Summary: Some USB devices simply require you simply plug it in to use them, but reviewing documentation that came with the device before you do is important.
|
I received a USB flash drive and would like to know how to install it. I have windows XP on an HP computer. |
I've really come to love USB, USB devices, and USB drives. Why? Well, mostly because they just work. Especially with Windows XP.
Installation instructions usually boil down to: "plug it in".
Really.
Let me explain why and what to do if that's not the case.
•
USB was designed from the beginning to be what's called "hot swappable". That means you can plug in and unplug USB devices without having to turn off your computer. (Sometimes you will need to tell the computer you want to unplug it first, though. More on that ahead.)
Windows XP's "Plug and Play" automatically detects the type of device that's been attached and, if needed, automatically installs the appropriate drivers for it.
You can see where this is headed: Windows "Plug and Play" plays very well with USB. Chances are installing your USB flash drive means simply plugging it in, and letting Windows do the rest. (It may ask you for your Windows installation CD to get drivers.) When done, you should find another drive letter on your machine that is the USB drive.
Now to be clear, you should definitely review any documentation that came with your USB device. While flash drives and other "disk-like" devices tend to just work, manufacturers of other devices often have you install their software on your system before plugging the device in for the first time. So just check the materials that came with your new peripheral.
Important: while USB devices are "hot swappable" and plugging them in or removing them with the power on will not damage the hardware, it is possible, especially for disk drives, to corrupt the data on the drive if you remove it at the wrong time. In the notification in your taskbar you should see an icon that when you hover the mouse over it, is called "safely remove hardware". Click on that, select the device you wish to remove, and Windows will do things like flush the disk buffers and ensure that from the operating system's point of view it's safe to unplug it.
Related:
-
Ask Leo! - How can I install hardware if I no longer have my Windows XP CD?
-
Ask Leo! - Is there a way to "Safely Remove Hardware" from a batch file?
Article C2246 - December 25, 2004
hello my son just got a new mp3 player for xmas and we have trieg everything but it keeps saying cannot find driver device.We have downloaded the newest win media player9 and still nothing it works cause we dragged a song in it and you can hear it play, but we dont know how to get it from the media player to the mp3 player please help.We are running win98se on mozilla firefox or internet explorer6 we have tried going through both browsers but it still says the samething cannot detect driver.
28-Dec-2008
Also i can never get all the way through to download java, it always says must manually install.When i try to get like bingo games online it says i need java plugins but it wont let download them or it will start and then says java installer failed install manually.HHHHHHHHEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPP!
Posted by: michelle wimbish at December 27, 2008 11:36 AMPlease help me connect my ipod. It worked on my dad's laptop.I just downloaded a new song and it didn't come up on Windows media player and I won't be able to put that song on my ipod because my ipods' information won't show up.
Posted by: Saryna at January 24, 2009 2:37 PMHello.
Posted by: Paul at February 17, 2009 2:11 PMI am trying to install a webcam, but windows didnt have the drivers needed (as per usual) and when i closed it, i forgot that the "dont ask about this device" box was checked.... now when i plug my webcam in, windows just ignores its there... where could i find out how to enable the driver wizard for this device again? Thanks in advance
I plugged in my new digital camera to transfer pictures and it asked for an installation cd. I had already installed it so i cancelled. Now, when I plug it in, nothing happens and the computer doesn't seem to recognize it at all. How can i fix this?
Posted by: Michelle at March 7, 2009 8:27 PMSalutations Leo
Posted by: JoshP at May 26, 2009 11:29 PMI'm having problems with my samsung s85 digital camera. I bought the camera from Target around a year ago and installed the driver on my computer and it worked perfectly. However, I lost it and, having given up hope of its return, uninstalled the driver and Samsung Master program. When I recently found it again, I attempted to redownload the driver from the samsung website, but now my computer doesn't even give the slightest notification when I plug it in the USB port. Is there anyway to fix this?
hi ive just brought a samsung tocco lite it comes with a usb lead and a cd when i plugged the lead in it asked for a cd so i put it in but then it says nps is installed so it fails .what should i do?
Posted by: rosie at July 30, 2009 12:03 PMI pluged in my new cheat code system to my laptop(2009) and nothing happens i want to install it.
Posted by: Michael at October 3, 2009 10:19 AMHow do i download music,pictures and video with my USB device onto my phone
Posted by: Dennis at October 9, 2009 7:17 AMHi, i have just recently bought a samsung tocco lite mobile phone and it comes with USB cable and a CD which says PC Studio on it. I want to transfer some songs from my Hi-Grade Windows Vista computer to my phone. A message comes up saying found new hardware then it asks to put a cd in which i do, it then says windows was unable to install your mobile USB modem 1.0 and could not find driver software for my device. Could u tell how i can sort this please? Thanks
Posted by: Amiee at November 17, 2009 8:31 AM