Member Avatar for tycomps

I've been putting up with this inconvenience for some time now. This has to be a common occurrence yet I can't seem to find a resolution. If you disconnect a functional usb device
(with or without stopping it) and plug it back in the same port it isn't recognized. Also if you have a card reader plugged in a usb port and remove the card it isn't recognized on reinsertion. I have to move the device to a different port for it to be discovered again. Isn't there a way of refreshing to rediscover the device? (scanning for new devices via device manager doesn't work). winXP pro sp2, any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by fuzzyduq

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Quick summary of the problem reported by : Windows XP (SP2) sometimes fails to re-enumerate a USB device when it’s removed and replugged into the same port. ’s pointers about caching, power and service-related causes are useful background. Below are additional, practical actions and explanations that don’t repeat those earlier suggestions.

First, clear stale device nodes in Device Manager: enable View → Show hidden devices and remove any greyed-out entries under “Disk drives” and “Universal Serial Bus controllers.” If the driver stack is stuck, uninstalling the USB host controller/root hubs (they’ll reinstall on reboot) forces a clean re-enumeration — but be cautious: uninstalling controllers can temporarily disconnect USB keyboards/mice, so have alternate input available. Check Event Viewer (System) for PlugPlay errors during the reinsert attempt; the error messages often point to driver instance or device-ID conflicts.

If a process still holds the device, the kernel won’t unload the driver. Use Sysinternals Process Explorer or Handle to search for open handles to the drive letter and close the offending process. For scripted/one-click fixes, Microsoft’s DevCon utility or third-party tools like NirSoft’s USBDeview can remove device instances and trigger a rescan (for example: devcon rescan) without a full reboot.

Hardware and driver items to rule out: update the motherboard chipset/USB host-controller drivers and BIOS, try rear-panel ports (not front-panel hubs), test the reader/device on another PC or OS (Live Linux/CD) to separate hardware from Windows issues, and try a different card reader if only card media misbehaves — multi-slot readers are a common source of flaky enumeration. If all else fails and the behavior persists across machines/OSes, suspect the card reader/hub hardware itself rather than Windows.

Member Avatar for fuzzyduq

Hi, a few things you can try:
Check the cache policy for your usb port (with the usb storage device (memory card/flash stick etc) plugged in, go control panel>administrative tools>disk management. Right mouse click on usb drive letter, select properties, select hardware tab, select usb flash drive usb device from displayed list of drives, select properties, select policies. If your policy is for optimised performance, change to quick removal optimisation. Caching often gets windose in a tizz and it can't recognise the device re-inserted in the same port as windose thinks the device is still there and was never removed.

The same can happen if power saving kicks in (such as snooze/hibernate etc) while copying, editing or viewing files, in which case either disable powersaving or increase the delay times. Remember also to ensure that powersaving is not activated in both the bios and windose as this can (will) cause conflicts.

Check the status of services required for usb usage. From computer management, go to services and applications>services. Ensure the following services are strated and are set to start autoimatically: Plug and Play, Removable Storage (status does not stay started as kicks in automatically when usb device inserted), SSDP Discovery Service, Universal Plug and Play Device Host.

If all else fails (I kid you not), re-install windose...

Hope this helps,
Fuzzyduq

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