What to do if your USB drive does not appear? (2023)

USB is a widely used technology that allows us to connect many devices to our computers every day. While it's very easy to set up, sometimes it's not all plug and play. What do you do when your USB drive doesn't show up?

This can be caused by a number of different things such as: B. damage orUSB-Stick tot, outdated software and drivers, partition problems, corrupt file system and device conflicts. Other causes such as B. faulty hardware, a non-functioning system controller or USB ports, require professional assistance from the device manufacturer or a certified computer technician.

While it's not easy to pinpoint the exact reason why your computer isn't recognizing the flash drive, you can work through several possible solutions until it works again.

We have collected some effective solutions that might work for USB connection issues. Most of them also apply to various devices like drives, mice, game controllers and more that need USB connection.

Check out ours tooshort youtube videowhere we discuss some of the following solutions. if you wanna get oneUnknown USB device error, we have a solution for that too, so check out the link.

How to fix a connected USB drive not showing up

• preliminary controls
• Check device compatibility
• Update your operating system
• Windows troubleshooting tool
• Use the Disk Management tool
• Try connecting to a different computer or USB port
• Troubleshooting drivers
• Use Device Manager to check for hardware changes
• Create a new drive volume and assign it a drive letter
• Disable the USB selective suspend function

pre-checks

• Make sure your USB device is powered on🇧🇷 Ideally, when you plug your USB stick into your computer, it should turn on automatically, with flashing lights on the drive showing activity. Some drives have a dedicated power cord or physical power button that you must manually turn on for the computer to recognize it.
• Examine the USB stick for cracks🇧🇷 The flash drive may have been corrupted without your knowledge, so physically check it to rule out any problems before trying again.
• Restart your computer🇧🇷 This may be an old tech support resource, but it fixes many issues, especially those caused by software bugs. Disconnect the USB stick, turn off the computer and unplug it from the power source. Wait up to a minute before restarting the computer and trying the flash drive again.
• Let your computer load Completelybefore trying the USB stick again. Some computers can be slow and overloaded with the various operations they have to perform during boot-up, so you may forget your USB drive.

Check device compatibility

If your USB stick doesn't work with your computer, it won't show up when you plug it in. On Windows PCs, most USB 3 devices can be plugged into USB 2 ports, which shouldn't be a big problem.

However, as technology advances, a USB 3 device may require a more powerful and compatible connector to function. Check your device's manual or packaging for compatibility information before trying again.

Update your operating system

If you use Windows, the operating system update contains important files that support various devices and hardware, as well as fixes for any bugs that you may find.

• OpenSettings > Update & security.

• CliqueCheck for updates🇧🇷 If updates are pending, please download and restart your computer before trying the flash drive again.

(Video) How To Fix Issues With Usb Drive Not Showing In My Computer

Use the Disk Management tool

This tool checks whether Windows recognizes your USB stick. It also shows all hard drives connected to your PC and you can check information like partitions, sizes and more.

• Insert your USB stick and right-clickHome > Disk Management.
• Check your USB stick for primary or secondary drives. If it doesn't contain any partitions, it will show asremovable.

• when you see it insideDisk Managementyou can create a new volume and assign a drive letter to it. This allows you to partition or format the flash drive in a way that is easily recognized by other devices, including your PC.
• If your USB drive doesn't show up, it could be a driver or hardware problem, or the drive is dead.

Try connecting to a different computer or USB port

Disconnect the USB stick from the current port and computer and try connecting it to a different computer and/or USB port. If it works on the new USB port or computer, theThe USB port may be damaged or dead, or the computer itself may have a problem.

A faulty, damaged or dead USB port has issues like USB drives not being recognized or error messages appearing. Make sure the connection is clean, dust-free and tight. If it moves up and down or is loose, it is defective or damaged.

If you are using a USB hub, disconnect the device from the hub and connect it directly to the computer. Some hubs don't have enough power to run external drives like yours may have.

If the USB drive doesn't show up even after trying a different port or computer, or checking Disk Management, the drive is probably dead and needs to be replaced.

Troubleshooting drivers

You can troubleshoot driver issues using Device Manager, especially if your USB drive is recognized by a different computer than the one you're using, which indicates a driver issue.

• The right mouse buttonStart > Device Manager.

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• Expanddrivesand look for a yellow exclamation mark next to any of the listed devices. If one or more are present with this label, the devices have a driver problem.

• Right-click on the problematic device and select itCharacteristicsto display the associated error message. You can search for the error online to find a solution to the problem.

You can also try the following solutions to fix driver issues:

• the driver backto go back to the latest driver updates and roll back your device to a time when it was working properly.
• Bajar-Treiberon the device manufacturer's website, on the download page, the support page, or by searching for the correct driver on the website.
• update driversRight-click the driver in Device Manager, select Update driver and follow the instructions.
• uninstallUnplug the device from your computer, restart it, and wait for it to reinstall the correct drivers and settings.

Use Device Manager to check for hardware changes

• The right mouse buttonBeginand selectdevice manager.
• CliqueAction > Scan for hardware changes.

Windows will try to find your USB stick so you can access it again.

Reinstall USB drivers

This method helps when the USB driver is unstable or corrupted.

• The right mouse buttonHome>Device Managerand clickUniversal Serial Bus Controllerto expand the list.

• Right-click on your device and clickuninstalland restart your computer to automatically reinstall the drivers.

Create a new drive volume and assign it a drive letter

If your device appeared inDisk ManagementStep you can create a new disk volume andAssign drive letter🇧🇷 Disk Management tool fixes partition and file system issues with different drives.

However, your USB stick may only be displayedNot assignedDisk space, in this case you need to create a new partition so that Windows and other operating systems can use it.

• The right mouse buttonHome>Disk Management, right-click theUnallocated Space > New Simple Volumeand follow the instructions to create a partition.

If you still can't see your flash drive but it is partitioned, make sure it has a drive letter. Ideally, this should happen automatically, but if you remove it manually, the drive will not be recognized or accessed by Windows.

• Right-click the drive partition and clickChange drive letters and paths.

• If you are not assigned a drive letter, clickAddand choose a letter. If you have a letter, clickchangeand choose another.

Disable the USB selective suspend function

This is a power saving setting that helps reduce battery drain by cutting off power to your USB stick when it's plugged in.hang up for any reason, disable this feature to avoid overriding power management settingsUSB-Controller, resulting in Windows not recognizing it.

• CliqueStArt>Control Paneland selecthardware and such.

• CliquePower Options > Change plan settings.

• CliqueChange advanced power settings.

• Go toUSB-Setupand expand it.
• CliqueUSB selection of sleep settingand change theconnecteddrop down menu forDisabled(Note: If you are using a laptop, clickin the batteryand switch toDisabledno suspense menu).

(Video) How To Fix Issues With USB Drive Not Showing In My Computer

• CliqueApply > OKand restart your computer to make the changes.

If all else fails, you can replace your USB stick as a last resort, although you can do this if the drive is already broken. If not, we hope this guide has helped simplify the process and now you know what to do if your USB drive doesn't show up when you connect it.