Windows 7 - Win7 32 Bit: Few Notebooks do not read USB sticks FAT32 or FAT

Hi there,

following stange behaviour: There are about 45 HP Elitebook Notebooks with Windows 7 32Bit. Some few of them (currently 3) show:

USB sticks that can be read perfectly by other different notebooks but not by the threee mentioned devices. This happens only when the sticks are formatted with FAT or FAT32. If you format them with NTFS, they can be read perfectly.

Additionally you cannot choose FAT or FAT32 when you try to format them, only NTFS.

One of those notebooks has already been setupped again (same image as the others).

If the hardware and the drive imagery are identical have you checked all the machines have the same BIOS revision onboard, and that they have identical BIOS settings?

Try reinstalling the USB controllers on those three laptops.

Expand Universal Serial Bus Controllers in the Device Manager, right click every device under the USB Controllers node, click uninstall to remove them one at a time. Reboot the computer that should intall these afresh.

Check to see if it resolves the problem. Just a blind shot from me.

Thx for the hint, we tried this already: USB Controller Update - Renesas USB 3.0 Driver - Version 2.0.32.0 - REV: B
Did not help in this case.

Thanksx: This might be something. I will check and reply.

There are noteooks with the same BIOS that are okay and not-okay
Notebooks that are not-okay have aswell different BIOS-versions.
So this does not seem to be the cause.

Which BIOS settings could cause such different behaviour ?

Is it only a problem in the USB3.0 port or the 2.0 ports, as well?

In one case the check was executed on all possible ports of the notebook and even at the connected docking station (and aswell a USB port at the monitor).
Did not work at any port. Very strange indeed.

Additionally strange:

You CAN format an USB stick via command prompt and format <volume>: /FS:FAT32.
This works, you still cannot read that stick on that notebook, but you can read it in other notebooks.

The point was subjective, prompting you to check and see.

Obviously I don't have access to your BIOS, but there are often settings in many BIOS editions that affect USB functionality.