Member Avatar for Kurtismonger

I have a Dell desktop that appears to be killing USB thumbdrives. It has turned two different thumbdrives to stone. The first time I was swapping the drive between the Dell and another computer and after a few swaps it would no longer work. At the time I figured it just died on its own. A few weeks later I was using another thumbdrive on the Dell and it stopped working again. No matter what computer I plug it into it is not recognized. I checked all the internal connections on the Dell and nothing appears to be wrong with it.
I'd also like to know if there are any suggestions to recover data off the thumbdrive.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by sergen

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Brief, practical next steps to diagnose whether the PC is the problem and how to try recovering files. Replies from and touched on ejection and power — the checklist below takes those ideas further with safe measurements and recovery-safe workflows.

  1. Inspect and isolate hardware. Power the machine down and look inside and at each USB jack for bent pins, blackening, burn smell, or loose front-panel wiring. Try the motherboard rear ports (not the front panel) and a known-good, inexpensive flash drive to reproduce the fault. Stop using the suspect PC for USB storage until you confirm it’s safe.

  2. Check OS/device-level evidence. On Windows, look in Device Manager and Event Viewer for USB errors. On Linux, run kernel messages and USB listings to see how the host enumerates devices:

    dmesg | tail -n 50
lsusb
sudo fdisk -l

    Those messages will show power negotiation failures, resets, or controller faults.

  3. Measure VBUS safely. If comfortable with a multimeter, measure VBUS (5 V line) between VBUS and GND with the system on. USB should be roughly 4.75–5.25 V. Extreme overvoltage or noisy/fluctuating readings indicate hardware fault; if unsure, skip this and get a tech to avoid shorting the port.

  4. Data-recovery workflow. If the stick sometimes enumerates, create a forensic image before any repair attempts:

    sudo ddrescue -n /dev/sdX usb-image.img usb.log

    Work from the image with TestDisk/PhotoRec (or Recuva on Windows). If the device never powers or never enumerates, chip-level recovery is required and a professional lab is the safe option.

If multiple sticks have failed after use on the same machine, cease using its USB ports and suspect motherboard or PSU trouble.

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Member Avatar for GrimJack

You don't mention whether or no you used the 'safely remove Hardware' button. If you don't use it, you will lose it.

Member Avatar for Kurtismonger

That goes without saying. I ALWAYS use the remove hardware option.

Member Avatar for sergen

seems like USB cannot distribute power efficiently....

i have same problem..but using USB hub.

when adding new USB drive...another USB drive will not be detected.

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