Why won't my USB Flash Drive show up on my computer?

It may be a bad driver or was not recognized properly by Windows for any number of reasons. Go into the Device manager and look at the USB Serial Bus Controllers click the arrow (+) in font of the name and make sure there is NOT a yellow ! on the one for your UDB flash drive. If there is right click on it and uninstall it. Then do a scan for hardware changes and it will add it back hopefully working properly. The USB drive could have gone bad try it on another computer.

Right click on my computer, left click manage. Then left click disk management. See if it shows up there. If it does, delete the partition, and format it. This will delete anything on it, but should get it to show back up. If it does not show up here, chances are it could have died. And just so you know, just because the light comes on, does not mean the data chips on it are still functioning.

Whether your drive is new or you've had it for a while, do not be over-reliant on its durability. Keep at least one additional copy of your data in another location to avoid catastrophic data loss. USB drives are not indestructible, and it is not always possible to recover data from them, even under favorable circumstances. Print this articleName Conflicts This problem generally occurs on computers with an exceptional number of attached drives, whether they are networked, or hard-wired. Computers with multi-format card readers can have this issue. USB drives don't always find an available drive name that is compatible with their naming conventions. For example, if the USB drive is named "G:," and your computer has a networked drive "G:," or additional hard or optical drives named "G:," your USB drive will not show up. This problem can be resolved by remapping a drive to a different name; this can either be a temporary name change, or permanent. One thing to keep in mind, is that drive remapping is not something that a computer novice should attempt. Consult a technician for help with remapping/renaming a drive. Software Conflicts With newer computers, it is much more unlikely, but there could be a chance that your USB drivers are not installed. Checking your USB drivers is a simple as right-clicking "My Computer," and selecting "Properties." From the Properties menu, select the "Hardware" tab, and click the "Device Manager" button. A list of your computer's hardware will open, and you will find "Universal Serial Bus" on the list. If you see a red "X" or yellow exclamation point, your drivers are not installed. Drivers vary by computer; if you cannot find the driver disk that came with your computer, you will need to go to the website of your computer's manufacturer to locate and download the driver. If you are not comfortable downloading and installing software, contact a computer technician. Sponsored Links Free Online File Storage Upload Photos, Music, And Movies. Cloud To The Power Of X www.cx.comDrive Malfunction USB drives are more durable than floppy disks and their predecessors, but they are not indestructible. If your computer does not detect your drive and it has before, test the drive in other computers. If the drive does not show up in several computers, there's a good chance that it has gone bad. Repeated rough handling of a USB drive can damage the memory chip on the drive. Removing the drive without "stopping" it can corrupt the drive, as well. USB Port Malfunction Most USB drives have a small led that will light up when the drive is inserted into the USB port. If the LED does not light, it could indicate a problem with the drive, but there could also be a problem with the computer's USB ports.

Whether your drive is new or you've had it for a while, do not be over-reliant on its durability. Keep at least one additional copy of your data in another location to avoid catastrophic data loss. USB drives are not indestructible, and it is not always possible to recover data from them, even under favorable circumstances. Print this articleName Conflicts This problem generally occurs on computers with an exceptional number of attached drives, whether they are networked, or hard-wired. Computers with multi-format card readers can have this issue. USB drives don't always find an available drive name that is compatible with their naming conventions. For example, if the USB drive is named "G:," and your computer has a networked drive "G:," or additional hard or optical drives named "G:," your USB drive will not show up. This problem can be resolved by remapping a drive to a different name; this can either be a temporary name change, or permanent. One thing to keep in mind, is that drive remapping is not something that a computer novice should attempt. Consult a technician for help with remapping/renaming a drive. Software Conflicts With newer computers, it is much more unlikely, but there could be a chance that your USB drivers are not installed. Checking your USB drivers is a simple as right-clicking "My Computer," and selecting "Properties." From the Properties menu, select the "Hardware" tab, and click the "Device Manager" button. A list of your computer's hardware will open, and you will find "Universal Serial Bus" on the list. If you see a red "X" or yellow exclamation point, your drivers are not installed. Drivers vary by computer; if you cannot find the driver disk that came with your computer, you will need to go to the website of your computer's manufacturer to locate and download the driver. If you are not comfortable downloading and installing software, contact a computer technician. Sponsored Links Free Online File Storage Upload Photos, Music, And Movies. Cloud To The Power Of X www.cx.comDrive Malfunction USB drives are more durable than floppy disks and their predecessors, but they are not indestructible. If your computer does not detect your drive and it has before, test the drive in other computers. If the drive does not show up in several computers, there's a good chance that it has gone bad. Repeated rough handling of a USB drive can damage the memory chip on the drive. Removing the drive without "stopping" it can corrupt the drive, as well. USB Port Malfunction Most USB drives have a small led that will light up when the drive is inserted into the USB port. If the LED does not light, it could indicate a problem with the drive, but there could also be a problem with the computer's USB ports.

Go to the USB Flash Drive manufacturer website and get their support help. Most hardware mfg websites have knowledgable and helpful customer support. That's what I do when I'm stumped.

Right click on my computer, left click manage. Then left click disk management. See if it shows up there. If it does, delete the partition, and format it. This will delete anything on it, but should get it to show back up. If it does not show up here, chances are it could have died. And just so you know, just because the light comes on, does not mean the data chips on it are still functioning.