USB device not recognized, in Windows 7 Only

[nardox]

I have a WD Passport 160GB portable HDD, which worked fine in XP on the same computer before I installed Windows 7.

As many other people experienced, the once the device is connected, it will show USB device not recognized. However, my mouse and keyboard, which are USB also, are working flawlessly.

Besides the Passport, I have a Maxtor External HDD which is not working also, I tried every single USB port on the computer and it just won't work. And this one is powered by a small power adapter, so it should not be anything related to USB power. On the other hand, the Maxtor HDD is visible from BIOS, just not in Windows 7.

My computer is single boot Windows 7 RC 64bit, clean install.
I'm using Q6600, Foxconn MARS P35 mobo, Seagate 7200.10 250GB HDD, PNY 8600GT, OCZ 2x2GB DDR2 800 ram. I don't think the hardware have any problem since in XP everything worked fine, and all the drivers are up to date according to the device manager in Windows 7.

Any advice?

 

[rajinisback09]

Hi Nardox,
I am curious to see what happens if you disable your cd rom or dvd rom drives in the BIOS then see if it works? I am thinking the External HDD wants to use drive letter D or E and those letters maybe in use already.
Raj

 

[bjs53]

Please check if your usb disk is passowrd protected. In the case of sd card in usb card reader the card is unvisible until you don't remove passoword.

 

[Crunchy Doodle]

I would suggest a complete fresh re-installation of Windows 7 RC1. That is, delete the two partitions on the C: drive and start over. I'm guessing there is something corrupted in the Registry or a driver.

Bye.

 

[aln688]

I have a WD Passport 160GB portable HDD, which worked fine in XP on the same computer before I installed Windows 7.

As many other people experienced, the once the device is connected, it will show USB device not recognized. However, my mouse and keyboard, which are USB also, are working flawlessly.

Besides the Passport, I have a Maxtor External HDD which is not working also, I tried every single USB port on the computer and it just won't work. And this one is powered by a small power adapter, so it should not be anything related to USB power. On the other hand, the Maxtor HDD is visible from BIOS, just not in Windows 7.

My computer is single boot Windows 7 RC 64bit, clean install.
I'm using Q6600, Foxconn MARS P35 mobo, Seagate 7200.10 250GB HDD, PNY 8600GT, OCZ 2x2GB DDR2 800 ram. I don't think the hardware have any problem since in XP everything worked fine, and all the drivers are up to date according to the device manager in Windows 7.

Any advice?

Try installing the latest Intel Chipset Inf, which granted is marked Beta, but considering the entire Windows 7 OS isn't final either, I don't see that being a problem. The link is here:

Page with driver:
intel drivers pour chipsets

Actual file:
http://www.station-drivers.com/tele..._9.1.1.1012_Beta(www.station-drivers.com).exe

 

[Seelig]

I am having a similar problem with an external USB hard drive. The drive works fine on a different system running Vista.

I downloaded the code mentioned in the post just above but I can not figure out what option(s) to use to install it or what I should use as a directory for Windows 7.

I have a Gigabyte EX58-UDR3 motherboard (I7 processor). All USB devices work except the external hard drive.

Thanks for whatever help anyone can provide.

 

[M1ebeau]

I have a similar problem on a Dell Precision 670 Workstation. I have checked Dell for the chipset drivers. The Dell site has you sort the list of drivers according to the OS. When you select Win XP Pro it provides the chipset drivers; which I have downloaded and tried to install using the XP mode. Did not work. When you sort the list on the Dell site for Vista or XP 64 bit, it removes the Chipset download. If I could find the Vista 64bit drivers I think this would solve the issue, but Dell does not seem to post them.

 

[digitalrurouni]

I definitely second the suggestion about the updated chipset drivers. I seem to remember having a similar problem in an older version of a windows os and then I realized I had not installed the chipset drivers.

 

[dprozzo]

Similar issue

Rebuilt wife's computer, installed Windows 7RC, 64-bit. Flawless, no problems, EXCEPT two. When I plugged in my external USB hard drive, Windows said there was a problem with the device, wouldn't install. (This hard drive had worked great in my Windows 7 laptop.) Unknown Device was listed in Device Manager.

The USB sockets worked fine for other devices like a mouse, just not for mass storage.

Same problem with an internal card reader that plugs into a USB header on the motherboard.

Researched the issue for HOURS, lots of suggestions. Some didn't apply, others didn't work. Reinstalled Windows 7 64-bit, didn't help. Installed Windows 7 32-bit, didn't help. Went back to Windows 7 64-bit.

FINALLY, I found that the problem was caused by a Trendnet Wireless Adapter USB dongle. When I removed it and reinstalled the two devices, they were promptly recognized and functioned properly.

Don't know why there were conflicts. By the time I found the problem I was too worn out to care.

The Trendnet dongle is cheap, expendable, and will go into the trash. I've ordered a PCI wireless adapter from Newegg.

So, do you have any other USB devices attached? If so, you might want to remove them, reboot, and try your hard drive again.

 

[screwballl]

looks like you did what I was going to suggest... remove all USB devices (except keyboard and mouse if possible) and then plug in the hard drive and see if they work...

another thing I was going to suggest is leave it unplugged until you are already in the OS, then plug it in.

glad to see youfound the culprit

 

[dprozzo]

Dénouement

Apologies for hijacking this thread.

(Correction, the USB dongle referred to above was not made by Trendnet, rather was an Encore Wireless-N USB adapter.)

I ordered a Rosewill PCI wireless adapter and installed it into this Gigabyte MB based computer. That solved the mass storage issue, BUT, the Rosewill PCI device didn't work properly. It connected to the wireless access point with a good signal, but the throughput to the computer was awful. When I tested at www.speedtest.net it was worse than dialup.

So, the common denominator seemed to be the motherboard. The Gigabyte board went back to Newegg and I purchased an Intel DG41RQ MB and installed it last night with Windows 7 64-bit. The Rosewell internal card reader was recognized automatically and worked properly. At separate times, I tried both the Rosewill PCI wireless card and the Encore USB adapter, and they both worked.

All is good.

But, who would have known? Very frustrating. I'm thinking...during the installation with the Gigabyte board.....Wrong drivers? Incompatible OS? WHAT AM I DOING WRONG? All the error messages that aren't really telling me anything useful! No indications at all that it was the motherboard.

Exactly what was wrong with the Gigabyte board? Don't know, but there was *something.*

Computers aren't easy.

 

[M1ebeau]

I have come to the same conclusion. I have a USB Keyboard and a USB mouse which are plugged into a KVM which pluggs into the computer via usb. When I disconnect the USB devices connect PS2 mouse and key board and reboot I can add any "mass storage device" and it works fine. The minute I connect the USB mouse and keyboard the problem comes right back. Just a RC version issue and problem fixed in full version? I hope so cause I would hate to have to replace my hardware because of an OS issue. JK

 

[beckieh]

Worked for me too. I couldn't backup using the HP SimpleSave external USB drive (Western Digital). It kept erroring out. I unplugged my printer's USB cord and ta-da! worked perfectly. Thank you for the advice!!

 

[MephistoVI]

Similar Problem

I get this notification everytime I resume using the computer after it hibernates/enters standby mode from inactivity. The culprit is my USB mouse. However, the mouse installed perfectly fine and functions fine while the computer is in use, and resumes working after leaving hibernation/standby mode. It only stops being recognized during hibernation/standby mode. I am tired of receiving this notification. How do I disable it?

EDIT: This notification disappears before I can click on it since the device resumes functioning.

 

[fauxfire26]

similar usb problems

hello, please excuse me if i have posted this improperly, i too am having a similar usb problem with my windows 7 laptop when i plug in my thumb/flash drive. when i insert my thumbdrive i get the standard "windows is installing the drivers for this usb device" message but after wards i get a message that says "Device driver was not successfully installed" i clicked it for more details and found a message that says" please consult with your device manufacturer for assistance getting this device installed. sandisk cruzer micro usb device failed" at first i thought it was my USB drive but i checked other USB drives and computers running windows xp, vista, and 7 the problem only happens on computers running windows 7. please help me i'm running a dell xps 1640 with windows 7 64 bit if you need more information to help please let me know what it is. thank you

 

[fauxfire26]

UPDATE!

it seems that i have stumbled upon a "temporary" fix. when i left my sandisk usb drive in during a restart the computer seemed to recognize the thumb drive and now i have full access to it in my computer as well as in devices and printers. altho windows still pops up that blaloon that says device driver not successfully installed but this seemed to work for me. i hope the windows 7 team will find a permanent fix if this helps any one please let me know

 

[Agazoth]

I have had the same problem (USB harddisk not willing to run 2.0) on and off. I usualy solve this by deactivating my Logitech settings in the systemtray. Right after that 2.0 works again.

 

[f3rr3ll]

my usb mass storage hard drive don't work in windows 7 .its plugged in the light is on a pop up says the device is ready to use,but it isnt showing up in my computer.i go to admin tools,computer management,storage,disk management.it shows up as disk 5 unknown Not initialised,when i try to initialize it a window pops up saying the device is not ready.anyone know how to fix that.do not answer this question with another question (i see a lot of that on here lmao)there is all the info you need.thanks

 

[neo101]

This can work for laptops and desktops
Just switch off & pull the mains lead (take out laptop battery) for a few minutes.

The residual memory in the usb chips then gets erased/reset and will relook for connected usb devices on starting system.

Worth a try.

Other
- internal wires/connector of external h/d loose > check/push together.

Try different usb ports
check usb lead is ok

 

[Mitchy]

@ f3rr3ll...

Hi, Have you re-formatted that external HDD yet?

You have to give it a letter & then go through the format procedure.
It's probably showing up as "not allocated."

I just went through it with my external HDD which I had formatted with another M/C before the Win 7 install.

HTH.Regs, M..