USB flash drives are storage devices that we frequently use in our daily work and study, but sometimes they are plugged into the computer without moving, neither displaying the drive letter nor accessing the data. In this case, don’t panic, this article will sort out the common causes for you and provide five practical solutions to help you quickly troubleshoot and fix the problem.
1. Check whether there is a poor contact between the USB flash drive and the USB interface
The USB flash drive cannot be recognized, and many times it is not a system failure, but a physical connection problem.
1. After inserting the USB flash drive, gently push it in to ensure that the plug and the interface fit perfectly.
2. Replace other USB ports on the computer for testing, especially the rear interface of the chassis first.
3. If you use a USB docking station or HUB, it is recommended to unplug the transfer device and connect it directly to the USB port of the host.
4. Try inserting the USB flash drive into another computer to determine whether the USB flash drive is damaged or a problem with the current device.
2. Check whether the drive letter is missing through disk management
Sometimes the USB flash drive has been recognized by the system, but it is not visible in “This PC” because the drive letter is not assigned.
1. Right-click “This Computer” and select “Manage”.
2. Enter the “Disk Management” interface and check if there is a “Removable Disk”.
3. If you find a USB flash drive partition but no drive letter, right-click the partition and select Change Drive Letter and Path.
4. Click “Add” to assign it a usable drive letter (such as E drive or F drive).
5. After confirming the settings, close the window, reopen “This PC”, and check whether the USB flash drive is displayed.
3. Check and repair the USB driver
If the hardware connection is normal but the system still cannot recognize it, it may be that the USB controller driver is abnormal.
1. Open “Drive Life” and enter”Drive managementfunction, perform a comprehensive scan of the system.
2. If an abnormal drive of the USB controller or motherboard chipset is detected, click “Fix it now“Automatically download and install the correct driver.
3. After the repair is completed, restart the computer, insert the USB flash drive again, and check whether the normal recognition is restored.
4. Turn off the energy-saving power management of the USB port
In order to save power, the Windows system sometimes automatically turns off the power supply of the USB port, causing the USB flash drive to be unrecognized or frequently disconnected.
1. Press the Win + X shortcut key and select “Device Manager”.
2. Expand the list of “General Serial Bus Controllers”.
3. Right-click each “USB Root Hub” one by one and select “Properties”.
4. Switch to the “Power Management” tab and uncheck “Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power”.
5. Confirm the settings and exit, reinsert the USB flash drive to test the connection.
5. Perform formatting operations on the USB flash drive
When the USB flash drive file system is corrupted, displayed as “RAW” or prompted “Formatting Required to Use”, the formatting recovery function can be used.Note: This operation will erase all data, please try data recovery in advance.
1. Open “This Computer” and find the USB flash drive device.
2. Right-click and select “Format”, it is recommended to choose FAT32 or exFAT format, and check “Quick Format”.
3. Click “Start” to perform the operation, and then replug and unplug the USB flash drive to test whether it can be used normally.
Summary: If the USB flash drive is unresponsive, it may not be due to hardware damage, but more due to abnormal system recognition, driver problems, or power settings. Through the above five methods, most USB flash drive recognition problems can be effectively solved. If you also encounter abnormal driving of devices such as sound cards, network cards, graphics cards, or Bluetooth, you can also use “Drive Life” to detect and repair with one click.
