Absolutely every user can be faced with a situation in which Windows does not see the flash drive. This is a fairly common problem. In most cases, you can find a way out without contacting the workshop. To do this, you need to understand the causes of the problem. They depend on further actions to eliminate the defect that has appeared.
A flash drive or a computer ... Who is to blame?
The first step is to figure out what the cause of the malfunction is. The problem may be with the device or computer software. The flash drive itself may also be malfunctioning. When using it, you should use not only the front USB ports, but also try to include a flash drive in the ports located at the rear of the system unit.
Front ports can be disabled. This often happens, for example, when buying a used computer, when they are simply not connected to the motherboard during assembly. You can also check the performance of the flash drive on another computer. If there it functions normally, then the problem lies in the ports or software. In the event that other computers do not respond to the USB-drive in any way, and even the card reader does not see the USB flash drive, the reason is in it itself. Most likely, the malfunctioning of the controller led to a malfunction. Such a device is better to hand over for repair. If it does not contain important information, replace it with a new one.
Drive Formatting
There are situations when a message about connecting a flash drive is displayed on the screen, but its file system and volume are not displayed. In Explorer or in the My Computer tab, it is not visible at all. The flash drive in this case should be formatted. It should be remembered that the mismatch of the file systems of the USB device and the computer can lead to malfunctions. Most hard drives work in NTFS, and flash drives in FAT32 and FAT.
If after formatting the flash drive is still not visible, it makes sense to repeat the process for another file system.
BIOS check
Perhaps the use of USB devices does not allow BIOS. Sometimes this function is used to protect your computer from malicious programs from removable media. Therefore, before discussing why the flash drive is not visible, you should check the system settings. You can enter the BIOS directly when booting Windows by pressing F2 or Del. Next, enable USB startup for the devices on the motherboard. The function of working with USB ports is activated, and the flash drive will be detected.
Other reasons
When the flash drive is not visible, you need to check your computer for viruses. Malicious apps may block the display of removable media. In this case, it is advisable to use the latest versions of antivirus programs with all updates. You should also pay attention to the driver problem. Perhaps they are out of date. To install new ones, you need to find the site of the manufacturer of the computer motherboard and download the driver to the USB device. The name of the company of the manufacturer of the board can be found, for example, using the Aida or Everest program.