Doesn't show usb. What to do if the computer does not see USB devices? Problems with the partition

If your computer or laptop that perfectly recognized the flash drive suddenly stopped recognizing it, “doesn’t see it point blank” or began to recognize it as an “unknown device” - this is not yet a reason to take your computer or laptop to a service center.

Let's try to solve this error ourselves.

First of all, try inserting the flash drive into another USB port. Perhaps your USB port is the one you always use stopped working for different reasons. If you work on a Personal Computer, problems most often occur when connecting to the USB port on the front panel of the computer. Therefore, to check, use only the port on the rear panel, which are built into Motherboard.

Another reason why the Computer or Laptop does not see the flash drive may lie in a system failure of the USB drivers.

To understand the driver, you can do the following:

Open the device manager; to do this, place the cursor on My Computer and press the right mouse button.

Click on Properties.

In the appeared Device Manager find USB Controllers Red arrow and click on check mark Black arrow.

Remove all USB devices (in Device Manager and reboot, all devices will be automatically detected and installed).

If this does not help, you need to reinstall the driver for the chipset. Thus, drivers for absolutely all controllers are regulated. This can also be done through Driver Pack Download. You can see how to use this program

Another common reason is – viruses. If you connected a flash drive to someone else’s computer (Internet cafe, institute, etc.), that is, in places where you can catch a virus, open the flash drive at home using Windows Explorer . If you find unknown files on it, delete .

In order to see all files on your flash drive (There are files that are not visible because the Windows system does not show hidden files by default). Therefore, you need to do the following.

In the Folder Options window that appears, click the View tab. IN additional parameters go down and click Show hidden files, folders and others…..Click OK.

Hidden files will appear on the flash drive. If the file appears autorun.inf or another file with the same extension *.inf or *.bat, Recycle (recycle bin), feel free to delete these files through the context menu (right-click on the file -> Delete ).

Another reason why the flash drive is not visible - Perhaps the settings have gone wrongBIOS, rarely, but it happens.

Go to Settings BIOS and check the parameter:

USB Legacy Support. The value should be Enabled…….How to login BIOS look .

If in Task Manager -> Universal Serial Bus Controllers – the flash drive is recognized as Unknown device. On the menu My computer and in Taskbars…

It’s not there, most likely the flash drive can be thrown away, the built-in electronics are burned out. The data is saved on it, the memory there is non-volatile, and if they are really needed, then specialists will be able to restore them using special programs, but it is expensive and you have to weigh the value of the lost information and the cost of recovery. Although you can do this yourself, which I will definitely write an article about .

Also keep in mind The service life of flash drives is not that long like hard drives and with daily use, the average lifespan is about a year. To reduce the cost of producing flash drives (have you noticed how prices for them have dropped sharply several times), developers are using various tricks, including making memory cells thinner - this reduces the number of write-rewrite cycles by 2-3 times, manufacturers they promise 5000-7000 times, but even this number can be reduced. The number of connections to the computer is also finite, usually 1000-2000 connections.

There are also such situations: when you try to write some information to a flash drive, you receive a message The USB device is not formatted, format it?.

This indicates that your flash drive has begun to “die” and storing important data on it is dangerous. Formatting in most cases helps to revive it and write files to it, but the next time you try to write, it (the flash drive) may again display such a message. This way you can format it before each attempt to transfer files.

If you receive this or a similar message, then it’s better to download a recovery utility, they are different for each brand of flash drive (Kingston, Transcend, A-Data) . Look for them on manufacturer's official website.

If the newly purchased flash drive is not immediately identified, then there are two options:

• Old drivers;
• Burnt out when first connected (This happens too).

In the first case, go to the website of the manufacturer of your motherboard, download new driver and install.

In the second - go back to the store, exchanged under warranty.

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Which results in the USB drive not being recognized. From damaged USB ports to USB formatting issues, the list of possible scenarios is varied. It should also be noted that before applying any of the methods below, the user must ensure that the cause is analyzed and the problem is identified correctly.

The list of reasons that lead to a flash drive being unreadable and which users encounter most often includes the following 5 scenarios:

1. USB ports don't work.
2. You need to update your USB drivers.
3. The operating system (OS) is not updated.
4. The USB storage device is faulty.
5. The USB firmware is corrupted.

You can find more than one USB recognition program on the Internet that will ensure that the data is retrieved, but it is better not to use these programs as they can pose security risks, possibly compromising the data.

Below are some of the factors that can lead to flash drive recognition problems. It should be noted that these problems need to be resolved as soon as possible:

1. Problem with USB formatting. This is the most common type of problem where the user fails to format the drive before first use. The error message states that formatting could not be completed.
2. Driver problem. USB drivers are not available or need to be updated.
3. Hard drive problems. If the hard drive of the OS and its associated system is not working properly, it is most likely a problem with the hard drive.
4. OS related problems: OS if not updated on time also leads to these problems. The only solution is to update the components.
5. Port related problems. This can be either hardware or software. If the ports do not recognize USB, professional help is recommended.

USB formatting problem is the most common type of problem

4 Ways to Fix Problem with Flash Drive Not Recognized by Windows

Method 1: Scan for USB problems

Step 1. Insert the flash drive into the USB port.

Step 2. Make sure that the flash drive appears in the “My Computer” section. Then, right-click to open the “Properties” section.

Step 3. Enter the "Service" section.

Step 4. Then you need to click on the “Check Now” button for a new menu to appear. Here both options should be selected and the run button should be clicked to scan the device and fix the problem (some may just say "Check", then you need to click "Check" and then "Check and repair disk").

Method 2: Reformatting USB

Follow this process:

Step 1. Right-click on the flash drive under My Computer to select the Format option.

Step 2. Now, to solve the problem, you need to format the flash drive using NTFS instead of FAT32 or vice versa:

On a note! All information from the flash drive will be deleted!

Method 3: Update drivers

The process looks like this:

Step 1. You need to open the Run window (Win+R), and then enter devmgmt.msc as in the screenshot below:

Step 2. This will take you to the Device Manager (you can also open it through the built-in Windows search, you just need to type “Device Manager” in the search box and Windows will return the desired result).

Step 3. You need to find “Universal Serial Bus controllers” as in the picture below:

Step 4. When you have found the controllers you need, you need to right-click on them and select the option to update drivers, then “Automatically search for updated drivers.”

Method 4. OS update

To update your OS, follow these steps:

Step 1. Go to Control Panel > System and Security.

Step 2. Now you need to make sure that the “Check for updates” option is selected.

The OS will be updated.

Then you need to restart the system to ensure that the problem is resolved.

Software to recover lost data on hard drive

Once the USB recognition problem is resolved, it is recommended that you save all important data to ensure that the problem never happens again. You should also check that all folders are saved and that nothing is missing. Wondershare Data Recovery tool is the most advanced and modern tool designed specifically to solve the problem of file loss. It is better to download it from the official website.

Note! Only 100 megabytes of lost data are free.

Recovering files with Wondershare Data Recovery occurs in 3 steps:

Step 1. First you need to select what types of files you want to recover.

Step 2. Then you need to select the device from which you want to recover these same files.

Step 3. You also need to select the location where these files will be restored.

It won’t be difficult, and the intuitive and simple interface will only help with this.

Video - Flash drive not detected - solution to the problem

External hard drives and USB flash drives are generally easy to use - you connect them to the appropriate connector, and you can immediately work, write and rewrite information. Their convenience and indispensability are difficult to overestimate. But in some cases, when you connect a removable drive to a USB port, you find that the computer does not see the flash drive, and the drive indicator does not light up.

The problem may be caused by partition errors (for example, the wrong file system is being used), non-working USB ports, driver problems in Windows, or other problems. In the worst case, the flash drive itself may simply be damaged during operation or as a result of mechanical damage, but, however, a new flash drive may not work when connected.

Let's take a closer look at why the computer doesn't see the flash drive and what to do to fix the problem yourself.

Let's make a reservation right away - sometimes a malfunction due to which the flash drive fails or another device may be in the BIOS. For example, support for USB devices is disabled in the BIOS settings - that’s why the computer does not see the flash drive.

But it happens that the BIOS itself cannot detect a removable device. For example, you created a bootable USB flash drive, but when you boot your computer, it is not recognized.

Why might this happen? If in the settings the boot priority is set to a removable device, most likely the created bootable flash media was simply written incorrectly. You should recreate the bootable USB flash drive using programs that can be easily found on the Internet and then try to use it again and check if it works on another computer.

The indicator is on, but the flash drive is not recognized

In this case, most likely there is still a chance to restore it, but maybe the problem is not there. This means that the situation is not fatal. Because, in fact, the indicator light just means that there is no power supply. That is, the device may turn out to be quite working.

What could be the reason?

The USB ports on the front panel are not connected - this is perhaps one of the most common reasons. Often, users connect a flash drive to the front USB port and find that the indicator does not blink - it happens that the cable was not connected to these ports when assembling the computer.

There are two solutions here, and both of them are quite obvious and understandable. First, connect the removable drive to the rear USB port, if everything works, the problem is in the front ports. The second option is to check and, if there is no connection, connect the cable from the front ports to the computer’s motherboard.

Other most common reasons why a flash device is faulty

First, let's check if Windows detects the drive when you connect it to your computer. If you are using a portable hard drive, connect it to your computer via a USB cable. Some removable drives may have separate power cables that need to be connected before everything starts working.

To check if your external hard drive or flash drive is recognized, open the management tool. To do this, press Win + R, enter the combination diskmgmt.msc in the dialog box.

You should see your connected external drive listed in the Disk Management window. Even if it doesn't appear in Explorer because it doesn't contain any partitions (not formatted), it should appear here.

If you see the drive in this menu, it means that Windows has detected it, after which you can format it and the device will be ready to use. If you do not see the removable device in the control window, proceed to the next section, in which we will try to determine why the computer does not see the flash drive.

Special connection options

Some users prefer to connect a flash drive via a USB hub or extension cable. This, of course, is sometimes more convenient, but in this case the malfunction also occurs in the adapters. Try making a direct connection.
And it happens that a lot of devices are connected to the computer via USB (for example, through the same hub, which itself is quite functional), and there is simply not enough power for the flash drives. This, however, happens quite rarely in modern cars, but still remains quite possible. Try disconnecting other devices, and if everything works, that was the problem. In this case, the solution may be to install a more powerful power supply or simply not use too many devices at the same time.

USB port problems

If Windows does not see your removable drive in any modes and after formatting, too, there may be a hardware problem with the USB port, a driver problem, or simply the connected device is faulty. What to do in such cases?

First, unplug the drive from the USB port and try connecting it to a different USB port. If it works in one but doesn't activate in the other, your USB connector may be bad. If you connected the drive to a USB hub, try connecting it directly to your computer. Some USB hubs do not provide enough power for your external drive.

If the drive doesn't show up in the management program even after you unplug the USB hub and plug it into another port on your computer, it's hard to know for sure whether the removable media is bad or the computer's motherboard has problems.

If you have another computer nearby, try plugging a USB device directly into it to see if the hardware is detected. If the media does not work on any computer when connected, do not forget to check whether it appears in the disk management window - if not, most likely the device itself is damaged, and you will need to replace it (buy a new one) or repair it.

If the drive works on other computers or you don't have another computer nearby to test it, there may be a driver problem with the connected drives on the Windows system itself. You can check this using Device Manager.

To open it, press Win + R, enter the combination “devmgmt.msc” in the dialog box and press Enter.
And sometimes it also happens that there is a virus in the system that has infected a USB drive file. In this case, the device either does not boot at all, or the antivirus simply blocks it.

Sometimes the flash drive is still recognized, but when accessed, an access denied error appears. In this case, it is usually worth destroying the autorun.inf file through the command line - first Start, then Run, then “cd F:/” (or whatever drive letter is used for the flash drive), then the command “attrib -a -s -h -r autorun .inf"; "Enter"; command "del autorun.inf"; "Enter". In this case, it is better not to turn off the antivirus to avoid infecting the system.

Drivers

Look in the device manager for currently connected devices to check for equipment with a yellow exclamation mark next to them. If the flash drive's indicator is not lit and you see a yellow exclamation mark, there is no doubt - this indicates problems with the drivers.

Right-click on the device with the yellow exclamation point, select the Properties option, and look at the error message. This bug report may help you resolve the issue, but you can do a Google search to find out the actual problem in your specific case. Be sure to enter the code if it is present or retype the error exactly to get the most reliable information that will help solve your driver problem.

System Restore

Problems with a flash drive can sometimes be quite difficult to fix. If the problem occurred recently, you can take extreme measures - run a system restore. You can use the Update Driver button to install an updated, good driver and roll back any changes, or use the Uninstall function to remove the device from the system and hope that Windows will automatically reinstall the driver and then set it up correctly when you reconnect USB drive.

Over the past few years, flash storage media have become very popular and are used by us literally every day, due to their advantages over disk storage media. It is hardly possible to overestimate the usefulness of flash media, because you can quickly write or read information on it, it does not take up much space in a briefcase or bag, and the price segment is pleasantly pleasing.

Despite all the positive aspects, sometimes situations occur when you cannot read the data due to the flash drive or computer itself. After all, at the most important moment, you may lose access to stored files, and in order to quickly return everything to normal, you need to have certain knowledge. In this article we will analyze all possible problem situations and find ways to solve why the computer does not see the flash drive.

The most common problems why the computer does not see the flash drive:

The flash drive itself does not work

This is the worst situation for a person whose documents are stored on a flash drive, because it is almost impossible to bring it back to life. A flash drive can be damaged by mechanical impact on the device chip or its controller, by shorting an electrical circuit, or by damaging the contacts on the USB board. This is what a flash drive looks like after the electrical circuit is closed or moisture gets inside the drive.

It is quite easy to determine whether this happened to your drive. The very first thing you need to do is check the flash drive for mechanical damage, chips, cracks, etc. If it is completely broken, you can look for a replacement at a computer peripherals store. If you doubt its inoperability, you can check it using a practical method.

Connect the flash drive to the USB connector of the computer, if the LED on it lights up and you hear a sound on the computer that is typical for connecting a new device, then everything is in order, it makes sense to look for the problem further. If this does not happen, the flash drive is most likely no longer suitable for use.

You can try to take the flash drive to a service center, where the technician will try to resolder the contacts or replace the controller, but this will be very expensive, and this action will only be justified if you have important documents stored on it. If no fatal malfunction was detected and the flash drive shows signs of life, try the methods to restore its functionality, which will be described below.

The USB port on the front panel of the computer is de-energized

This problem is very common among desktop PC users. Most computer owners are accustomed to inserting a flash drive into the front USB ports, because it is fast and convenient.

But there is a situation when, during PC assembly, for some reason the front panel is not connected to the power system; usually this happens due to the forgetfulness of the computer technician. Accordingly, your flash drive will not be displayed, despite its full serviceability.

This problem can be solved in two ways. If you urgently need to use information on removable media, you can connect it to the back panel of your computer. The front connectors will still remain inoperative, but you will have access to documents. Such manipulations cannot be called a full-fledged solution, so let’s consider the second option.

Method No. 2 involves connecting the power cable on the motherboard to the front panel of the computer. Depending on the computer case model, the connection connectors may differ. But don’t be afraid, they all have markings and you won’t be able to connect the wrong connector due to design features. The most common wire types are “VCC”, “D-”, “D+” and “GND”. Moreover, the color markings of the cable and the connector on the motherboard are the same, but it is better to keep a guide by the inscriptions.

The first step is to gain access to the motherboard; to do this, unscrew the mounting bolts on the case and remove the cover. Find the cable that leads to the front panel and find the same connector on the motherboard. In the image below you can see what the connector should look like.

It is not recommended to make the connection yourself; it is better to call a specialist. If you connect the cable and connector incorrectly, you can burn these contacts and even devices. If you decide to connect front USB connectors, then it is better to tell us the model of your case and motherboard, and we will tell you how to do it correctly and explain what the connector and cable look like.

The USB port on the computer is faulty or disabled

Sometimes the problem of unreadability of information on removable media is not related to the problem of the flash drive itself, but to the connector into which it is connected. A certain USB port may not be working, and this condition can be caused by simple damage to the connector contacts. Then not only the flash drive, but also other USB devices will not work in this port.

You can solve this problem by arming yourself with a regular soldering iron and minimal knowledge of circuit design. If you don’t have such knowledge, skills and equipment, then it can be fixed at the nearest service center for a low fee.

However, if no response to connecting a USB device is observed on all connectors, then the problem may lie deeper. Ports can be disabled in BIOS settings.

In order to connect ports in the BIOS menu, you need to get there initially. To enter the BIOS in the first seconds of booting the computer, you need to press the corresponding key on the keyboard, which is responsible for calling up the menu. Most often, the default key is F2 or Del, but depending on the motherboard brand and BIOS version, it may be different. It is indicated in the first image that pops up when loading.

After you have entered the BIOS itself, we need to go through the following route: “”.

Find the line “USB Controller”, so that you are allowed to use the ports, the value opposite should be “Enabled”.

Once you have enabled the USB ports on your computer, press the F10 key. This will save your settings and exit the BIOS.

The USB flash drive connector is dirty

A flash drive is a mobile information storage device and is therefore often carried in pockets, briefcases or as a keychain. Due to such operating conditions, dust and small debris may accumulate in the connector. This does not happen often, but it can cause the flash drive to malfunction. Dust and small debris accumulate on the contact and prevent connection from the contacts in the port on the computer. Such a flash drive may not only not be displayed at all, but also freeze, transfer or read information slowly and may not be detected the first time.

To clean the USB connector of a flash drive, arm yourself with a match and a cotton swab. Using a match, remove all debris from the connector, and then moisten a cotton swab with alcohol and wipe the contacts of the flash drive. This way you will rid it of debris and oxidation.

Virus infection

Nowadays, the issue of storage device security is becoming more and more urgent, because viruses are in full force. You can visit your usual social networking site on the Internet and get infected, not to mention downloading files from unverified sources.

Modern computer viruses can also reproduce, no matter how strange it may sound. They infect files located on your flash drive or computer hard drive, and their number grows exponentially.

Very often, the problem of a flash drive not working is infection with viruses. The drive is detected by the system, you can hear the characteristic sound of connecting the device to the system, but when you try to read the information, you will see the message “” or “ Application not found».

Before solving this problem, you should install anti-virus software on your computer and conduct a full diagnostic of the files. To access the data on the drive, we need to delete the file with the virus and scan it. To do this, go to the “Start” menu and enter the following phrase “” in the search line.

Click on the found element with the left mouse button. You will see an open window called “Folder Options”, here you need to do the following:

• Uncheck the " Hide protected system files»
• Check the box ""

After this, be sure to press the “Apply” button and only after that “Ok”, otherwise the changes will not take effect. It should look like this.

After that, go to “My Computer” and go to the folder of the drive itself. There you will see the “Autorun” file, you need to delete it, and check the flash drive for viruses with one of the free antiviruses; the Dr.WEB Cure It utility can do this perfectly.

Now you can fully use the flash drive and no problems should arise. If nothing has changed, then the problem lies in the lack of drivers; we’ll look at it below.

Drivers failing or using outdated drivers

A very common problem is when the computer does not want to display the flash drive due to outdated drivers or their system failure. The failure may occur due to a power surge or unexpected shutdown of the operating system. Or older computer models may not work with drives with a capacity of 32 GB or more. One thing can be said, the problem can only be solved by updating the drivers.

The first thing you need to do is go to "". You can do this in several ways, for example, through “My Computer" or find this section in the system search, which is what we will do.

We go to this menu, after which we connect the flash drive to the computer, after which we open the “USB controllers” subtab. Select the line " Memory device", right-click to open the system menu and click “Delete".

Such manipulations allow you to remove the drivers installed on the system for your storage device. As soon as you remove it, feel free to remove the flash drive from your computer and connect it again. Then the driver for the flash drive will be installed again and the problem will be solved.

If the problem is not solved, you may need to update the drivers for all USB chipsets; this is quite easy to do. You can use the special disk that came with the motherboard; all the necessary drivers are recorded on it. If you don’t have it, download the DriverPack program, it will automatically select all the drivers for which there is an update and carry out this procedure after your agreement.

Moreover, most users have doubts about the correctness of their actions when they learn about the different USB formats. Don't be scared!

Drivers for USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 are installed according to the same principle. And the only difference between the ports is the maximum speed of reading and writing information.

File system errors

The computer may also not recognize your flash device due to file system errors. Let’s check if this is true, go to “”, how to do this was described above. Now you need to open the subtab " Disk devices“If you see your flash drive there, it means it is working, and the file system does not perceive it as it should, and, accordingly, does not display it in Explorer. In my case, the flash drive was displayed, which means it is working.

To fix this problem, you must format your flash drive, but this action has several nuances, so we will consider this process in the next paragraph of the article.

If you don’t see your drive there, then the problem lies in the malfunction of the flash drive itself, which means either the controller is burned out or the contact has become unsoldered. Specialists at service centers can try to bring it back to life. However, this is an expensive exercise; it’s easier to buy a new one, of course, if important information was not recorded on the faulty one and you need to restore the data on the flash drive.

File system conflict

Quite often, the contents of a flash drive are not displayed due to a conflict between the file systems on the computer and the removable media itself. For example, if the computer operates on the NTFS file system and the flash drive uses FAT32, a conflict situation cannot be ruled out. Moreover, this problem is common not only in Windows, but also in Mac OS. For example, if you format a flash drive on your Mac device to ExFAT or the standard MacBook file system, the flash drive is unlikely to be readable on Windows devices.

The very first thing you need to do is find a computer that uses a different file system, open the flash drive and save the information that is important to you, because after formatting it will be lost.

To solve this problem, we need to carry out the process of formatting the flash drive. First you need to find out what file system is used on your computer. Go to “My computer”, right-click on the hard drive, open the submenu and select “Properties” in it.

In the window that opens, you will see information about the free and used amount of disk space, and also find out what file system is used. In my case, the NTFS system is used.

After you know the file system of the computer, we need to format the flash drive into the same system. To do this, right-click on the flash drive and open the “Format” tab.

In the tab that opens, select the file system into which we will format, check the box next to the “Fast” attribute and click “Start”.

A few words about why we use the “Fast” attribute. Firstly, formatting a flash drive will happen much faster. But there is another side to the coin. If there were any documents on the flash drive, then only with quick formatting will you be able to recover this data using special utilities. If you do not check the box, then the information that was on the flash drive will be lost forever.

The flash drive is not formatted

A fairly common problem is when you insert a flash drive into your computer (usually a new flash drive and its first use), and the operating system gives you a warning that states that the removable drive needs to be formatted before use. And if the flash drive has been used before and there is data written on it, then there is no way to access it. Moreover, the volume of the flash drive becomes 0, i.e. as if there was nothing there at all, not even a storage device.

If you have already used a flash drive and this is not the first time you have connected it, then try connecting it to another computer, perhaps the problem will go away and you will be able to save the data. But in any case, the flash drive must be formatted. How to do this was discussed in detail in the “File system conflict” section.

But I want to draw your attention to two points. To avoid problems with the file system (FS) after formatting, find out what FS is used on the computer and install the same one for the drive. And secondly, if the flash drive had the information you needed, then be sure to use the “Quick” attribute, so the flash drive will be formatted only according to the table of contents, and the lost information can be returned using special utilities.

There is a problem with the partition or the flash drive is automatically assigned a busy letter

There are situations when the operating system does not correctly detect your removable media. Everything seems to be fine, the device connection is displayed and a flash drive icon appears in the tray, but there is no way to use it for its intended purpose.

The problem may be that the system has not assigned the partition a letter under which the removable drive will appear, or it has assigned it, but this letter is already occupied, and this results in an address conflict.

The solution to this problem will be to force the assignment of the partition letter that we choose; everything happens manually. So let's get started.

First of all, you need to hold down the key combination “Win ​​+ R", a window will open in front of you with the name “Run".

In the line we need to enter a simple command diskmgmt.msc, which will take us to the disk and storage management section.

In the storage media manager that opens, we need to identify our USB device. This can be done simply, disconnect the flash drive and connect it again, the partition that first disappears and then appears is what we need.

In my case, the flash drive is a drive with the name “20151114_17”, you can also identify it by a special icon. Now you need to right-click on it and select “Change letter” in the menu that opens.

Now another additional window will open in front of us, a smaller one. In it you need to click on the button “Change” and “Ok”.

Now another auxiliary window will open, where you must select any letter of the English alphabet, and after clicking on the “Ok” button, the letter will be assigned to the section.

It is worth paying attention to one important point! When choosing a letter to assign to a partition of your flash drive, look at which letters are already in use by the system. This is very important, because we may not fix the problem, but leave it. This will happen if, for example, you designate a flash drive partition with the letter “D”, which is already assigned to the local disk.

Malfunction of the power supply or excessive current overload of the USB portal

This problem is very common these days. The fact is that the computer may simply not see the flash drive due to a faulty power supply. Let's look at it in order, the power supply consumes electrical energy from the network, and then converts and distributes it to all nodes of the computer. It has a power limit, for example, a 400W power supply will not be able to give you 600W. This means that the consumption of the entire system must be balanced.

This problem may appear if you have recently replaced some important component in the system, let it be the processor. Now it consumes much more energy compared to the past, which means it simply doesn’t reach somewhere, and in this case, that “somewhere” is the computer’s USB network. Accordingly, the energy consumption parameter must be calculated in advance, and if such a situation has already occurred, you will have to replace the power supply with a more powerful one.

Moreover, the problem may lie in a malfunction of the power supply; it may produce much less power potential than stated, and than it produced before. You will not be able to solve this problem, since you risk the performance of the entire computer. The only solution is to replace the power supply.

There is one more feature to this question. Recently, USB devices for computers have become very common, let’s say the following devices are now powered: a mat for warming a cup, a desk lamp, a wireless mouse, a removable hard drive, and in addition, a smartphone is also charging. And you want to connect a flash drive, but bad luck, the computer sees it. The fact is that there was an overcurrent on the USB ports. Those. All your devices already consume the maximum amount of current and you will not be able to connect another one. Therefore, to use a flash drive, you need to disconnect several devices from the computer’s USB ports and then the problem will disappear.

If the computer does not see the flash drive in Windows XP

There are many reasons why a flash drive may not be detected in Windows XP. Moreover, the problem may lie in the operating system itself, or in a faulty flash drive, or even in the computer hardware.

If the problem is related to the operating system, then it can only be eliminated by making additional changes in the settings; this is best done manually, despite the abundance of special utilities that can help in this matter.

However, if the drive itself is faulty, then the only thing you can do is try to save the data recorded on it. And after that, purchase a new and more reliable device.

If your computer cannot detect the flash drive, it notifies the user with the following signals:

• Your flash drive is inserted and you try to access the data on it, the message “Insert disk” pops up.
• The system notifies you that the drive must be formatted for further use.
• Errors appear about the impossibility of gaining access to data.
• The system may freeze as soon as you plug the USB flash drive into the computer's USB port.

In this section, we will look at all the most common reasons for the non-functionality of a flash drive in Windows XP and give practical recommendations for solving them. Carefully read the description of the problem, if it is not similar to yours or its solution did not help you, move on to the next point until the problem goes away. The first thing you need to do is try to determine whether the flash drive is working. This is indicated by a light indicator located on it. If you connect the drive and it blinks or lights up, then the flash drive is working and the problem lies either in the system or hardware of the computer.

Try changing the port into which you connect the flash drive or even the computer; perhaps only the port or the entire system is faulty, but on another PC the flash drive will work properly. For example, if, when connecting a flash drive to a port, you observe a complete system freeze, this means that this port is faulty and it is better not to use it.

If you are using USB hubs or extenders and the flash drive is not displayed, perhaps the problem lies in the device itself, and not the flash drive. If this turns out to be the case, you can take the hub to a service center or try to repair it yourself. To do this you will need a soldering iron, solder and a little experience, because most often you just need to solder one or two contacts and everything will work as expected.

Perhaps the problem lies in the lack of electric current in the USB port system. To check this, you need to disconnect all USB devices on the computer (camera, printer, lamp, etc.), leaving only the keyboard and mouse. If after such manipulations the flash drive appears in the system and you can access it, then the problem lies in a weak power supply. This problem can only be solved by replacing the power supply with a more powerful one, but using a USB hub with its own power source will help delay the purchase of a power supply.

However, if the problem is not resolved after disconnecting all other devices, the problem may still be related to the lack of power from the power supply and an outdated USB port. In other words, on older laptops you will not be able to open a flash drive with a capacity of 36 GB or larger. There is no way to solve the problem; you can only buy a more modern laptop or computer.

A very common situation occurs when the user connects a flash drive to the front port of the PC, but the system does not see it. This means that the ports are not connected to the power supply on the motherboard, or too little power is allocated to them. You can connect the front panel yourself using the instructions located above in the section of the same name.

Can't see the flash drive due to Windows XP errors. Troubleshooting

The flash drive may also not be detected due to operating system errors. For example, Windows XP SP2 lacks updates and software packages that ensure the normal operation of USB devices. Moreover, it is possible that only several USB devices can work in one port.

The solution to this issue will be to update the system to SP3 and install the necessary updates. Even a new user can do this, since we only need a couple of clicks, and the system will automatically download, install and launch the update. So, let's get started, we can move in two ways - this is an official download from Windows Update or installing SP3 from a disk or flash drive. The first step is to check which package you already have installed.

Click on the “My Computer” icon with the right mouse button and select “Properties”. The following window will open in front of you, where information about your system will be indicated.

To install SP3, we need to allow the operating system to search and update the computer system. To do this, just go from the Control Panel to Windows Update.

As soon as you do this, the system will begin searching for updates, after which it will offer you to update everything at once or select only the ones you need. If you don't understand what update changes what, then it's better to let the system update completely.

After downloading all the updates, the operating system will require you to restart your computer to apply the new settings. Click “Ok” and wait patiently. That's all, now you can connect the flash drive and use it.

If you decide to choose the updates that should be installed, and not download them all automatically, then here is a guideline that will help improve the system's perception of USB drives.

Driver conflicts in Windows XP

There is also the problem of driver conflict. The fact is that some outdated drivers can cause errors at the system level, moreover, they can prevent the normal operation of new drivers. A striking example of such a problem is a situation when a user inserts a flash drive into a computer, tries to access the data on it, and the system immediately displays an error message asking to insert the disk. Or, the system simply freezes, and even assigning an existing letter to a flash drive partition is possible.

The reason for such errors is as follows. Let's say you have two flash drives, you connected one of them to the system. In automatic mode, all necessary drivers for this device are immediately installed. You have made the necessary manipulations to write or read files and removed the drive. After that, you insert a second flash drive, which is completely working, and one of the above errors pops up. This means that the system is trying to use the already installed driver from the first flash drive to launch the second, but they are not compatible.

Reinstalling Windows XP drivers for USB devices

This problem can be easily resolved in several ways. Reinstalling drivers automatically or manually. Let's look at a little theory: a driver from one USB device can be mistakenly used by the system to launch another USB device. To eliminate these problems, we need to first remove all existing drivers for USB drives, and then reinstall them.

Such a problem may display the message “USB device not recognized,” or unexplained processes occur at the system level that block access to data or cause the system to freeze.

Remove via DriveCleanup

You can effectively remove all existing drivers for USB devices using the DriveCleanup utility. Its advantage is that it searches the entire system for installed drivers and only then removes them.

First of all, turn off the computer and disconnect all USB devices from it in order to avoid conflict situations while the program is running. Turn on the PC, go to the official website of the program and download the executable file. The utility is compatible with any version of Windows, including different bitmaps. When downloading, pay attention to the file version.

Automatic installation

You have removed all drivers from your computer. In order for a device to function normally, the operating system must have drivers for it. The automatic driver installation process is incredibly simple, you just need to plug the USB flash drive into the USB port, after which the installation will begin immediately. A window will pop up that will display the installation progress; on some systems this may occur in a mode invisible to the user. Within one to two minutes, the installation will be completed and you will be able to use the device.

Manual installation

Manual installation means installing drivers not directly from the storage medium itself. We can also install drivers for a flash drive from third-party Internet resources, but to avoid conflict situations, we will install drivers for a flash drive using another computer.

So, we take our problematic flash drive and insert it into another computer, where it is recognized. A prerequisite for this process is that the versions of Windows on both computers match. We use the system search and find two files.

We transfer them to the problem computer by any means, be it sending by mail or using other removable media. You need to place these files in a folder with the same path that was on the first computer and confirm the replacement when the corresponding window pops up. We reboot the computer and enjoy its performance with FLASH disks.

We looked at only the most common reasons why a flash drive is not visible on the computer. In fact, there are many more of them. Moreover, there are problems that are expressed by other system messages, and their solution is already described in the paragraphs of the article.

The “Insert disk” message appears even if the flash drive is already connected to the USB port

This system error occurs if drivers overlap each other and interfere with the normal functioning of USB devices. In order to fix this error, you need to remove all drivers for USB devices and install them again. This process is described step by step in this article.

Message about the need to format the disk

This message appears if you are using a flash drive for the first time or if it has experienced a system failure. In addition to the message, you can make sure that it is not suitable for use, because it does not display either free space or occupied space. The solution to this issue is described in detail in paragraphs 8 and 9.

Data error message

This problem occurs in 3 cases. This is a driver conflict, a file system conflict, and a failure of the flash drive itself. It can be solved by reinstalling the drivers; if that doesn’t help, then do a quick format to preserve the ability to recover data on the flash drive. Step-by-step instructions are above.

Complete system freeze immediately after connecting the flash drive to the computer

This issue has already been discussed in the article, but I would like to point out that this error can occur for two reasons:

1. Driver conflict.
2. Faulty port.

It’s easy to check what problem you have, insert the flash drive into another port, if the freeze continues, it means there’s a problem with the drivers. Instructions and tips for reinstalling them were given as part of this article.

Why does the computer not see the flash drive when the indicator on it is lit?

The contact on the flash drive, which is responsible for transmitting information, may be damaged. A driver conflict and the assignment of a busy letter to a partition cannot be ruled out. If the problem does not go away after connecting the flash drive to another computer, try checking the availability of the partition. If everything is fine here, then reinstall the drivers and the flash drive will work.

Error 43 / Error 43

This error immediately stops reading information from a removable device, which means we won’t be able to immediately access the data. There are several problems that can cause Error 43.

• Malfunction of the device itself is the first of them. Check on another computer to see if this situation happens again.
• Driver conflict - solution described above.
• Updating the hardware configuration - simply roll back the driver version in the Task Manager.

conclusions

We have reviewed in detail the reasons that may prevent a computer from reading a flash drive and the information on it. The described solutions with step-by-step instructions will definitely help you get rid of this problem. An unreadable flash drive can be a death sentence only if the flash drive is faulty. In other situations, this is an easily reversible process. If you have any questions or couldn’t find a solution to your problem in the article, leave a comment and we’ll try to clarify the situation together.

It happens that the laptop suddenly stops seeing the flash drive. The situation is actually quite real, and it can really frighten you, especially in cases where you have a single copy of an important work project, thesis, or some other extremely necessary file on your storage device. And of course, if you restore the flash drive to work, you can save a little money and not buy a new flash drive.

The problem can be expressed in different ways, for example, you inserted a flash drive into the connector and even heard a connection sound, but it is not visible in the explorer, or the computer displays a message that the device is unrecognized, or the removable USB drive is not detected. And at the same time, it is impossible to go to the flash drive and read the information for some unclear reason, etc. But don’t despair and mentally “bury” your device, since the problem can be solvable. We will talk below about ways to solve it, as well as how to generally understand what the problem is in your case.

First, let's look at the reasons that may affect the drive detection in the operating system:

• Chinese flash drives.
• There is a final malfunction of the flash drive, which is now beyond repair. Flash drives are subject to falls and impacts.
• The USB port into which the drive is inserted was forgotten to be connected to the motherboard (if you have a computer), it does not receive enough power or is completely faulty.
• The USB flash drive connector is dirty. Children sometimes put paper, chewing gum, thread, etc. into the USB connector.
• The media or laptop is infected with viruses. Even if a commercial antivirus is installed on a laptop, this does not mean that it is free of viruses.
• Drivers have crashed (or are outdated).
• The problem is a file system mismatch.
• It is necessary to format the disk (system usually(but not always) reports this).
• Problems with the section.
• The settings in

We will also separately examine the problem when the laptop stops seeing the flash drive after upgrading the system to Windows 10 and consider the situation when the USB drive is not readable on a computer with Windows XP installed on it.

If there is data on flash drives that needs to be “pulled out”, then read the article “”. In the event that the flash drives do not contain the data you need, then just continue reading the article.

Chinese flash drives

Do not forget that there are cheap Chinese flash drives that are constantly buggy and nowadays users very often buy such media. For example, at bazaars or in stores (for example, 1001 little things store, etc.) You must understand that it is better to buy computer things in a computer store that already has experience with different manufacturers.

As a rule, flash drives that are made in the “garage” constantly refuse to work. They can also be detected normally and show the declared volume, but in fact they can be much smaller in volume. This is what causes the problem in the future: the files on it seem to be visible, but you cannot copy or open them.

Some unscrupulous sellers from the same Aliexpress (a popular Chinese store) have long learned to deceive buyers in this way. They sell a flash drive that says 16 GB, but in fact it is only 2 GB. If you write information to such a flash drive, as they say, “to capacity,” then after that you will not be able to open any file on this flash drive. I only told you one example! Also, we must not forget about the quality of the materials that the “garage” manufacturers use.

There is only one piece of advice here - it’s better to overpay a little for a flash drive than to save 100 rubles at the market. You could not write about this recommendation and get straight to the point, but if you don’t want to constantly struggle with the problem when the flash drive is not displayed in the laptop, then please remember this recommendation.

An error pops up saying that the disk needs to be formatted

You connect a flash drive to your laptop, and the system tells you that you need to format it. In this case, the volume of the device is shown as “0”.

Naturally, the flash drive will have to be formatted, but you can still try connecting it to other laptops or computers and see how it behaves there. However, if there is important information on the device, you should first try to restore the data. In any other case, select “Format disk”.

Problems with the partition

Sometimes the system needs help identifying your flash drive on your laptop. In this case, you will need to do the following:

Go to the “Control Panel”, find the “Administration” tab there and open it. To make your search easier, go to the top right where "View" - "Small Icons". You can also use the search, click on the magnifying glass at the bottom of the desktop - Windows 10 and enter “Administration”, then open the selected object:

There, find “Computer Management” and open this utility.

On the left you will see a column in which you need to find the “Disk Management” option. By selecting it, in the central part you will see all removable media and disks that are currently connected to the system.

Right-click on the flash drive, which will be labeled as “Removable Device”, and click on the “Change drive letter or drive path...” function.

After clicking, select “Change” and select the appropriate letter. Next you will need to click “OK”.

Another way to change the partition letter is as follows:

Press “Win” + “R” and in the line that appears, write “diskmgmt.msc”, then click “OK” to apply the command.

The Disk Management Manager will open in front of you, where you will need to find your flash drive, right-click on it and select “Change drive letter or drive path.”

A small window will open in front of you, in which you will be asked to specify a new partition letter - do this and click “Change”. Click OK.

Disk Management - a utility in Windows

You can check whether your laptop detects the USB device connected to it at all using “Disk Management”, which can be launched either by pressing “Win” + “R” and entering the command “diskmgmt.msc”, or through the control panel - open “ Control Panel", then at the top right in "View" select "Small Icons", then go to "Administration" - "Computer Management". I already talked about this above. If you cannot enter this window, then open the article “”, find the section “Standard operating system tools” and at the very beginning I talk in detail about this procedure with pictures. In the window that opens, on the left, click on “Disk Management”.

Now we need to see if the flash drive appears when you connect it to the laptop. Ideally, the flash drive still appears. Then it can easily be made active (I’ll talk about this below). Pay attention to which label is next to your flash drive. This status may be "Unallocated" or "Unknown". In the first case, you need to right-click on the flash drive and select “Create a simple volume”, with which a partition will be created (in this case, the drive will be formatted and all data will be deleted). In the second case, everything is a little more complicated; you will need to use special utilities that can restore the operation of flash drives.

Of course, the programs do not give any guarantees, but there is a percentage that they will help you. To check this, please read the article on this site: “”. This instruction has helped many users (you can see the comments) and this article is a must read. It will not only help you format your flash drive - it helps if the flash drive is buggy, but you will also be able to understand which program needs to work with your flash drive. First, finish reading this article, and only then try using the tips from the recommended article above.

USB - hub

I also advise you to pay attention to how you connect the media to your laptop. If via a USB hub or a special extension cable, then try simply connecting the device to the laptop directly. Often the problem lies in the hub or wire.

This is what a USB hub looks like (you may have one, but you don’t know what it’s called):

Note for thought and testing! When users use a USB hub, it may mean that they previously had problems with the USB inputs on their laptop (refused to work) and so they installed this device, or they started using a hub so that they could connect more devices to the laptop. If you have the first option, then you may now have problems with the USB input where the hub is connected. In the event that you connect many devices through a hub to your old laptop, then there is a possibility that this situation may present a problem.

Conclusion: try disconnecting everythingUSB devices that are connected to the laptop.

If the flash drive is completely broken

The worst option for you is if the flash drive fails as a result of a breakdown (for example, the chip was damaged or a short circuit occurred). With rare exceptions, USB drives are practically irreparable. I also remind you about fakes from the Chinese.

You can determine if a USB flash drive is faulty yourself by paying attention to the LED (if the device has one), which will not work in the event of a fatal malfunction. You can also try connecting the drive to another laptop. Of course, you need to understand that the LED can break, but the flash drive itself works.

The insides of a flash drive that was accidentally touched by your hand during use:

Information for the future! To avoid physically breaking the flash drive, try not to touch it (place heavy objects and do not place cables on it that may be located near the flash drive) and do not drop it when it is located directly in the laptop itself.

BIOS setup

It happens that the ports were disabled in the BIOS or the settings were reset to factory settings. To go to the BIOS, you need to restart the computer, and when it starts to turn on, press: F1, F10, Del, Esc and others). If these keys do not help, then when you turn on the laptop, look carefully at the monitor. Usually on a black screen, for about 2-5 seconds you can see the word “BIOS” and next to it there will be a key written that you need to press. When you log in, you need to go to the section called “Advanced” and in it already – “USB Configuration”.

Note! Usually the mouse does not work in the BIOS, so use the up and down arrows on the keyboard to move.

Here you need to enable the use of USB ports in the “USB Controller” field. To do this, select this item, press “Enter” and then use the arrows to select “Enabled”. Then press “Enter” again. Next, you need to exit Bios, not forgetting to save the changes. A common save button is “F10”. You may have a different button. To clarify this point, pay attention to the bottom of the BIOS. For example, if you look at the picture above, we can see the inscription: “F10: Save and Exit,” which means the F10 button to save and exit.

Connector dirty

We often carry our flash drive wherever we have to: in our jeans pockets, purse, or in the glove compartment of our car. In addition, some modern models of removable USB drives do not have a protective cap. This leads to the fact that over time, dust and various small debris get into its connector, which leads to its contamination and, as a result, that your laptop will have difficulty identifying such media.

Just clean the flash drive connector from debris and dust, and also (if necessary) clean it from oxidation. This will return the device to its functionality. It is also worth looking at the connector where you connect the flash drive. Perhaps your household (children, grandchildren or someone else) accidentally placed objects there that prevent the flash drive from working normally.

Viruses

If the flash drive was loaded with a virus(s), then if you connect it to a laptop with an antivirus installed, you will see a message of the following nature: “Access denied” or “Virus threat! The device is blocked,” or the carrier will not be detected at all, which in turn will limit access to the information on the flash drive (there used to be a virus that caused a stir on the Internet and, of course, users were not prepared for that outcome).

You can, of course, disable the antivirus that blocks access to the flash drive. But this way you will only infect your (or someone else’s) laptop with a virus. It would be much more correct to remove the virus-infected file from the drive. Scan the flash drive for infection, but before that, go to Windows Search and enter the following in the search bar: “Show hidden files and folders,” and then go to these settings. I described how to enter this setting in the article “” (here about Windows 7 and 8). Let me tell you about Windows 10. If this system is installed on your computer, then you need to left-click on “Start” and enter “Show hidden files and folders.” Then click on the result:

Now find the items “Hide protected system files” and “Show hidden files, folders and drives”. Uncheck the first one and check the second one.

Now go to your flash drive and delete the file called “Autoran.inf” from there, then scan with an antivirus program.

If you do not have experience in removing viruses, I can recommend articles on this site: “” (a good antivirus, I recommend) or “”. I can also recommend the AVZ utility.

Driver problems

It happens that as a result of some internal system glitch, drivers disappear or they simply become outdated (in particular, outdated computers often do not detect flash drives whose volume exceeds 32 GB). Everything here is quite easy to fix - just update the drivers or install new ones.

Go to “Start” and enter the phrase “Device Manager” in the search bar, open the found section. If you cannot find this section in Windows, you can use another login option - right-click on the computer that is on the desktop and select “Properties”. Next, a window will open in which you need to click on the “Device Manager” link on the left and then it will open.

Now you need to connect the flash drive to the laptop, find the “USB Controllers” section and click on it. Then right-click on “USB Mass Storage Device” and select “Delete” from the drop-down menu.

This manipulation will allow you to get rid of the outdated driver, which will now need to be replaced. Ask how? You just need to remove the drive from the connector and plug it back in. The driver will be updated automatically. Perhaps the system will not display your flash drive again, then reboot the laptop.

By the way, if your flash drive is detected in another device (computer or laptop), this means that your system is not working correctly. If this is the case, then there is reason to think about reinstalling the system. You can also read about installing Windows on this site.

File system mismatch

One common problem is a mismatch between the file system of the laptop and the flash drive. If you have this problem, the flash drive will be detected by the laptop, but you will not be able to log into it (it may also not be displayed). You will need to format your media and after that the flash drive will work. Formatting must be done in NTFS or FAT32. I already “raised” the question about formatting on this site: “” and “”. I can recommend a formatting program - Acronis Disk Director - a program that will help format flash drives even if Windows cannot do this.

Let me remind you that standard formatting can be done in Windows. To do this, go to your computer and find the flash drive in the list, right-click on it and select “Format”. After this, a window will open where you need to specify the file system, for example, “NTFS” and then click “Start”.

Note! Formatting a device is guaranteed to destroy any information available on it at the time of this operation.

What to do when the system updated to Windows 10 and stopped seeing the USB drive?

This is a common problem that most users of devices that have updated to Windows 10 have encountered (also sometimes the computer stops seeing the flash drive after installing updates on an already installed OS). At the same time, it often seems that the root of the problem lies in the drivers, since devices using only USB 2.0 or USB 3.0 are not detected. But in fact, this system behavior indicates an error in the registry, or rather incorrect entries about previously connected devices.

The free USBOblivion program (you can download here http://www.cherubicsoft.com/projects/usboblivion), which is designed to remove from the registry all information about any previously connected USB drives, can help you in this situation. At the same time, it is highly recommended that before you start working with this program, you create a system restore point, since it still affects the registry, and errors are possible here. When you download the program, unzip the files (if the program was downloaded in an archive). Next, go to the folder and run the desired version of the program that matches your bitness. If you don't know what system you have: " ".

Now you should disconnect any USB flash drives, hard drives, etc. from the computer, and then run the program. In it, you should check the items “Perform real cleaning” and “Save the cancellation reg file”, and then start the cleaning with the corresponding button - “Cleaning”.

Now that the cleaning procedure has been completed, restart your laptop, and then connect the USB flash drive to the laptop. Most likely, it will be detected by the system again, and you will have access to the information located on it. If this does not happen, then you should go to the device manager (I wrote how to do this above) and remove our drive from the “Other devices” section, then restart the laptop again and connect the USB flash drive to it.

In addition, it should be noted that in Windows 10 there is an incompatibility between USB 2.0 and 3.0 drivers (they will then appear with an exclamation mark in the Device Manager). In this case, you will have to go to the official website of the motherboard of your computer or laptop and check for the availability of the USB drivers you need. Please note that you need to search exclusively on the official websites of the device manufacturers themselves!

As I said above, you may need to reinstall the system in order for the flash drives to start working properly on your laptop.

What about Windows XP?

This part of the article is needed for users who have Windows XP installed. The most common situation here is when the problem is caused by the fact that some important updates for working with USB drives were not installed on the computer. The fact is that in many companies where Windows XP is still installed on work computers - usually version SP2, due to the work of the system administrator or poor access to the Internet (or its limitations), updates are not installed and many difficulties in the normal operation of the OS appear precisely for this reason. Therefore, if your computer with Windows XP SP2 does not see the USB flash drive, perform the following updates: first, update to SP3 and install all the necessary Windows XP updates (regardless of which Service Pack you use).

• KV925196 – this update corrected errors due to which the computer did not detect a flash drive or iPod connected to it.
• KV968132 – errors were corrected here, in which if several USB devices were connected to the computer, they would stop working normally.
• KV817900 – fixed a bug where the USB port stopped working if the flash drive was removed and then reinserted.
• KV312370 (2007) – problem with USB support.
• KV871233 – the computer did not see the USB flash drive after exiting sleep mode.
• KV88740 – Rundllexe error that occurs when connecting or disconnecting a flash drive.
• KV895962 – an error in which the drive did not work if the printer connected to the computer was turned off.
• KV314634 – correction of an error when a PC or laptop did not see new flash drives connected to it, but normally detected old ones that were connected earlier.

It is worth noting that it is necessary to install updates on all versions of operating systems, as this allows you to save yourself from many problems that “come up” in one or another version of the OS. I also recommend upgrading your motherboard. You can download the drivers from the official website or use the driver disk that was given to you when you purchased the laptop.

Instead of a conclusion

Finally, I would like to say that the “unreadability” of a flash drive in most cases is not a serious problem that has no solution, and as a rule, if you carefully follow the advice from this article, the situation can be resolved within a short time. Of course, it also happens that the drive becomes unreadable as a result of irreparable internal or external damage. But in this case, we can only advise changing it and trying to restore the information using special programs. There is also an article on this site that talks about this problem, but only related to computers: "". Maybe she will help you.

Another option is formatting with Rufus: