Sometimes the flash drive refuses to start just at the most inopportune moment for this. Many people think that it is enough to "blow through" the flash drive, turn it a little and reconnect it. In reality, this method sometimes saves, but in fact this method is not justified by anything other than a miracle. And there are 7 different answers to the question "why the USB flash drive is not connected to the computer".
Hardware errors and malfunctions
The first thing you need to pay attention to if the computer does not see the USB flash drive is the serviceability of the USB flash drive itself, as well as the serviceability of the USB connector. If everything is working properly, then a special light indicator should be blinking at the flash drive / port (depending on the drive model and input).
Malnutrition
Very often, a USB flash drive is not recognized by a computer if it is connected to a port located in front of the computer (we are talking about stationary computers, in the case of which there is a place for flash drives in the front). Sometimes these connectors just don't connect to power, or they just don't get the right amount of power. Then it is best to remove the USB flash drive and try to plug it in from the back.
It also happens that the flash drive does not work if there is not enough general power supply. This happens when there is a USB overload in the computer. There is also an option that the power supply is not working properly. In extremely rare cases, the computer does not read the USB flash drive due to the fact that it has a very large volume. But this is more the exception than the rule.
Non-working USB flash drive
If everything is fine with the computer, you need to pay attention not to the USB flash drive. In order to check its serviceability, you just need to connect it to another computer. If it does not work there, then this indicates its malfunction. In such cases, it can be attributed to diagnostics and repair, but this is done only in rare cases, when the data on it is important to the user. The fact is that repairs and diagnostics will cost much more than the cost of a drive.
BIOS settings
Sometimes the problem is hidden in the settings of the operating system and BIOS. This happens in situations where there is no USB support in the BIOS or it is not enabled.
The system assigned an occupied letter to the USB flash drive
A very common problem is that a USB flash drive has been assigned the same letter that, for example, a floppy drive or a local disk already has. To eliminate such a problem, you must:
- Go to the Control Panel;
- Open Administration, and then - computer management;
- After that, you need to go to disk management;
- After that, you need to click on the identifier of the flash drive with the right mouse button and click on "Change drive letter";
- Then everything is simple - you need to select an unoccupied button, click OK and exit the control panel.
Driver problems
The computer does not see the flash drive due to the lack of a USB driver. In order to check this, you need to follow several steps:
- Open the "Control Panel", and there - Device Manager;
- Next, you need to find a USB flash drive, but this is not difficult to do. If the computer does not have a driver for a USB flash drive, it will be highlighted with a question mark;
- If there are any, you need to remove the device and then reinstall it.
Sometimes the OS does not see the flash drive due to the lack of the necessary drivers. DPS or Everest will help you find the missing ones.
Viruses
In some cases, viruses hidden in the OS can affect the correct operation of the USB flash drive. Then it is highly recommended to scan your computer using specialized anti-virus software.
