Windows 10: Computer USB drives and some USB devices randomly disappear and reappear

Hello I am running Windows 11 with an Asus Z790 motherboard with i7 14700k, G-Skill Z5 64GB, EXGA 80 Plus Platinum 850 power supply. I have a lot of USB devices connected to my computer I have every letter of the alphabet attached to powered drives. I have 11 USB devices powered by the PC power supply. I am getting random devices connected and disconnected no matter what I do. I even tried disconnecting several devices to see if the power supply was causing the issue. I noticed the problem with the latest Windows update. I can't use the computer without some of my drives disconnecting and the

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computer not recognizing usb drive

Hi,



Thank you for writing to Microsoft Community Forums.



I understand that you are unable to use USB drive on your computer. I’ll certainly assist you with this.



However, please let us know:

• Do you receive any error when connecting a USB drive?
  
• Does this issue occur only with one particular USB or with all the USB drives?
  
• Are you aware of any changes made to the computer prior to this issue?
  
• Which build version of Windows 10 is installed on the computer? To check type
  winver in the search bar on the Taskbar and hit
  Enter.
  
• What is the make and model of the computer?
  

Meanwhile, I would suggest you to refer the troubleshooting steps mentioned in the article

Error: “USB Device not recognized” except for Method 1 and 2.



Let us know how it goes.



Regards,

Nikhar Khare

Microsoft Community - Moderator

 

unknown device USB

Hi Ali,

In most cases, this issue can be caused by either an unstable/ corrupt USB controller or your computer's drivers need to be updated.

For us to isolate the possibilities, we suggest that you perform the following troubleshooting steps in succeeding order:

• Connect your USB drive to a different port. Alternatively, try to connect it to a different PC.
• Connect a different USB drive to your PC.
• Unplug your USB drive and restart your system. Afterwards, plug it in and see if it works. If the same issue occurs, perform a complete shutdown and wait for a few minutes before turning it on again.
  
• Update your drivers.

If you find that the USB drive still doesn't work even after performing all these suggestions, this is most likely pointing to a hardware issue. Thus, it would be best to get in touch with your device manufacturer for a thorough check of the device.

If you have any other questions or concerns, feel free to post back and let us know.

 

help. USB drive isn't assigned a drive letter.

Any usb flash drive I plug into my computer isn't assigned a drive letter. The physical drive shows in the "safely remove hardware" but it doesnt show up in disk management. I have tried to populate the volume thru the safely remove hardware properties window and it does pop up in the list but it doesn't stay there. This isn't a format or assign a letter problem. It's more complicated then that. Maybe one of the services needed for usb drive management was disabled? Suggestions needed. btw external usb harddrives work fine.