The 'USB device not recognized' error is common on Windows computers. If your computer runs on Windows XP/7/8/10, you may have come across this error after connecting an external USB device to the PC. If the error occurs, the USB device won't show up on your Windows PC. This means that you won't be able to open the device or access data stored in it. In this article, we will focus on showing you how to fix the problem. First, we will learn what's the causes.
1Causes of the 'USB Device Not Recognized' Issue
• The computer needs an update for issues that may conflict with the external USB device and Windows.
• The Windows on your computer could be missing important updates.
• The USB controllers could be corrupt or unstable.
• The computer's motherboard may require updated drivers.
• The connected external USB device could be entering selective suspend.
• The USB port could be faulty.
2How to Fix the 'USB Device Not Recognized' Problem?
There are several things you can do to fix the issue. You can check the video or follow the words below:
Alternatively, there is another step to fix/repair corrupted USB flash drive using CHKDSK command. Repair Corrupted USB Flash Drive Using CHKDSK Command. Below follow the steps: Step 1: Connect the corrupted flash drive to your PC. Step 2: On your computer. Select USB flash drive on the left panel of Disk Utility, and click 'First Aid' at the top toolbar and click 'Run'. Disk Utility will repair any errors on the drive automatically. Select the USB drive and click 'Unmount' at the top toolbar, unplug the USB and plug it back in 10-15 seconds.
1. Remove Power Supply
This is the easiest solution to the issue. It is as simple as unplugging the computer from the power supply. Most modern computers will not turn off completely immediately after being removed from the power supply. To ensure that the computer is turned off completely, you will need to use the Shut Down function in Windows or press the power button before unplugging the PC from the power supply.
2. Uninstall and Then Reconnect Your External USB Device
This solution will work if the USB driver that is currently loaded is corrupt or unstable. To implement this solution, you will need to follow the steps outlined below:
Click the start button. In the search box, type in 'Device Manager'.
From the list of results, select Device Manager.
From the hardware list, select Disk Drives.
Right-click the external USB drive that has the 'USB device not recognized' issue. Select Uninstall.
After the drive is uninstalled, unplug the drive's USB cable.
Wait for approximately 60 seconds and then reconnect the drive's USB cable. Check to see if the USB drive has loaded in the Windows Explorer. How do i backup my mac using time machine.
3. Update the USB Device Drivers
To apply this solution to the 'USB device not recognized' problem, you will need to follow the steps outlined below:
Click Start and type in 'Device Manager' in the search box.
From the list that appears, select Device Manager.
Scroll down to 'Universal Serial Bus Controllers' and click on it.
Under Universal Serial Bus Controllers, right-click on a USB component you wish to update and then choose 'Update driver'.
Select 'Search automatically for updated driver software'. If Windows currently does not have a new driver, you can try looking for a new one on the device's manufacturer website. Follow the manufacturer's instructions to install the updated driver.
4. Fix USB Root Hub
To fix the 'USB device not recognized' problem using this solution, follow the steps below:
Click the start button and type in Device Manager. Select Device Manager from the list of results.
Scroll down to 'USB Serial Bus Controllers' and expand it. Right-click on the USB Root Hub and then select Properties.
Select the Power Management tab. Uncheck the 'Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power' checkbox. If you have more than 1 USB Root Hub listed, repeat the above steps for all the USB Root Hubs.
5. Disable the USB Selective Suspend Setting
This solution will keep the external USB device from powering down. To implement this solution, follow the steps below:
Click the Start button and then type 'power plan'. From the results, select 'Choose a power plan'.
Click the 'Change Plan Settings' option next to the currently selected plan.
Select 'Change advanced power settings'.
Click the box with the plus sign to expand USB Settings. Again, tap the plus sign to expand 'USB selective suspend settings'.
Select 'Plugged in'. From the drop-down menu, select 'Disabled'. If you are using a laptop, select 'Battery' and then choose disabled from the dropdown menu. Tap 'Apply' and then click 'OK'.
3How to Recover Data When You Can't Fix 'USB Device Not Recognized' Issue?
When the 'USB device not recognized' error occurs, what will worry you the most is losing the data stored in the device completely. What if you tried all methods above, but the problem still exist. Is there a way to get your data on USB drive back? Yes, you do not have to worry about losing your data completely. With a tool known as iMyFone AnyRecover, you can recover your lost data quickly and easily.
AnyRecover works with all storage devices, including mobile phones, hard drives, flash drives, camcorders, Memory Cards, etc. The tool will recover your data irrespective of whether you lost it via damaged hard drive, accidental deletion, virus attack, formatting, OS crash/reinstall, lost partition, etc.
The Main Features That AnyRecover Users Enjoy Include:
The tool supports over 1000 file formats including photos, music, videos, document, etc.
It supports all storage devices, not only USB drives, but also hard drives, PC, Mac and all storage cards.
It makes data recovery both easy and quick, no tech required.
You can use AnyRecover trial version for free to confirm whether it will be able to solve your problem.
To verify that AnyRecover is extremely easy to use, we have outlined the steps you need to follow for external device recovery below:
Step 1. Launch AnyRecover software. Connect your USB device to computer, then select the device from which you would like to recover your data.
Step 2. After selecting the location, hit 'Start' button to start scanning process. You can pause to locate the targeted files or stop it during scanning.
Step 3. After the scan, the lost files should be displayed. Preview the files and select the ones you wish to recover. Click 'Recover' to get the files back.
Oct 16, 2020 • Filed to: USB Recovery • Proven solutions
How Can I Fix my Flash Drive Not Recognized?
Question: 'My USB flash drive is not recognized when I plug it to the computer. What causes such a problem to happen? Is my USB drive got broken? How to fix the flash drive not recognized issue? Also, can I recover data from the USB flash drive not recognized?'
Solved: USB not recognized is the common problem reported many users, it could be broken or other reason caused the drive error. But don't worry, you can follow the next guide to fix the flash drive not recognized error on Windows and Mac, then recover files from flash drive with Recoverit Data Recovery program.
What Caused the Flash Drive Not Recognized on Computer?
Several root causes would result in the not recognized flash drive issue. They should be addressed so that you will not need to deal with the issue(s) for a long period.
Port Related Issues:: To determine if this is a port problem, test every USB port that you have with different flash drives. This could be either hardware or software issues or both. In this case, you would need a professional to help you correct this.
USB Formatting Issue: This is the most probable reason your computer could not detect your flash drive. The inability to format flash drive properly before the first use could cause problems later on.
Driver Issue: The drivers may not be available, corrupted, or outdated which would make the flash drive not Recognized.
Hard Drive Related Issues: A glitch in your machine's hard drive will not allow anything on it to work in a good and perfect way. This hardware issue should be addressed because it will affect more than your computer's ability to recognize a flash drive.
Operating System Related Issues: Sometimes, if your OS is not updated with the necessary updates as often as possible, it would cause the system to not recognize the flash drive. This could be simply rectified by updating the necessary components.
4 Ways to Fix the USB Flash Drive Not Recognized Problems on Windows
Depending on what is the root cause of the problem, you may only need to do one of these four steps or all of them. Follow these solutions step-by-step to resolve your problem.
Way 1: Scan Flash Drive to Find the Issue
- Plug the flash drive into your USB port.
- Go to My Computer and right-click on the flash drive. Open the Properties
- Open the Tools tab and click Check now'¦
- It may take some time to complete the scan. Once finished, it will tell you what the flash drive's problem is.
Way 2: Reformat the Flash Drive
- Right-click on the flash drive and click on Format'¦, the Format window will pop up.
- Under the File system toggle it between NTFS and FAT32. Click Start.
Way 3: Perform driver updates
- Open the Run command and type in msc in the field. Click OK.
- This will open the Device Manager. Find the Universal Serial Bus controllers.
- Expand the menu and right-click on the Generic USB Hub. Click on Update Driver Software'¦
Way 4: Operating System Updates
- Go to Control Panel, then System and security.
- Under the Windows Update section, click on Check for Updates.
- If it is not updated (the notification is not green in color), update it accordingly as indicated by the system.
- Follow the updating wizard and restart your computer accordingly.
Video Tutorial on How to Fix USB Device Not Recognized
3 Ways to Fix the Flash Drive Not Recognized Problem on Mac
Like in Windows, your resolution method will be determined by the root cause of the problem. These are the three ways that you can do to fix flash drive not Recognized issue.
Way 1: Manually Connect the Flash Drive
- Go to Application and click on Utilities.
- A pop-up window will appear and click on the highlighted commands as marked in the image below:
- Under Devices, click External Devices to manually connect the unrecognizable flash drive.
Fix Usb Flash Drive Not Recognized
Way 2: Retune PRAM
- Shut down your Mac.
- Press the Power button and subsequently hold down the Command-Option-P-R This should be done before the grey screen appears.
- Your Mac should reboot itself. Let it go after the start-up chime.
Way 3: Format Mac's Drive
- Press the Command-Spacebar buttons simultaneously, plug in the flash drive and go to the Application Click on the Disk Utility option.
- You will be able to find the flash drives that need to be fixed in the left panel.
- Click on the Erase button to complete the process.
How To Fix Usb Flash Drive
What's Next?
Now that the flash drive not Recognized problem is solved on your Windows or Mac computer, make sure you had back-up all important documents in the flash drive. This is to ensure that you will be able to access the files stored in the flash drive should it happens again.
You should also check if there is any accidental data loss from the drive. Should you find things missing, use a flash drive data recovery tool to help you recover loss documents do this immediately before it is overwritten by new data.
How to Recover Data from Flash Drive Not Recognized on Windows
When you fix the USB flash drive not recognized with format solution, all your data on the drive will be got formatted and lost. On this guide, we will show you how to recover data from flash drive not recognized on Windows. Recoverit Data Recovery software can easily help you recover lost files from flash drive, even the drive got damaged/corrupted, formatted, virus attack and the file system crashed.
Thumb Drive Not Detected
Recoverit - The Best USB Flash Drive Recovery Software
- Undeleted files from flash drive which not recognized on Windows and Mac.
- Recover files from USB flash drive due to accidentally deleted, formatted and damaged/corrupted.
Steps to Recover Lost Data from Flash Drive
Download and install Recoverit Flash Drive Recovery on your computer, follow the next simple steps to perform flash drive data recovery on Windows computer.
Step 1. Launch Recoverit Data Recovery program, select the 'External Device Recovery' mode to get started.
Step 2. Make sure your flash drive detected on the computer, select it, and click 'Start' to proceed.
Step 3. The flash drive recovery software will start to scan the device to search and restore your data files.
Step 4. Finally, you can check all the recovered files. Select your data and recover back by clicking the 'Recover' button.
If you are a MAC user, you should download Recoverit Data Recovery for Mac or follow the guide to perform flash drive recovery on Mac.
USB Solution
- Recover USB Drive
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- Fix/Repair USB Drive
- Know USB Drive
