Are you having issues with your USB flash drive not being recognized by Windows? If yes, you're in the right place. This guide will walk you through how to recover files from USB not recognized and offer 9 proven and practical methods to repair undetected USB.
USB drives are one of the most common and convenient devices for transferring data between different systems. However, it’s not uncommon to encounter situations where a USB drive isn't recognized by your computer. This can be extremely frustrating, especially when the data stored on it is crucial. Here are several common causes:
When your USB drive isn't recognized by your computer, it's a stressful situation. Fortunately, there are several steps you can take to attempt data recovery before fixing the recognition problem. Keep in mind that some methods used to fix the issue may erase all the data on the USB drive. So, ensuring data security first is a wise choice.
MyRecover stands out among numerous free file recovery software for Windows with its impressively high data recovery success rate of up to 99%. If the problem isn't caused by severe hardware failure, you can try these recovery methods to retrieve your files. Here are some outstanding features of MyRecover:
4 steps to recover files from USB not recognized
step 1. Download and install MyRecover on your computer. And connect the USB to computer.
step 2. Launch it and select the USB drive to scan for lost files, click "Scan".
step 3. Choose the files you want to recover and click "Recover".
step 4. Select a safe location to save the recovered files.
After recovering data from an unrecognized USB drive, it's time to focus on fixing it. There are several troubleshooting methods you can try to resolve the issue.
Sometimes, a USB drive may not be detected simply because it isn't properly connected. This is the most straightforward check and is a good starting point. Try unplugging it and reconnecting it firmly. Also, try different USB ports to rule out a port - specific issue. If your USB drive still doesn’t show up, test it on another computer. This will help determine if the issue is with the USB drive itself or the computer's USB ports.
If your USB drive is physically connected, but you don’t see it in File Explorer, it might not have an assigned drive letter. This can prevent your computer from detecting it.
Step 1. Right-click on the Windows Start button and select Disk Management.
Step 2. Look for the USB drive in the list. If it’s listed without a drive letter, right-click on the drive and select "Change Drive Letter and Paths".
Step 3. Click on "Add" and assign a new letter for the drive, then click "OK".
As mentioned before, outdated or malfunctioning USB drivers can cause detection problems. You can update or reinstall the drivers as follows:
Step 1. Right-click the Start button and select Device Manager.
Step 2. Expand the “Disk Driver" category and right click the USB drive, and select "Update driver".
Step 3. Choose "Search automatically for updated driver software". If no updates are found, right-click the drive again and select "Uninstall device." After uninstalling, restart your computer, and Windows will automatically reinstall the drivers.
If your USB drive appears but isn’t working properly, it may be corrupted. You can use the built-in Error Checking tool in Windows to scan and repair file system errors on the drive.
Step 1. Double click "This PC" icon to open File Explorer and right-click on the USB drive (if it's visible).
Step 2. Select "Properties" and go to the “Tools” tab.
Step 3. Under the “Error-checking” section, click “Check”. Windows will scan the drive for errors, following the instructions to repair detected issues. Then you can recover files from the corrupted USB drive.
Microsoft Defender is an excellent utility for detecting and eliminating viruses and malware. When your USB drive fails to be recognized due to infection by viruses or malware, running a scan with Windows Defender can help remove any malicious software affecting the USB drive.
Step 1. Type "Windows Security" in the start menu and open it.
Step 2. Under "Virus and threat protection", click on "Quick scan". Then it will start scan the virus and malware on your computer. If any threats are detected, follow the prompts to remove them and restart your computer.
Step 3. If it's necessary, select "Full scan" to perform a deep scan for the computer.
Windows includes a power-saving feature that might inadvertently disable USB devices to save power. It may cause the USB drive to be disabled or not recognized properly. Disabling this feature could help resolve detection issues.
Step 1. Right-click on the Start button and select Device Manager.
Step 2. Expand "Universal Serial Bus controllers" and right-click on each USB root hub, choose "Properties".
Step 3. Select "Power management" tab and uncheck "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power", click "OK".
Windows has a feature called USB Selective Suspend that can automatically disable USB devices to save power. This is similar to the power - saving setting adjustment mentioned earlier. By disabling the USB selective suspend feature, you can prevent the system from putting the USB drive into a suspended state, which may cause recognition issues.
Step 1. Right-click the Start button and select "Power Options".
Step 2. In the opened "Power & Sleep" window, Choose "Additional power settings".
Step 3. Then click on "Change plan settings" and "Change advanced power settings".
Step 4. Expand USB settings > USB selective suspend setting, select "Disabled" and click "Apply".
Windows has built-in troubleshooters that can automatically detect and fix issues related to USB devices. You can follow these steps to diagnose hardware issues.
Step 1. Press the Windows key + X and select "Windows PowerShell (Admin)".
Step 2. In the PowerShell window, type the command "msdt.exe - id DeviceDiagnostic" and press "Enter".
This will open the Hardware and Devices troubleshooter, which will scan your system for issues and attempt to resolve them.
If the USB drive has a RAW file system and can't be accessed, formatting it may make it usable again, but note that this will erase all data on the drive. So, that's why we repeatedly emphasize the importance of recovering data from an undetected USB drive first.
Step 1. Open Disk Management as described before.
Step 2. If the USB drive is labeled as RAW, right-click on it and select "Format".
Step 3. Select the appropriate file system (usually NTFS or FAT32) and mark the "Quick Format" option, then follow the instructions to format the drive.
Again, Formatting will erase all data on the drive, so only proceed if you’re okay with data loss or have already backed up your files.
When formatting a USB drive, checking the "Quick Format" option can help you recover data from the quick formatted drive using MyRecover, even if you haven't previously recovered the files or have no backups.
By following these solutions, you should be able to recover files from not recognized USB flash drive and fix most USB flash drive detection issues. If the issue persists, there may be a deeper hardware problem with your USB drive. Contacting professional support or replacing the faulty hardware might be necessary.
Before attempting to fix the issue of an unrecognized USB drive, don't forget to recover the files first using a professional data recovery tool—MyRecover. The Professional and Technician versions of MyRecover can also meet more advanced requirements, especially when you are a professional or an enterprise user. It offers a pre-recovery file preview feature, which helps you determine whether the files are exactly what you want to recover.
