Modern technologies are developing rapidly: the number of active computer users is growing, people are striving for information development. But it is impossible to know all aspects, and often people ask themselves why the laptop does not see the flash drive. You will find the answer to this question in the article, as well as find out the main causes of the problems.
Problem identification
Before an urgent run to the nearest store or technical center, make sure that the flash drive is working. There are only three reasons:
- Broken USB socket. One of the most common reasons, test the flash drive in other devices.
- Incorrect flash drive operation. A laptop or computer sees another flash drive, and a certain sound is heard, which is a testament to the connection.
- System failures. The operation of the Windows operating system, and especially the old versions, is famous for frequent jailbreaks and incorrect operation of certain programs. Sometimes the laptop does not see the USB flash drive on Windows 7, then restart your PC.
Take your time and read the article carefully. We will analyze the main reasons that prevent the computer from seeing the flash drive. For your convenience, all options are differentiated and presented in a list.
The first way. Verification Using System Capabilities
The Windows operating system allows the average user to determine the cause of the breakdown. You need:
- Use the Win + R hotkeys; they launch the Run menu.
- In a new window, you will need to enter diskmgmt.msc, then move the mouse a little lower and click OK.
In the connected devices, see if the computer sees the USB flash drive. In normal condition, the system will provide you with information about the storage device. It will also provide an opportunity to check serviceability.
In a new window, all sections should have the status of "Good", otherwise you have some kind of breakdown. In this case, you just need to click on "Removable media", then you need to right-click on "Make Partition Active".
Sometimes the system asks you to assign a flash drive an alphabetic designation, a similar thing happens if Windows itself did not set a name for the drive. The screenshot shows this in more detail.
If you still do not know why the laptop does not see the USB flash drive, then carefully look at the status. The word "Not initialized" or "Unknown" indicates a malfunction in the flash drive itself, in which case you will have to buy a new data storage device.
The second way. BIOS Settings
System failure is one of the most common causes of various malfunctions. For this, the developers have created a universal menu in which the technical parameters of a laptop or computer are changed or adjusted.
As a rule, on new Windows operating systems, the BIOS menu is different. And in older versions, some functions may not be available to the average user. Therefore, it is recommended to update the components of your PC and update in a timely manner.
Some users think why the laptop does not see the flash drive. What to do in such a case is described below:
- Go to the Start menu.
- Select "Restart".
- While turning on the laptop or computer, hold down the Delete key. Buttons differ on different versions of the operating system and device; these can be F2, F3, and others.
- In most cases, a new window will open with a blue design. You need to find the settings item that is responsible for connecting devices, and then find out if the Enabled statute is set.
The full algorithm of search actions is not described, because it is different for each device. But if nothing works for you, then click on Exit and click on Load Optimal Defaults.
Then reboot the device again and check that it is working. If the laptop still does not see the USB flash drive, then move on to another fix.
The third way. Drivers
They are responsible for the normal operation of the entire operating system and other components, which are connected to the system unit and integrated into Windows. When you connect a new device, the system automatically downloads the necessary drivers.
And after turning off some device, they do not disappear anywhere and do not automatically uninstall. To make it more clear to you, we will draw analogies with real life.
Example
Imagine that the store has only one door, and the emergency entrances are locked. And the only entrance is closed by a person, he does not let the rest pass. Everyone shouts to him to leave, but he completely ignores the requests. Then visitors call the police to understand the situation and to convince the offender.
This is what we will do, we will remove the old drivers to give life to new ones. If your laptop does not see the bootable USB flash drive, then follow the following procedure:
- Left-click on "Computer".
- In the small menu, select "Management".
- Computer management will open for you, select "Device Manager". Or call this menu with a combination of Win + Pause Break hot keys.
- Then click on "USB Controllers".
- A menu of connected devices will open for you, as a rule, a USB flash drive is signed with "USB mass storage device".
- Right-click on the name of the flash drive and select "Delete".
- Reboot the computer.
After these manipulations, your device should see the drive. If the problem remains and the bootable flash drive is not visible to the laptop or computer, then let's move on to the "heavy" artillery.
The fourth way. Formatting
When you connect a USB flash drive to the connector, the system asks you to format it. Without this, normal operation is impossible. In this case, the system refuses to show the presence of files on the media.
The laptop does not see the flash drive? What to do in Windows 7,8,10? The following is the procedure:
- Open the "Computer".
- Left-click on the "USB Drive" (your flash drive may have different names).
- In the menu that opens, select the "Properties" item.
- We select the necessary file system and set other parameters.
- Then click on "Format"
Surely there is a lot of information left on your storage device that is important to you. This may be a term paper on which you have worked for so long, or a report on the work that took more than one working day to write. In general, any useful information. And here you have to clear the data, because otherwise it is impossible to get access to the flash drive.
Software developers have tried and created utilities that will help you recover lost data. Some of the utilities are free, while the rest are distributed only for a fee. However, they are united by one thing - the ability to help you recover information that has been deleted from a flash drive.
Data Recovery Software
To save important data, check the "Quick mode" checkbox. And to restore them, use special utilities:
- Hetman Partition Recovery. A convenient program that will easily "return" the lost files to the user, even if they are damaged and you deleted them a long time ago.
- JetFlash Recovery Tool. The program is free, but there is no Russian localization. It works with all kinds of operating systems, even the old HP or Vista.
- D-Soft Flash Doctor. A universal utility, completely free, and in the settings you can choose the Russian language. However, the functionality is extremely limited, and the program has not been updated for a long time.
- F-Recovery SD. Completely free application that allows you to recover data from an SD card. Please note that we are not familiar with flash drives.
- Flash Memory Toolkit. It is recognized by professionals as one of the most effective tools that users use to restore data. It has a number of features and relatively wide functionality. You can download the program on the official website of the developer or download it on the Internet, because it is completely free.
- Storage Format Tool. Not the most convenient program in terms of interface. But the utility complies with its basic purpose, it quickly recovers deleted data and is compatible with most flash drives.
The above programs will help you in data recovery, they can be downloaded on any website dedicated to computer software, or on the manufacturer’s website.
The fifth way. USB port and flash drive cleaning
It is likely that you do not monitor the cleanliness of your ports or the internal space of a flash drive. And there is nothing wrong with that, nobody does it. However, dust that has accumulated over the entire time that you have not cleaned can cause malfunctions.
It prevents the passage of electrical signals, and the connection between the computer and the USB flash drive is not established. Sometimes this causes a malfunction or slow reading and file transfer. To fix this, you should:
- Find a small diameter item. For example, a match or a cotton bud for ears.
- Moisten a cotton swab lightly and walk through the dust.
- Blow off remaining dust particles with a powerful stream of air. If not laziness, then use the hair dryer.
But these actions may not help you, then the problem is hidden in virus programs.
The sixth way. Viral software
Malicious viruses do not allow the connection of a flash drive to a computer. They block the signal, and you can not see the files on your device. To get rid of this, follow the algorithm:
- Open the Start menu.
- In the search bar, enter "Show hidden files" and press the "Inter" key.
- Go to the "Folder Options".
- Select the item "View".
- Uncheck the box next to "Hide protected data."
- And click on "Show hidden files."
- Click on "Apply" and then on "OK."
- Open My Computer.
- Choose your flash drive.
- And delete the file called Autorun.inf.
After these steps, it is recommended to use anti-virus programs. They will identify the "remnants" of the virus, if any.
Top antivirus software
The list is based on data from international researchers in the field of protection technology. It is not completely objective, but these are the best antiviruses recognized by experts. Their list:
- Avast Free A free program with a Russian shell, one of the most popular throughout the CIS.
- Dr.Web. It uses unique technologies for detecting viruses and has its own database of phishing programs, it is often updated.
- Kaspersky A product from Russian developers, functional and perfectly copes with the main task.
Conclusion
If you used all the knowledge gained from the article, but the laptop does not see the flash drive, then immediately stop the activity and bring your flash drive to the workshop, give them the opportunity to recover data. Remember, the more mistakes you make, the more difficult it is for specialists to recover data.