USB ports not recognized

Question

USB Ports not recognized as a drive. In addition 'mouse' not recognized

Answer 1

Hi! Let me help you.

Have you tried a hard reset?

Shut down the laptop completely.

Unplug the charger.

Remove the battery if it's removable.

Hold the Power button for 15–30 seconds.

Reinsert the battery and plug in the charger.

Power on normally.

Answer 2

Try these steps in order:

1. Check the hardware first.
   • Unplug the USB device and mouse, wait a short time, then plug them back in.
   • Try a different USB port on the PC.
   • If a USB hub is being used, remove it and connect the device directly to the PC. If the hub is required, make sure it has power.
   • Check the device cable for damage.
   • If the mouse is wireless, reset the mouse or unplug the USB receiver for about 10 seconds and plug it back in.
2. Restart the PC.
   • A restart can restore USB detection if the port is stuck in an unresponsive state.
3. Scan for hardware changes.
   • Open Device Manager: press Start, type devmgmt.msc, and open it.
   • Select the computer at the top of Device Manager.
   • Select Action > Scan for hardware changes.
   • Check whether the USB drive or mouse is detected.
4. Reinstall the USB controllers.
   • Open Device Manager.
   • Expand Universal Serial Bus controllers.
   • Right-click the first USB controller and select Uninstall.
   • Repeat for each USB controller listed there.
   • Restart the computer. Windows will automatically reinstall the USB controllers.
   • Check whether the USB ports now recognize the drive and mouse.
5. If the problem happens only with a USB 3.0 device on Windows 8, connect that device to a USB 2.0 port instead.
   • Some non-compliant USB 3.0 devices may show Code 10 and not be recognized on USB 3.0 ports.
6. If the issue started after safely removing a USB device from a hub on Windows 8.1, this can be a known issue where the hub port is disabled afterward.
   • The documented fix is the applicable update or hotfix plus a registry change.
   • Warning: registry changes can cause serious problems if done incorrectly.

If the USB drive still does not appear after these steps, test it on another PC. If it is not detected there either, the USB device itself may have failed.

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References:

• Mouse and keyboard problems in Windows
• USB port may stop working after you remove or insert a USB device
• Some non-compliant USB 3.0 devices may not function when connected to USB 3.0 ports in Windows 8
• Connected USB device is not detected in Windows 8.1