Windows Vista USB Device Not Recognized

Anonymous
2009-07-01T15:21:59+00:00

I have tried all of the suggestions to fix this problem. What else is there to do. Right now I am running the systm scan throught the command prompt. The last thing I had plugged into my computer before the USB error messsage appeared was my iPod. I have never had any other USB problems besides this one. I have a Toshila A135-S2326 that came with Windows Vista Home Basic already installed. I have the lastest update and BIOS version. I have reset the BIOS to the default seeting and changed the time. I have disconnected the computer from its' source along with the battery. I have disabled all the USB ports restarted the computer, enabled them again. I have uninstalled all USB ports and let Windows reinstall them. I have done everything that I know to do and still nothing. I have read and searched for a solution time and again. Can someone PLEASE help me. I desperately need a solution like yesterday. Thank You!!!!!

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Devices and drivers

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Anonymous
2009-10-26T01:29:55+00:00

There is possibly an unbelievably simple solution to the “USB device not recognized ” error which worked for me. I love USB and have 5 ports on my computer so that I can connect my mouse, keyboard, camera, phone, and printer to it all at once!

However, last weekend, my computer stopped recognizing my USB devices! The strange thing about it was that the USB ports were not bad because all of my devices were still getting power to them. I could still charge my cell phone without a problem!

!\[\](http://www.online-tech-tips.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/usbdevicenotrecognized-thumb.png)

So I started with the normal fixing methods, including uninstalling the drivers for my devices and reinstalling them. That didn’t work! Next I tried System Restore thinking that maybe I had installed something and it caused a conflict with the USB system drivers. That didn’t work!

I read online that in order to fix this problem I should go to Device Manager and uninstall all of the devices under USB Controllers. Restarted the computer, reinstalled the USB drivers, but the problem STILL did not go away!

You may also see in Device Manager that the device shows up as an “Unknown Device ”.

!\[\](http://www.online-tech-tips.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/unknownusbdevice-thumb.png)

So how did I finally fix the problem? Well, apparently it’s a super simple solution! No need to edit the registry, uninstall drivers, or anything of that sort.

Simply UNPLUG YOUR COMPUTER FROM THE POWER SUPPLY . Yes that’s it! Note that this does not mean just turning off your computer because modern computers don’t really turn off when you press the power button as the motherboard still gets power.

First to explain, the motherboard is where all of hardware of the computer is connected to, including the USB ports. Sometimes the motherboard needs to be “rebooted” also because something can go wrong, i.e. all your USB ports suddenly stop working. The small microprocessor on the motherboard will reload the drivers and your USB ports should be back to recognizing all devices!

So first turn off your computer using Shut Down or pressing the power button and then UNPLUG it from the wall outlet. Let it sit for about a minute and then plug it back in.

Hope this helps someone fix that highly irritating “USB device not recognized” Windows error!

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Anonymous
2009-07-01T20:23:36+00:00

Try a System Restore to pick a Restore Point before your problem..

Click Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore > pick a different time > Next > etc

http://www.apple.com/support/ipod/

And also ask Apple iPod Support about their Product

http://www.csd.toshiba.com/cgi-bin/tais/support/jsp/home.jsp

And download the latest USB Universal Serial Bus Controllers for your Model Laptop from toshiba.

Cheers.


Mick Murphy - Microsoft Partner

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  1. Anonymous
    2010-11-18T20:38:30+00:00

    Thank you sir! So simple, yet effective!

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  2. Anonymous
    2010-12-07T03:37:00+00:00

    I have a Logitech mouse and suddenly one night it stopped responding.  Took a while to fix it, but I'm not sure why it happened in the first place.  I'm not sure why my mouse stopped working.  I tried two different wireless mice and a wire mouse and for some reason Windows wouldn't recognize them.  I tried everything, system restore, system update.  What worked for me, unplugging the power for the laptop, turn it off normally, unplug everything, take the battery out, and wait 30 minutes.  Not sure if the 30 minute wait is needed, but after the wait I managed to get my system to recognize my USB mouse again.

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  3. Anonymous
    2010-12-18T04:16:18+00:00

    The issue is with the registry... When I first encountered this issue last week I searched all over the internet for a solution and no one had a permanent fix. Being the troubleshooter that I am I decided to take deep look into the problem and you'll be surprised at what I found.

    I first tried the power down and remove/reconnect all USB devices and sure enough they came back working but over night I ended up having the same issue the next morning.

    I tried repairing the registry but all of a sudden I had no access to make changes to it and I remember I never had an issue before so why now???

    So this is what I did:

    1.) You must first enable the administrator account in order for you to be able to do this by doing the following --> Open the command prompt in administrator mode by right-clicking and choosing “Run as administrator” and type the following command and finish by pressing enter:

    net user administrator /active:yes

    You should see a message that the command completed successfully. Log out, and you’ll now see the Administrator account as a choice. (Note that this also works on Windows 7.)

    2.) Now log in as the administrator and remove the USB related items/drivers from "Computer Management".

    3.) Go to "Control Panel" and double click "Power Options", then click on (depending on what you have it set to - mine is set to high performance) "Change plan settings", then "Change advance power settings" and scroll down "USB settings" and expand it, also expand "USB selective suspend setting" and set them to "Disabled", click "Apply" and then "OK" to close the popup window.

    4.) Go to the "Windows" folder and locate the "regedit.exe" file, right click it and select properties. Go to the "Security" tab and take full ownership of it. Apply or save changes you just made and close all windows.

    5.) Now hold the button down a few seconds until the unit powers off. Once off wait a few seconds and turn it back on. Log back in to windows and you should see or notice the USB drivers installing or loading.

    6.) Once it has finished, test your ports, they should work with no problems.

    7.) If they are okay, make a backup of your registry just in case you ever run across this problem again.

    8.) Also make sure to run a deep virus scan to make sure you do not have a java scripts viruses running in the background. I use "Microsoft Security Essentials" because who else knows their system better than anyone else??? That's right, Mr. Bill Gates himself and I trust his product to the max and besides, it is completely "FREE"!!!

    Enjoy and I hope this helps... any questions feel free to respond. Have a nice day, OTAY!!!

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