Unable to install any USB devices

Difusal said:

Hey there! I had this same problem too! untill a while ago! It's very frustrating! I spent days on it! So, I will make your job easy by telling how to solve this. This was the way it worked for me!

Here's the solution for the ones who might have this problem:
This worked for me in Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit!
You must have all administrator privileges!

1- Open Windows Explorer

2- Go to C:/Windows/System32/DriverStore

You will have a couple of folders and files.
You will have *.dat files and other file named: infcache.1

3- Right click every file (dont touch the folders!) and choose properties.

4- go to security tab

5- click Edit

6- choose your account and check the box: full control (see ss)

7- Click ok.

8- Repeat to every file

9- Select all the files (*.dat and infcache.1)

10- Press shift+del

11- Press OK.

12- Now, go to C:Windows/System32/Driver Store/File Repository/

13- Search for folder named usbstor.inf

14- Open it (if you have more than one, choose the most recent)

15- Copy "usbstor.inf" and "usbstor.PNF"

16- Paste those two files to C:/Windows/inf

17- Reboot your pc and voilla! :b

If Windows doesnt install them automatically go to device manager, uninstall all unknown devices and the ones with the yellow exclamation mark, then click in "check to see if there is any hardware changes"

Now, Windows will install all your hardware successfully :b



Did it work?

This didnt work for me any other solutions im trying to install a wireless mouse that was working fine,until one day it stopped working ..i changed batteries downloaded software nothing is working. It was detecting it but wouldnt install drivers (Unable to install drivers message). Now its not even picking up the mouse,I also tried it on my girlfriends laptop and it worked quick..USB ports are picking up android phone..please help me..........................

Like many of the others here, I joined ONLY to say "Thanks" to you, Difusal. This one has been bugging me for a while and I had simply resigned myself to having to reinstall the operating system. I don't know how many attempts at a solution I've read on this one, and the only one that worked perfectly, the first time, was yours. No idea how you figured that one out, but THANK YOU - VERY MUCH! -- Chuck

Thx 4 yr contribution, pal
Long live POrtugal!

Difusal said:

Hey there! I had this same problem too! untill a while ago! It's very frustrating! I spent days on it! So, I will make your job easy by telling how to solve this. This was the way it worked for me!

Here's the solution for the ones who might have this problem:
This worked for me in Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit!
You must have all administrator privileges!

1- Open Windows Explorer

2- Go to C:/Windows/System32/DriverStore

You will have a couple of folders and files.
You will have *.dat files and other file named: infcache.1

3- Right click every file (dont touch the folders!) and choose properties.

4- go to security tab

5- click Edit

6- choose your account and check the box: full control (see ss)

7- Click ok.

8- Repeat to every file

9- Select all the files (*.dat and infcache.1)

10- Press shift+del

11- Press OK.

12- Now, go to C:Windows/System32/Driver Store/File Repository/

13- Search for folder named usbstor.inf

14- Open it (if you have more than one, choose the most recent)

15- Copy "usbstor.inf" and "usbstor.PNF"

16- Paste those two files to C:/Windows/inf

17- Reboot your pc and voilla! :b

If Windows doesnt install them automatically go to device manager, uninstall all unknown devices and the ones with the yellow exclamation mark, then click in "check to see if there is any hardware changes"

Now, Windows will install all your hardware successfully :b



Did it work?

Hi Difusal :)

Thanks for one solution but unfortunately it didn't worked for me.
can you please provide any other solution or work around if u hav for the same problem

thanks in advance

Jitendra.

tikudiajitendra said:

Difusal said:

Hey there! I had this same problem too! untill a while ago! It's very frustrating! I spent days on it! So, I will make your job easy by telling how to solve this. This was the way it worked for me!

Here's the solution for the ones who might have this problem:
This worked for me in Windows 7 Ultimate 64bit!
You must have all administrator privileges!

1- Open Windows Explorer

2- Go to C:/Windows/System32/DriverStore

You will have a couple of folders and files.
You will have *.dat files and other file named: infcache.1

3- Right click every file (dont touch the folders!) and choose properties.

4- go to security tab

5- click Edit

6- choose your account and check the box: full control (see ss)

7- Click ok.

8- Repeat to every file

9- Select all the files (*.dat and infcache.1)

10- Press shift+del

11- Press OK.

12- Now, go to C:Windows/System32/Driver Store/File Repository/

13- Search for folder named usbstor.inf

14- Open it (if you have more than one, choose the most recent)

15- Copy "usbstor.inf" and "usbstor.PNF"

16- Paste those two files to C:/Windows/inf

17- Reboot your pc and voilla! :b

If Windows doesnt install them automatically go to device manager, uninstall all unknown devices and the ones with the yellow exclamation mark, then click in "check to see if there is any hardware changes"

Now, Windows will install all your hardware successfully :b



Did it work?

Hi Difusal :)

Thanks for one solution but unfortunately it didn't worked for me.
can you please provide any other solution or work around if u hav for the same problem

thanks in advance

Jitendra.

I haven't had any problems with windows 7 since I did this :) I now use windows 8 but I used 7 until last month. Just try to do it again and make sure you do every single step :) hope this helps ya

i have a similar prob. the only difference is that i am already using a usb mouse whose left click button is creating problems. i replaced it with a logitech m90 usb mouse. now i am not able to install the new usb mouse on my pc. the older mouse is working fine. i tried all the usb ports on my pc, still the same. windows update just doesnt install the driver for it. pls help.

thanks in advance.
Apoorv

apoorv90 said:

i have a similar prob. the only difference is that i am already using a usb mouse whose left click button is creating problems. i replaced it with a logitech m90 usb mouse. now i am not able to install the new usb mouse on my pc. the older mouse is working fine. i tried all the usb ports on my pc, still the same. windows update just doesnt install the driver for it. pls help.

thanks in advance.
Apoorv

have you done what I described in the original post?

yeah i did.. but that didnt help as the old usb mouse i m using is still working. also i took the mouse back to the vendor, he connected it to his pc and it worked fine.

mtbmed said:

Difusal said:

tikudiajitendra said:

Hi Difusal :)

Thanks for one solution but unfortunately it didn't worked for me.
can you please provide any other solution or work around if u hav for the same problem

thanks in advance

Jitendra.

I haven't had any problems with windows 7 since I did this :) I now use windows 8 but I used 7 until last month. Just try to do it again and make sure you do every single step :) hope this helps ya

I am having same problem and have carefully followed your steps as outlined now two separate times. I also did a cmd line tool to find orphaned drivers and devices and removed them all before a third unsuccessful attempt at your fix. boooooo. I am stumped and at my wit's end. This all started near the same time as a failed install of my cellphone drivers. I uninstalled those but had no further need of either phone or usb devices, so no problem noted afterward. The beginning of this recent issue is due to my Microsoft Mouse (an older usb cabled mouse) right click button failing to work. I bought a new wireless mouse and keyboard to install and now get the failed to install warning. All other efforts to fix have ultimately led me here.
Thoroughly stumped. I can uninstall my old mouse, and it will reinstall correctly. Nothing new will. The new Mouse/USB button/Keyboard install just fine on my other PC running WIN XP.
Thanks for any ideas
????

edit: the link to the cmd line tool (sic) is included for clarification of what I did there: How To Easily Remove Old Drivers from Windows

Well, I would advise you to open a cmd prompt as admin, and run "sfc /scannow". Let it run and reboot. Sometimes this works like a charm. If it doesn't work, maybe I would tell you to grab the windows 7 installation disk and try to use one of the repair tools. After all that and since we aren't going anywhere, the last option would be reinstall everything: backup your files, format, clean install and that will for sure remove any existing problems. You could install windows 8 though, it's much much better than 7, all the drivers are automatically installed just perfectly! :)