USB devices not being noticed in WSA with Android apps.

Question

USB devices not being noticed in WSA with Android apps.

Jakob 1

When running Android apps in WSA.. (ADB sideloaded APKs) the Android apps dont see things connected to laptos USB ports.

On both my Surface Book2 and my Porshe Book).. with 2x USB3,0 - 1x TypeC, 1x Thunderbolt3 (USB C) none of the Android apps, seem to take notice of things plugged in, - to fx be used in a given Android app..

Got no problem inside Windows11pro with these ports, all being noted, its solely in WSA (Android subsystem).

Thx for any help..

does anybody else has this problem and how to fix it?

Tried adjusting some of the "USB standard configuration settings" in WSA developer settings, like "No datatransfer" (was in this from the start), and also other options to choose like: PTP, Datatransfer, Websharing by USB - but no dice.. it made no difference.

the Android apps while running in WSA does not seem to have access to my USB ports

It's the exact same on Surface Book2.

Could it be down to some of the earlier WSA, magisk-releases, and perhaps kind of limited, but still "WSA" does upgrade constantly in windows update?

But it puzzles me, that I can't find anything online about this problem.. there are tons of these issues on Linux but not much for Android on Windows.

Do you guys have any issues connecting USB peripherals into your win11-laptop's USB ports and having access to these peripherals, like fx USB webcam, etc inside Android Apps in WSA.?

K. Lim 1 Reputation point

2022-12-30T20:54:27.77+00:00

I am having the same issue. I am trying to use a TV tuner for Android devices with the tuner manufacturer's Android application, but the application keeps giving me a "no device" error, despite the fact that Windows detects the device being plugged in (though it does not recognise it as a TV tuner). The manufacturer's Windows application does not support my particular tuner model (as it was designed for Android), but I see no reason why it should not work with WSA and the manufacturer's Android application. The tuner, as you might expect, works as expected when connected to an actual Android device and when using the manufacturer's application. I am using a Razer Blade 15 with an Intel Core i9 11900H, 32 GB RAM and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080, so hardware limitations are clearly not an issue in my case.

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K. Lim 1 Reputation point

2022-12-30T20:54:27.77+00:00

I am having the same issue. I am trying to use a TV tuner for Android devices with the tuner manufacturer's Android application, but the application keeps giving me a "no device" error, despite the fact that Windows detects the device being plugged in (though it does not recognise it as a TV tuner). The manufacturer's Windows application does not support my particular tuner model (as it was designed for Android), but I see no reason why it should not work with WSA and the manufacturer's Android application. The tuner, as you might expect, works as expected when connected to an actual Android device and when using the manufacturer's application. I am using a Razer Blade 15 with an Intel Core i9 11900H, 32 GB RAM and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080, so hardware limitations are clearly not an issue in my case.

Answer 1

Jakob 1

Can you guys plug in USB-peripherals on your fx laptop or Surface tablets and then get access to that USB-device inside an Android app running in the Windows-subsystem for Android (WSA).
_ example an std. UTC webcam, and using an Android camera-app running in WSA and be able to use that UTC webcam in that Android app..
None of my USB ports, seems to work with Android-apps in WSA, and unsure if it's down to some old sketchy WSA variant from like WSA-Magisk, but all that should have been flushed when you upgrade by windows update to new insider releases.

It such a fundamental problem that I would reckon there would be tons of documentation online, but all that pops up is about Linux.

Zach S 0 Reputation points

2023-04-24T20:27:01.0933333+00:00

Sorry if it's super late, but I found this method which seems to work: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/connect-usb

Answer 2

K. Lim 1

After some research it appears that, unfortunately, it is currently not possible to use WSA with USB devices. According to this article, WSA does not appear to currently (as of the time of this message) support recognition of USB devices. I would recommend that, at least for the time being, you use an emulator that supports recognition of USB devices.

Zach S 0 Reputation points

2023-04-24T20:23:45.8633333+00:00

There's a way to do it, however I've found that if you're doing this for DJI Fly, It does not work, as that was my goal, although I do believe this will work for a lot of other things:
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/connect-usb
Edit: You can also do -a at the end of the command string if you want to have it always connect to wsa when you plug it in
yy yy 0 Reputation points

2023-05-05T11:50:17.69+00:00

Hi Zach S, I'm also trying to run DJI Fly on device that supports video out via HDMI or DP, what a coincidence. I've went through trying to install DJI Fly on TV box, orange pi zero and now WSA, but nothing worked for me. Did you figured out a way?

Answer 3

Jimmy Hoffa 0

It's 2024 now, is there an up date on this situation?

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USB devices not being noticed in WSA with Android apps.

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