USB Device not recognised even after fresh install

[soxer]

Hi guys,

I hope someone can point me in the right direction with this problem which came on a while back.

Every time I plug in any USB item, such as a flash memory, I am getting a device not recognised warning.

I have looked at help online and in general it says go to device manager, delete USB device drivers and reeboot. Done that and no go.

I have today done a fresh install, plugged in a flash drive. It reported it had successfully installed drivers, but did not name the device. Then a few moment after I got the familiar device not recognised box.

I've got 2 flash drives and it has done it with both. The memory devices work in other USB devices.

It's a pretty annoying problem as you might imagine. Would appreciate any guidance you can offer. Thank you - Keith

[admin]

Try this to potentially fix the USB not recognized problem:

Shut down your computer

Unplug ALL devices from the computer (power supply, usb, everything)

Wait about 30 seconds after everything has been unplugged from the computer.

Remove your power supply from the wall if there is one and wait a moment before plugging it in. Now plug it in and plug in only the components that you need to your computer, e.g. keyboard and mouse.

Now try starting up the machine. Oddly enough, this frequently works to solve most problems like this one.

[soxer]

I have tried this twice. The problem is driving me mad. I have spent about three hours reading possible fixes but none seem to work or are applicable to Vista.

[admin]

The most common recommendation I have seen is to perform a system restore to a point where you know things worked. If you didn't make many changes, you should be fine restoring to an earlier point without losing anything. Have you tried using a system restore?

[soxer]

I tried that before and it didn't work. Yesterday I did a reinstall (it's a Packard Bell laptop)and I have done my win updates. It's because I am running out of options I turned here. The only change I made to this machine which logically should not affect, was to put a networked hard drive on the wireless network. It was about that time the problems began (I think at least). There are no drivers for that on the machine, I am using windows to access anything kept on it. Just thought I would mention it, suggesting how desperate I am.