Home built computer not picking up external hd or thumb drive

blackkeys1098

Distinguished
Aug 10, 2016
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1
18,545
I just built my first PC and I'm working through a bunch of kinks now that I've installed the OS. One of the biggest issues is that the computer doesn't seem to recognize my usb storage drives. I have a 750gb Toshiba and a 16gb flashdrive that contain a bunch of drivers that I need. Both drives are getting power - when I plug them in, the lights come on - but they don't show up anywhere in Windows. I don't believe the usb ports themselves are the issue since my usb mouse worked as soon as I plugged it in. Has anyone else had this problem?

And yes, it's the same issue whether I plug in from the case's ports in the front as well as the ports in the back directly connected to the MB.

Computer specs;

Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro
CPU: Core i5-6600
MB: Asus z170
OS: Windows 7 Professional 64 bit
 
Solution
Well try this :
Go to the device manager and you will see something like USB controller .
If there are no error marks(a yellow triangle with ! mark) then there is no hardware fault(chipset) and all you have to do is reinstall the drivers of the USB controller.
If that does not resolve it then try disabling the USB controller from the device manager and then re-enabling it after a few mins.
Hi there blackkeys1098,

My suggestion would be to go to your MOBO's website and update all the drivers.(see if there are some USB 3.0 ones)
Have you checked whether the drives are recognized by Disk Management and Device Manager?

In case you've updated all your MOBO's drivers and the drives are not recognized by Disk Management, it may be a good idea to contact your MOBO's Support.

Let me know how this goes,
D_Know_WD :)
 

manv

Reputable
Apr 17, 2015
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0
4,960
Well try this :
Go to the device manager and you will see something like USB controller .
If there are no error marks(a yellow triangle with ! mark) then there is no hardware fault(chipset) and all you have to do is reinstall the drivers of the USB controller.
If that does not resolve it then try disabling the USB controller from the device manager and then re-enabling it after a few mins.
 
Solution