This is a simple and reliable way to transfer and store information. But the failure of these devices has become a common problem for many users. Below are all the possible causes of problems and options for resolving them.
The simpler and effective ways solving the problem, so you should follow the recommendations in order. But do not forget that some problems, such as strong physical damage, cannot be eliminated.
Reasons why the system does not recognize the device
For the operation of a USB device, it has a built-in special controller. With a certain failure, it may block, which will prevent the computer from recognizing the USB flash drive.
The reason for the failure may be a power surge, a sharp removal of the flash drive, its incorrect formatting, etc. Violations of this type can still be corrected, but in case of mechanical or thermal damage, it is impossible to restore the operation of the flash drive.
You can understand that a flash drive is not detected by a computer by the following factors:
- The USB device is connected, but the computer says "insert disk";
- the message "Device connected, not detected" pops up;
- issues a request to format the flash drive;
- a data read error message appears;
- the indicator on the drive is on, but it is not displayed on the computer, etc.
Also, the cause of the failure may be:
- non-working USB ports of the computer;
- outdated drivers;
- viruses on the device;
- setup failures in BIOS;
- different file system of the USB device and computer;
- assigning a drive letter to the connected hard drive etc.
Driver Check
First of all, you need to check if the driver is installed correctly on the computer.
To do this, go to "Disk Management":
Now try plugging in and out your USB device and see if it shows up in this window. If the flash drive is displayed and the status is "Healthy", right-click on it and select "Make Partition Active".
If there is a malfunction, the status will show the label "Not allocated", "Not initialized" or "Unknown", which means that the device is damaged.
The system may assign the wrong letter to the flash drive, which will also not allow it to be recognized. Right-click on the device and select "Change drive letter" and assign a different value:
The flash drive driver itself needs to be checked in the device manager:
- start;
- Control Panel;
- device Manager.
If the driver for the flash drive is not installed, one or more USB devices will have yellow question marks next to them.
Computer hardware errors
When a new USB flash drive is not detected in the PC, insert it into different USB ports. During normal operation in all but one slot, the cause of the problem is a problem in that port.
The same problem may occur when connecting the USB flash drive not directly, but through a USB hub or extension cable. Try plugging the device directly into the USB port. If everything worked, then the adapter is the cause.
It happens that a lot of devices are connected to the computer via USB, then the ports may not have enough power to operate the flash drive. Disconnect other devices from the ports one by one, leaving only the mouse and keyboard. If the USB drive is now working, then the cause of the malfunction is a lack of power.
In this case, it is better to put more powerful block power supply or a USB hub with a separate power supply. But if the size of the flash device is very large, older laptops simply will not draw power from it. With this option, the problem is almost impossible to solve.
Another problem is heating. connected USB- devices. The fault may be in the circuit on the device board.
You can check this on another computer - if it continues to heat up, then the USB drive is faulty. And if everything is fine in other places, then the computer port itself can short-circuit.
If the flash drive and USB port are OK, the indicator on the device will light up. Then the cause of the problem is systemic, not hardware.
Video: Recovering a flash drive that is not recognized by the computer
Virus check
Then why is the flash card seen by the computer, but not readable? One reason could be a virus that infects the boot file of the USB drive. Because of this, the device either does not boot at all, or is immediately blocked by the antivirus. And if it is displayed, it gives an "Access Denied" warning when you try to open it.
First of all, you should destroy the infected boot file "autorun.inf". To do this, enter the address of the flash drive in the explorer (for example, G: /):
- "Service";
- "Folder properties";
- "View";
- "Hidden files and folders";
- "Show hidden files and folders.
Now the download file will be displayed. It must be removed and antivirus scan data from the entire device.
If the flash drive does not open through Explorer, use the command line:
USB setup in BIOS
The flash drive may not be recognized due to the USB ports being disabled in the BIOS. This happens very rarely, but it is better to check the settings just in case. Please note that in a disabled USB port, no device will be recognized, so if others work fine, then skip this step.
To enter the BIOS, restart the computer, and while turning it on, press the Del or F2 button. Different PCs may have different keys, so look at what will be written on the screen (like "Press F2 to enter Setup"). If a blue table with settings opens, then everything is correct - you have entered the BIOS.
Now you should find the menu item that controls the inclusion of USB. Its name may vary, but most often it is the Advanced tab (Peripherals, Integrated Peripherals):
In it, look for the item USB Configuration / Controller, etc. There are a lot of BIOS menu options, so specifying the exact item is quite difficult. But the word USB must be present. Now make sure USB support"Enabled", if not, then toggle them:
Some BIOS versions not only regulate the inclusion of the controller, but also indicate its mode of operation - V1.1 or V1.1 + V2.0 (there is already 3.0). Choose the option that supports all directions (V1.1+V2.0). Save the settings and exit the BIOS (most often the F10 key).
Usb drive is not detected by the system due to errors
After formatting, which might not have been entirely successful, the operating system may not see the flash drive due to errors. This can be checked in the "Disk Management" item, the entrance to which was described above. If there is an inscription “Healthy” next to the flash media, but it is still not visible in the explorer, the reason may be a formatting error.
You can fix this with new formatting. Right-click on the device and select "Format". The flash drive should now display and work without errors.
Different file systems of a flash card and a computer
To restore work usb flash, which is not detected in the PC, you need to change the file system, due to which there may be a conflict in the computer. The file system of the latter is most often NTFS, and the flash device is FAT32. In the "Disk Management" window, you can see the types of file systems of different PC media.
Correct formatting solves the problem. For this:
In the window that opens, check the correspondence between the specified capacity and the parameters of the flash drive. Specify the file system as NTFS and check the box next to "Quick (clearing the table of contents)". Now click "Start":
Confirm your actions:
After the process is completed, the system will notify you:
Required OS updates to work
At installed system Windows XP may not recognize the flash drive due to outdated updates required for it to function. However, some flash drives can work in the USB ports of a PC, while others do not.
The main updates required for the normal operation of USB devices:
- KB925196 - incorrect recognition;
- KB817900 - Stop the port after the device is removed and re-booted;
- KB968132 - errors during connection of several flash drives;
- KB88740 - Rundll32.exe error;
- KB895962 - USB device stops working after printer is turned off;
- KB871233 - Flash card does not work after the PC wakes up from sleep or hibernation;
- KB314634 - support for older USB devices only;
- KB312370 (2007) - USB 2.0 support.
Recovery methods
When no problems are found with the system, you can use special programs for recovery:
- ChipGenius - determines the manufacturer and other information about the device;
- AlcorMP - reflashes usb flash controllers from most manufacturers;
- jet flash recovery tool- flashes flash drives from Transcend.
If the computer says "Please insert disc" when booting up, the problem may be with outdated drivers that should be removed.
For this:
- when the computer is turned off, disconnect all USB devices (except for the mouse and keyboard);
- turn on the PC;
- download the program "DriveCleanup";
- copy the 32-bit or 64-bit "drivecleunup.exe" to the C:WindowsSystem32 folder depending on the OS version;
- go to command line and write "drivecleunup.exe";
- drivers will start to uninstall:
After that, restart your computer. Insert a USB flash drive and the system will find new drivers for it.
A flash drive may not be detected for many reasons, the main of which are a malfunction of the device or USB port, as well as system errors, most of which are fixed with proper formatting and driver installation. Some programs are also able to help restore usb flash, so you should follow the instructions in order.
>What to do if the computer does not see the flash drive? Removable drives and HDDs should be extremely easy to use. But sometimes it happens that after connecting an external USB device to personal computer from the operating room Windows system it is categorically unrecognizable. If the computer does not see the flash drive, then this may be due to problems with partitions on the removable drive, using the wrong file system, faulty connectors, outdated drivers, or other reasons.
Below in the text, as well as at the end of the article, you can watch a video why the computer does not see removable drive. Perhaps from it you will learn or understand more than from the article.
If the PC does not see the flash drive through "My Computer", then, in the worst case, this may mean that the removable drive is out of order and can no longer be restored. Pocket flash drives and large external HDD work on an identical principle, so the tips listed below are relevant for both types of devices.
What to do if the laptop does not see the flash drive? First of all, you need to find out if the drive is displayed in the disk management manager. Windows Explorer should automatically detect a removable device when it's connected via a USB port. Insert a disc into the slot. In some cases, to activate an external device, you must click on it special button or lever. Heavy removable HDDs, unlike flash drives, can even be connected to the mains using a separate power cable, so the computer may not see external drive if it is disabled.
Now you need to open the disk management tool. To do this, press the key combination Win + R, enter diskmgmt.msc in the line that appears and confirm with Enter. Now we can see the external drive in the control window. It should appear here even if it doesn't have sections.
If you see a device here that is not readable, then you can immediately start formatting it so that windows explorer and various devices could access it. If the netbook did not detect the flash drive, then go to the next section, in which we will try to determine why the drive is not recognized.
Now we need to somehow get Windows Explorer to recognize external drive. It may not be recognized due to a hardware issue with the computer's USB port. Others possible reasons there may be incorrectly installed drivers or a physical breakdown of the flash drive.
What to do when the computer does not see the flash drive? First, you need to disconnect the drive from one USB port and try connecting it to another. If the removable drive worked in the new slot, it means that the problem was in the failure of the previous one. In case you are using a USB extension cable, try unplugging it and connecting the flash drive to your computer directly. Such cables sometimes cannot provide a removable device with enough power to operate.
Driver Issues
If Windows 7 does not see the flash drive in the disk management tool, even after you have connected it to another connector on the laptop, then the malfunction may be both in the flash drive itself and in the PC. If there is another computer nearby, then you need to try connecting the drive to it to see if it detects it. If the flash drive refused to work on several computers, then it most likely has outlived its usefulness and must be disposed of. But before making such a sad conclusion, it is imperative to check whether the removable device appears in the disk management window on other computers.
If the drive works on other PCs, or you don't have additional computers that can be used, you need to check the relevance installed drivers. This is done using Device Manager. To open it, press the key combination Win + R, enter devmgmt.msc in the opened line and confirm with Enter.
In the list of devices that appears, you need to carefully check all disks for the presence of an icon in the form of a yellow exclamation mark. If such a symbol was found, then the problem lies in the drivers. We right-click on the device with a yellow exclamation mark, select "Properties" and look at the error message. It should help you solve the problem as it can be copied to a string Google search to find feedback from other users experiencing a similar issue.
Problems like this can be difficult to fix. If the computer does not see the drive relatively recently, then you can try running System Restore. But it's best to use the "Update Driver" button to install latest version required software. You can try clicking "Roll back driver", in the hope that it previous version will be workable. You can also use the "Delete" button to make the external device disappear from the system's field of vision until the computer is restarted. It also happens that when restarting Windows flash drive suddenly becomes working.
Partitioning and Formatting
If the computer does not see the USB flash drive, then the Disk Management tool can be used to fix partition and file system problems. If you see that the disk is partitioned and full of unallocated space, then you can create a new partition on it. Thanks to this, Windows and other operating systems will be able to work with a flash drive.
We right-click inside the unallocated space, select "New Simple Partition" and follow the program's further instructions. If the disk is divided into parts, but still not displayed, you need to check if it is assigned a specific letter. Usually this should happen automatically, but in some cases you may need to manual input. We right-click on the partition of the removable disk, select "Change letter" and enter any free letter. For example, you can write "G:", and in the future the drive on the computer will be called that way.
If the disk is partitioned, but XP does not see the flash drive, then it is not certain that the partitioning was done using the correct file system. For example, a flash drive can be formatted with ext4 for Linux (Linux) or HFS Plus for Mac (Mac). In this case, Windows 10 does not see the flash drive, because such a system is not familiar to it. You need to reformat the drive with NTFS or FAT32. Thanks to this, Windows will be able to recognize the flash memory. To reconfigure a partition, right-click on it, click "Format" and select the desired file system.
Note that this will delete all files on the drive. It makes sense to first connect the USB flash drive to a Linux or Mac device in order to copy the data. If you cannot connect the removable drive to devices such as a DVD player or TV, the reason may be file system NTFS. The above technique only works with FAT32.
Hello dear readers and colleagues on computer topics!
Why can this happen?
Let's take a look at the reasons. Imagine that you decide to install an operating system and find an old flash drive. On the laptop, it was determined, you formatted it and rolled up the system for installation on it. And so you rebooted, and the PC simply did not see the flash. The most common case is that you simply did not transfer BIOS to the boot setting from mobile hard.
It is done like this. To get into these same settings, you need to restart the laptop and when you see this screen -
Then pay attention to which button is written in the line that I underlined. In the figure, I also indicated which keys can also trigger the BIOS (it all depends on the model of the program itself). If you did everything correctly, you will see a screen like this.
Here you need to configure the boot parameters . Go to section First boot device and in this line choose USB-HDD.
Now the computer should see the flash.
The second reason is a problem with the drivers. They either got lost and give out bugs, or were not originally installed. The USB ports are on motherboard. If they do not work, then the media will not be visible, or it will be determined every other time.
Need to download software from the manufacturer's website and install it. It is also advisable to scan the laptop for firewood from other devices. It can be done with this software.
Install, scan and reload. In general, this procedure should be done after each demolition. operating system as well as after its restoration. The program is free, works quickly, completely in Russian.
How to identify the problem?
If you inserted a flash drive, and the computer freezes at the same time, then the problem lies in the media itself. It needs to be formatted at a low level. This is a complete rebuilding of sectors with their cleaning.
Also, system brakes can be caused by a conflict with hard drive. In this case, you need to check the hard drive itself standard program built into the OS. Due to untimely defragmentation of the media, such problems appear.
If you have Windows 7 maximum, then it is quite possible that you have downloaded a self-made assembly. In such cases, only reinstalling the licensed software from the image can help. Of course, there will be no additional chips, but the stability of work in this case is guaranteed. You will have to format the drive, so be prepared to transfer data to an external hard drive or online storage.
If you get an error that says that there is no connection to a portable device, this means that the device itself is failing. Again, it's unlikely you'll be able to save the data, so just format it. Also check the entire computer for viruses, it is quite possible that malicious scripts will block OS operations that are responsible for connecting via usb ports. It is advisable to make this a powerful antivirus with updated databases, and not free analogues who rarely find anything at all.
One-Stop Solution
If you do not know what to do and how to fix the problem, then just take down Windows, format HDD and the flash drive. It is better to make a major reinstallation of the OS than to do half measures. This was the only thing that helped in my case. In addition, buy a new media, most likely the problem is in it. From the impact, it could be damaged, or the board inside the case shorted.
Conclusion
On this I will end the article. I hope you will not encounter bugs when working on your laptops. Share the article on social networks and subscribe to the blog to be aware of new materials! All the best to you and see you, my dear readers!
