I have attached USB Pendrive disk but does not display this device

Use the following steps to troubleshoot the USB pendrive not showing on the laptop.

1. Check if Windows detects the USB port/device at all
   • Try another USB port on the laptop.
   • Try the same pendrive on a different computer. If it is not detected there either, the pendrive may be faulty.
2. Check Device Manager for hidden or non-present USB devices
   • Open a Command Prompt.
   • Run this command and press Enter:

          set devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices=1
     

   • Then start Device Manager:
     • On Windows 8 or later: from Start, search for Device Manager and open it.
     • On Windows 7 or earlier: in the same Command Prompt, run:

              start devmgmt.msc
       

   • In Device Manager, select View > Show hidden devices.
   • Expand Disk drives and Universal Serial Bus controllers and look for any entries with warning icons or greyed/ghosted USB storage devices.
   • If found, right‑click and Uninstall device, then unplug and reconnect the pendrive.
3. Show disconnected (ghost) devices permanently (advanced)
   • For repeated troubleshooting, set the devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices environment variable globally so Device Manager always shows non-present devices:
     • Right‑click This PC/My Computer > Properties.
     • Go to Advanced tab > Environment Variables.
     • In System variables, create or edit a variable named devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices and set its value to 1.
   • Use this only for troubleshooting to avoid accidentally uninstalling required but currently disconnected devices.
4. If the USB port stopped working after safe removal (Windows 8/8.1/Server 2012/2012 R2)
   • If the issue started after using Safely Remove Hardware on a hub port and then reconnecting a device to the same port, the port may be disabled by the OS.
   • Install the update rollup described in KB 2845533 for Windows 8/Windows Server 2012, and configure the registry key as described in that article to re‑enable proper USB detection.

If, after these steps, the pendrive still does not appear in Device Manager or in File Explorer, test with another USB storage device to confirm whether the problem is with the laptop’s USB ports or with the pendrive itself.

References:

• Device Manager does not display devices that are not connected
• Connected USB device is not detected in Windows 8.1