USB device Not Recognized

[skutr3]

Hi I'm trying to transfer files to a USB device and it is all of the sudden "not recognized" It was working before and suddenly stopped. It used to come up as F:
I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling in Device Manager, and moving usb ports.
All help is appreciated.

 

[skutr3]

can anyone help?

 

[alphanumeric]

Is it just that device or all USB devices? Have you tried that USB device in another PC?

Try this, power down the PC and unplug the AC wall plug. If its a laptop remove the battery. Press the power button. Now plug it back in and power it up normally and see if it works.

 

[skutr3]

ok ill try that... so remove the battery for a laptop?

 

[alphanumeric]

Yes remove the battery if it is a laptop. USB ports have an overload protection circuit built into them. If you draw to much power (current) the circuit kicks in and shuts down the port. Unrecognized device is one of the symptoms when this happens. To reset the circuit you have to drain all power (voltage) from the circuit. Pushing the power button with the PC unpluged drains what little bit is stored in the capacitors in the power supply. In a desktop PC the power led would light up and quickly fad to black. In a laptop it would just power up again if you left the battery in. I had an el cheapo USB hub that tripped the circuit on my PC. Just rebooting wouldn't fix it. I had to kill all power to restore my ports to normal operation.

 

[skutr3]

Ok, well that didnt work

Is there anything else you recommend?

 

[mr pc]

what type of usb device is this? A thumb drive? ext HD? The Jaz?

Try the usb device on another usb cable (if needed), another computer, and also check to see if there are specific drivers for the device on the manufacturer website

test another usb device in the same usb slot on the pc

 

[skutr3]

The device is a micro sd reader...
and i tried it in my fathers pc running xp and get the same error....
idk what brand the device is so idk how to get the driver software..... this laptop is a dual boot with Linux (Ubuntu) and that doesnt even see it

 

[alphanumeric]

If it worked before but doesn't now, it sounds to me like its busted.

 

[skutr3]

OK.... I just dont understand how that could be possible... I take good care of it

 

[thefabe]

If you have the opportunity to try in in a different computer then you can at least either eliminate it as the problem or solve it.
Fabe

 

[skutr3]

what? lol

 

[mjf]

What happens when you plug another micro SD card in to the reader?

 

[skutr3]

i dont have another micro sd...

 

[mjf]

So all your problems could be over a bad micro SD card that's either dead or in need of reformating. If you plan to own more than one micro SD card, now might be the time to buy one.