Many times we have an external USB hub to support our various USB devices. It is normally referred to as a Generic USB Hub, though it may be called other names. In any case there are times when, for one reason or another, it just seems to stop working. I am sure you have experienced this at least once with one hooked up to your home or work PC. Fixing External USB Hub Problems can end up being a burdening task if it happens again and again and again….

Before addressing the problem, let us analyze when the hub normally acts up. For me, this usually happens after I take my computer out of bybernation mode. Why it happens only some times I really cannot understand. There may be times too when persons restart their PC’s and when Windows finally loads they cannot access their USB Hub. Another problematic factor can be if you unplug the device without first using the ‘Unplug or Eject Hardware’ feature (accessed by clicking the icon in the taskbar with a green arrow over a device). Then when it is plugged back in you may get a ‘Device Error’.

Okay then, enough with the deprsssing reasons. Let us focus on a few solutions to remedy the problem:

1. What most people tend to do is simply restart their computers, hoping everything will be okay when it comes back up. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. It may work some times but not all the time. As a first resort, however, you can try this method as there is a 50/50 chance the USB hub will be recognized after a reboot.

2. This step may seem to be long but, in fact, it is not. Open up Control Panel (Start - Settings - Control Panel). Double-click on System. This will open the System Properties box. Next, click on the Hardware tab. Then click on Device Manager. You should now be seeing a list of all your installed hardware. To locate the problem device, look for a yellow question sign under ‘Universal Serial Bus Controllers’. Ordinarily the name you would see beside the question sign is ‘Generic USB Hub’. You may see someting a bit different, but as long as the yellow question sign is beside it and says someting with USB and Hub then that’s the device.

Right-click on the device and choose ‘Uninstall..’ and click OK when a dialog box pops up asking you to confirm device removal. Then unplug the USB Hub from the computer and wait a few seconds. (Note however that some operating systems may require a restart of the computer. If so, go ahead and do it.) Plug it back in and it should automatically re-install (provided your computer has Plug-and-Play enabled). If your USB Hub uses drivers that are located on a floppy disk or CD, install it using these drivers if the computer asks you for them. You should now be able to use the device.

The above mentioned solution is not limited to USB Hub problems but can be applied to other USB devices that may be giving you problems. I will discuss how to deal with other USB devices in subsequent articles.