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Windows Vista will not recognize any USB Flash drive

Anonymous
2012-07-06T20:48:18+00:00

I am working on a Dell Windows Vista Home Premium x64 Laptop that does NOT recognize any USB Flash drives.(They did work until recently.)

Symptoms:

This computer keeps asking me to provide the proper driver for the device.  (USB Flash Drive)

It does appear in the device manager with a question mark.  "No drivers are installed for this device"

It does NOT appear within Disk Manager.

When I turn on the laptop, the flash drive will light up and blink.

Actions Taken:  (NONE OF THESE WORKED)

I tried all 3 USB ports

I have tried multiple flash drives that I know to be good because they work on several other computers without a problem.

Rebooted multiple times with and without a flash drive.

All Windows critical updates and driver updates have been installed.

I updated the BIOS

I updated the Intel Chipset driver (From Dell Website)

I updated the Intel Chipset driver (From Intel Website, (newer))

I have uninstalled and tried to re-install the USB flash drive  in device manager.

I have checked disk manager but it doesn't appear.  Therefore it cant be a drive letter conflict.

I tried the FixIt for "Hardware and Devices". (This only tells me that I need to install the driver, duh!).

I tried the Microsoft "Cumulative update roll-up for USB core components" but it says it does not apply to this computer.

System restore points do not go back far enough to fix the problem.

I have run SFC /SCANNOW

I have run CHKDSK on C: drive.

I scanned for viruses and mal-ware with multiple scanners. - System is clean.

Computer is out of Warranty.

Anyone else have any other ideas I can try?

I am trying to avoid re-installing the operating system and I need to get this going ASAP.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Devices and drivers

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  1. Anonymous
    2012-07-11T03:10:30+00:00

    I am trying to avoid re-installing the operating system and I need to get this going ASAP.

    You can do a repair install and keep all your Documents and Programs. You will need your OS CD for this.

    If you do this you first have to uninstall Internet Explorer if you upgraded IE from the version that came with your OS CD

    You will have to reinstall the Service Packs and Updates.

    I'm about ready to give up on the problem and reformat, & reload Windows and be done with it. I am both Dell and Microsoft certified with 25 years of experience in the industry, and this one has me baffled.

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  2. Anonymous
    2012-07-07T17:07:50+00:00

    This may be the only way to fix your issue. Backup the Registry!

    To fix this problem, delete the UpperFilters registry value and the LowerFilters registry value. These values may cause access problems. To do this, follow these steps:

    1.Click Start, click Run, type regedit, and then click OK.

    2.Locate and then click the UpperFilters registry value. This value is located in the following registry subkey:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class{4D36E967-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}

    3.On the Edit menu, click Delete, and then click OK.

    4.Locate and then click the LowerFilters registry value. This value is located in the following registry subkey:

    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class{4D36E967-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}

    5.On the Edit menu, click Delete, and then click OK.

    6.Exit Registry Editor.

    7.Restart the computer.

    Note

     If you remove both registry values, and then you lose functionality in a particular program such as CD recording software, you may have to reinstall that software.

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  4. Anonymous
    2012-07-07T03:37:58+00:00

    No the driver does not install when plugging in the device.  That's the problem I am trying to fix.

    I have checked for drivers from device manager as well as the the countless requests that come up asking for a driver.

    Yes, per my original post, the computer has been scanned for viruses and mal-ware with multiple scanners.

    The Dell health check was just a demo didn't actually do anything towards fixing the problem.

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  5. Anonymous
    2012-07-07T02:51:37+00:00

    As you know the drivers should be installed automatically when you plugin the device.

    You should not have to check for drivers but you can from device Manager, you do not mention if you tried.

    Also no mention of checking for a Virus.

    This is unusual and caused by something done to your computer.

    Go to this site and get a free, safe scan to see if other issues are found that might have caused it.

    United States:

    http://www.dell.com/content/topics/topic.aspx/global/shared/solution-station/en/us/us/dhs/free-pc-health-check?dgc=IR&cid=SystemMechanic&lid=SDCRightRail

    Canada:

    http://www1.ca.dell.com/content/topics/topic.aspx/global/shared/solution-station/en/ca/ca/dhs/free-pc-health-check?c=ca&cs=cadhs1&l=en&s=dhs

    The Chipset driver from Dell is OK, the Chipset driver from Intel is not OK.

    It may or may not cause problems for your computer.

    Intel site tells you to go to your computer maker for drivers, as the Drivers from Intel for Dell are modified by Dell for the correct configuration of your Dell computer.

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