USB ports randomly stop working

Alright, so my computer and mouse were working just fine for so long, and then when I turn it on the next day the mouse doesn't work. I tried all the other USB ports on my comp., including the ones in the back, but they didn't work either. It's not just my mouse, I've tried a ton of different ones that worked on other computers in my house. I've been trying to navigate using the keys, but I recently lost my iPod, so my friend gave me his. But because the USB ports don't respond to the plug-in, I can't put my songs on it. There are some really obnoxious people who ride my bus , and I'd very much like to block out their ridiculously immature conversations with my vast, coveted collection of music. I say this because If I get any responses, I need them in clear English. Not in college yet. Please and thank you. Oh, and could I have one solution at a time? If there's more than one I tend to try to do them all in one night and get overwhelmed to where I end up drinking the entire pot of coffee in the morning. I'll tell you if it works or not, I'm a thankful person and my computer seems to reject every possibility until I just get a new one.

Good afternoon,

Please read the full information on this link before executing so you are aware what this software will do for your system.

Description

USBDeview is a small utility that lists all USB devices that currently connected to your computer, as well as all USB devices that you previously used.
For each USB device, extended information is displayed: Device name/description, device type, serial number (for mass storage devices), the date/time that device was added, VendorID, ProductID, and more…
USBDeview also allows you to uninstall USB devices that you previously used, and disconnect USB devices that are currently connected to your computer.

Using USBDeview.

USBDeview doesn't require any installation process or additional DLL files. Just copy the executable file (USBDeview.exe) to any folder you like, and run it.
The main window of USBDeview displays all USB devices installed on your system. You can select one or more items, and then disconnect (unplug) them, uninstall them, or just save the information into text/xml/html file.

Keep us posted and don't hesitate to ask more questions.

kind regards,

Alright, so I got that and it's neat and all, but what do I do if it says nothing's connected, but I can physically see with my eyeballs that the mouse is having interrelations with my computer? It seems to me that USBDeview is only good if you're having problems with your devices. I'm having problems with the ports; they don't respond to my devices, not the other way around.

Hi Take a peek in Device manager. 1. Rightclick "My Computer" 2. Properties 3. Hardware tab 4. Device manager Look for any Red or Yellow exclamations signs. If any is present, install the drivers necessary for the device. (Most likey the USB controllers) Some questions: Do you get any message at all that a USB device has been detected when you plug one in? Is your computer a desktop or Labtop? What service pack do you have installed? (SP2 / SP3) What recent changes have you made to software / hardware prior to this? (If any) Regards Abydos

There aren't any exclamation points. But I'll tell you: The first time that I looked on the Device Manager, there was somthing with a yellow exclamation point. The thing it was on had something to do with either a USB port or a mouse, I'm not sure which, but I ended up exiting the Device Manager to check something else, then the next time I pulled it up the thing with the yellow exclamation point wasn't listed anymore. Maybe if you could give me a list of the things that are required to be on the list, and tell me how to get that one item back on there? When my USB ports were working, I did get a little bubble message in the corner. But now I don't because my USB ports don't respond to anything plugged into them. My computer's a desktop. I really don't know what you're talking about when you say Service Pack. I know close to nothing about computers, I mostly just know how to configure settings and make it look cool. Everything I know I learned from experimenting, so terminology is out of my range of expertise. I really don't know if I made any changes to my hardware before the incident, all I know is I had gotten into Zoo Tycoon (the first one, if it matters) again for about a week before my USB ports stopped responding to any USB devices.

Hi

Thanks for the feedback.

To determine your current servicepack, rightclick the "My Computer".
Under system on the first tab (opens by default) you can see which Service pack you have.


Next thing I would like you to do, is access device manager yet again.

Scroll down to where it says: USB Controllers
Expand the entry by clicking once on the plus sign.

Now you will see a whole bunch of controllers.

Righclick each and every one of them, and then do the following
for each one: (You might want to get hold of a normal p/s2 mouse+keyboard for this step)

Choose properties
Click the Driver" tab
Choose remove driver from that menu
Answer yes to any prompts that ask if you are sure etc.

When done for all of them, reboot your machine.
This forces windows to re-detect the USB entries upon
boot-up. Let it install all it can find, reboot if asked.

Now open up device manager once again, and look for
those yellow / red warnings. If none is present, try connect
one USB device at a time, allow windows to install the proper
driver for each device. Mouse and keyboard should be the two
first devices to try.

If there is any yellow or red warnings, rightclick it, and choose
the option that let you install driver for that entry. Allow the device
to go online and look for a driver if need be.

Tell me how it went in your next post. If there is something you want
me to elaborate on or you are unsure of, please tell.

Regards Abydos

Alright, so I did that. Then the reinstallation windows popped up as soon as I logged in, and I reinstalled the drivers I had removed. When you say connect the device, you do mean plug my mouse into the USB port? 'Cause that didn't do anything. It's the same thing: I plug my mouse in and it doesn't respond, or I plug any USB device in and nothing happens, for that matter. No yellow or red warnings, no nothing. Like I said before: My USB DEVICES aren't the problem, it's the ports themselves. Somebody in my math class told me that they could be fried, not connected to the motherboard, or not the right type of drivers for my computer. The latter isn't true because they worked one day, then didn't the next. I've got Service Pack 2. Could you please give me instructions that I'll be able to do without a mouse? Because the mouse I have connects to my USB ports, and as you know, those don't work. The Tab button is my best friend lately. So I'm entirely unable to do any clicking of any sort.

Alright, so I got that and it's neat and all, but what do I do if it says nothing's connected, but I can physically see with my eyeballs that the mouse is having interrelations with my computer? It seems to me that USBDeview is only good if you're having problems with your devices. I'm having problems with the ports; they don't respond to my devices, not the other way around.

Okay, you say nothing is connected, nothing showing.

Please run USBDeview.exe, (download from my first post in this thread) after you do that, send us a screen shot of the empty box………thanks.

When I had problems with my USB ports USBDeview.exe fixed them all in a flash.

Kind regards,

I know how to take a screenshot (Print Screen -over- SysRq, right?), but how would I post it without using my mouse? I thought I could just paste it into the post, but when press my dropdown menu key on my keyboard, paste isn't an option. Sorry it's all so complicated.

Like I said before: My USB DEVICES aren't the problem, it's the ports themselves.

Which were the problem I addressed….With wrong / Missing drivers your ports wouldn't work. But I would like to know how I am supposed to know if they are working or not, if you don't plug a USB device in it after we tried update / replace your drivers?

Could you please give me instructions that I'll be able to do without a mouse? Because the mouse I have connects to my USB ports, and as you know, those don't work. The Tab button is my best friend lately. So I'm entirely unable to do any clicking of any sort.

Thats easier said than done I am afraid. Your best option would be to aquire or borrow a P/S 2 keyboard and mouse.
In order to troubleshoot this kind of problem, you'll have to access some menues / Under-menues all the way etc.

Do you have any warranty left on that machine? You could consider turning it in if you have, and let a on-hand technician look at it.
The next steps we could make, is in the advanced section of troubleshooting. So if you're not that familiar with your PC and doesn't
have access to a P/S 2 mouse, I can't promise anything.

To give a brief description whats next to come and what we could look at:

USB devices / Port malfunctioning are due to any of these conditions:

* Malfunctioning or incorrectly-configured hardware
* Malfunctioning, incorrectly-configured, or missing device driver
* Mismatched cabling
* Out-of-date firmware or basic input/output system (BIOS)
* Incorrectly-configured root hub

Even your Power supply can be the trouble maker here, if it doesn't put out enough
power for your system.

Let me know if you're up for it. If I am not around (its early morning here) someone else
might take over, else I won't be online before tomorrow.

Regards Abydos

Sorry for my lack of undersanding. My computer's pretty old, so I don't think the warranty'll count for anything. I'm pretty sure I'm getting a new laptop or Christmas, which is very soon, but this problem really bugs me and I want it to be fixed. Also, I'm not sure if my USB ports will need to be fully functional in order to transfer my files onto a new computer or not. MOSTLY TO THE MODS: Also, I've just become aware that I've been saying some things that are somewhat inappropriate, and sorry about that. I guess I'm too used to chat forums. But I can't change that yet because some of the pages on here have links or tabs that I'm not able to access without a mouse, including changing personal information, including my ostentatious name. Honestly thought that was just a "Hello, -insert name here-" thing. I was at a loss for creativity. That's another reason I want this fixed; I don't want to have a "reputation". I think I'm going to retire this issue for the night, I've boycotted my homework for long enough. Plague me tomorrow (or whatever time it'll be in your parts) with more stuff I don't understand.