USB Device Not Recognized in Windows 10

It is a very common error which comes up in Windows 10 at times. Due to this error, USB drive doesn’t show up in File Explorer, which means that you can’t access any file present on the storage device. This issue is said to be usually driver related. There is no specific reason for this problem, you would have to identify the issue and try different approaches to solve it. An effective solution is to download and update the correct USB drivers.

Here are some fixes mentioned below which can resolve this error:

Turn Off Fast Startup

There are possibilities that because of the Fast Startup Feature, USB may not be recognized by Windows 10.

1. You can fix it by going on “Search” menu and then choose “Control Panel” from there.
2. When the control panel screen comes up, you need to select “Hardware and sounds”.
3. Under that option- Select power options and then select Choose what the power button does.
4. Then you need to click on change settings that are currently unavailable.
5. You need to find fast star up button and just disable it.
6. Once all this is done just restart the computer.

Once your PC will start, there are possibilities that it might be a little slow but all USB storage devices should be properly recognized.

Update Drivers using Device Manager

Sometimes, USB driver is outdated and may not be able to function normally. To update it, you need to reinstall the USB drivers.

1. Go to Device manager.
2. Search Disk drives section and choose Uninstall device by right clicking on USB hard drive.
3. Once it has been done restart your computer.

Drives can also be updated automatically with the help of third party tools like Drive Easy, Driver Reviver, etc. It will accordingly diagnose your system and choose the correct drivers. You just need to install it, just choose the Run option and it will scan and find all problem drivers. Once detected, click on “update all” option so that it installs the right versions of the drivers that were outdated on your system.

Check Power Management for USB Root Hub

1. Go to “Start” menu and choose “Device manager”.
2. Once it opens you need to click on “Universal Serial Bus Controllers”.
3. You need to select “USB Root Hub”, right click on that and choose option “Properties”.
4. You will see “Power management” option in which you just need to remove the tick on “Allow the computer to turn off this device” to save power.
5. Then just click on “OK” and click on “Update Driver”.
6. Restart your PC and it shall work without an error now.

Update Generic USB Hub Driver

You can try this method as well if you get an Unknown Device error in Device Manager.

1. Go to Device Manager.
2. Then you need to expand option “Universal Serial Bus Controllers”.
3. Select “Generic USB Hub”, right click on it and click on “Update Driver Software”.
4. You need to choose “Browse my computer for driver software” when update dialog comes up on the screen.
5. Look through on your computer for the driver software then select the driver you want to install from “Let me pick from a list of device driver on my computer” option.
6. You need to choose Generic Hub from the menu. Click on the “Next” option and close it once it’s installed.
7. By now the Windows 10 doesn’t recognize USB drive error should have gone on the device manager screen.

Use Windows 10 USB Troubleshooter

You can also download Windows USB Troubleshooter. It is a free tool to use and gives assistance on how to fix the USB device not recognized in Windows 10. The best part about it is that if you are not on the PC that is facing this issue, you can save it in a CD or a flash drive and then you can use it on the computer on which you were facing a problem. It can fix problems of USB storage, print and audio devices like USB Hard drives and printers, thumb drives, etc.

Conclusion

These were few fixes for Windows 10 doesn’t recognize USB drive. Also you can try and connect the USB device to any other computer and check if it works. If not, then it’s definitely an issue with the device and it needs to be replaced.