Solved Flash drive connected to USB hub; where is drive located?

2mindless

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Not sure if I've asked this right...but the issue is finding the file location for my flash drive. My computer only has 3 external USB ports. I have tried all of them, when the flash drive is plugged in somewhere on my computer it should indicate another drive location. I can't find anything....not sure where to look or if I'm looking in the right place. All that shows is c: drive & E: drive. The E: drive is exclusive for the OS system restore (can't be used; not accessible for anything else). The only other is the DVD drive. Nowhere can I find evidence of the flash drive plugged into the USB.
I have all the essential drivers & everything is up to date [I have a task scheduler & Driver updater software installed. All drivers are up to date. This is a new computer, only 2 months old].

I have gone into device manager & checked all the USB & composite serial bus controllers to make sure they are powered on (my computer has an energy saving management thing & it will possibly deactivate the hubs when not in use). According to the power management settings they are not set to "sleep" but all ports are active. I can't figure out why I can't find my drive, nothing is appearing when I have the flash drive plugged in. Please advise.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 23
    CPU
    AMD A6 5200 APU
    Motherboard
    ??
    Memory
    4 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon HD 8400
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23 " led back-lit flatscreen
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 landscape
    Hard Drives
    1TB HDD
    PSU
    external black box
    Cooling
    fan located inside device
    Keyboard
    HP wireless chiclet style
    Mouse
    HP wireless optical mouse
    Internet Speed
    6.02 mbps download .62 upload (Bell sympatico/Fibe 5)
    Browser
    Comodo Dragon
    Antivirus
    AVG 2014
    Other Info
    dual layer optical drive. DVD/RW/CD; 6 in 1 card readers, 6 USB ports...3-2.0, 3-3.0.
One alternative that works

I found one method that works. Since acquiring my computer I've not bothered with the large SSD slot on side of flatscreen all-in-one monitor. I got thinking, I have a Bell micro-sd adapter, I wondered what would occur if I slipped the chip out of my thumbdrive adapter [which connects via a USB port/hub] put it in the larger adapter & then slid that into the SSD slot on the computer. PRESTO! The system automatically recognized it & opened it as a media device under :F drive. This may be the only way I can do photo & video stuff from my micro-SD memory card from here on out. But, I still think it doesn't explain WHY I can't do it the other way by using the thumb drive adapter that plugs into the USB. The computer should open up the flash drive...or if I had my Duracell memory stick inserted, the computer should recognize something is in the USB port & open that...but it's not. So, still in need of some answers. But for the interim I've found a satisfactory alternative.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 23
    CPU
    AMD A6 5200 APU
    Motherboard
    ??
    Memory
    4 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon HD 8400
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23 " led back-lit flatscreen
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 landscape
    Hard Drives
    1TB HDD
    PSU
    external black box
    Cooling
    fan located inside device
    Keyboard
    HP wireless chiclet style
    Mouse
    HP wireless optical mouse
    Internet Speed
    6.02 mbps download .62 upload (Bell sympatico/Fibe 5)
    Browser
    Comodo Dragon
    Antivirus
    AVG 2014
    Other Info
    dual layer optical drive. DVD/RW/CD; 6 in 1 card readers, 6 USB ports...3-2.0, 3-3.0.
That adapter might be defective, there should be some indications even if memory is not formatted or at least show up as "Unknown device" in Device manager. Have you tried another known USB memory device, pen drive or what not ?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home made
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen7 2700x
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x470 Pro
    Memory
    16GB Kingston 3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus strix 570 OC 4gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 960 evo 250GB
    Silicon Power V70 240GB SSD
    WD 1 TB Blue
    WD 2 TB Blue
    Bunch of backup HDDs.
    PSU
    Sharkoon, Silent Storm 660W
    Case
    Raidmax
    Cooling
    CCM Nepton 140xl
    Internet Speed
    40/2 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    WD
It sounds like its not actually a USB thumb drive, its a USB card reader adapter with an SD card plugged into it. You may have to install am additional driver from the manufacturer off that device to get it to work. I say "may" because I have never used one and I'm guessing. Does it show up in disk management when plugged in?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
It sounds like its not actually a USB thumb drive, its a USB card reader adapter with an SD card plugged into it. You may have to install am additional driver from the manufacturer off that device to get it to work. I say "may" because I have never used one and I'm guessing. Does it show up in disk management when plugged in?
Knowing it's make and model would help.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home made
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen7 2700x
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x470 Pro
    Memory
    16GB Kingston 3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus strix 570 OC 4gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 960 evo 250GB
    Silicon Power V70 240GB SSD
    WD 1 TB Blue
    WD 2 TB Blue
    Bunch of backup HDDs.
    PSU
    Sharkoon, Silent Storm 660W
    Case
    Raidmax
    Cooling
    CCM Nepton 140xl
    Internet Speed
    40/2 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    WD
It sounds like its not actually a USB thumb drive, its a USB card reader adapter with an SD card plugged into it. You may have to install am additional driver from the manufacturer off that device to get it to work. I say "may" because I have never used one and I'm guessing. Does it show up in disk management when plugged in?
Knowing it's make and model would help.

Yes, :thumb:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Education 64 Bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Asus
    CPU
    AMD Phenom II X4 980 Black Edition Deneb 3.7GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS M4N68T-M V2 µATX Motherboard
    Memory
    8GB 4GBx2 Kingston PC10600 DDR3 1333 Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA Geforce GT640 2 Gig DDR3 PCIe
    Sound Card
    VIA VT1708s High Definition Audio 8-channel Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LG E2242 1080p and 2 19" I-INC AG191D
    Screen Resolution
    1280x1024 - 1920x1080 - 1280x1024
    Hard Drives
    Crucial MX100 256 GB SSD and 500 GB WD Blue SATA
    PSU
    Thermaltake TR 620
    Case
    Power Up Black ATX Mid-Tower Case
    Cooling
    Stock heatsink fan
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wireless K350 Wave
    Mouse
    Logitech M570 Trackball and T650 TouchPad
    Internet Speed
    80 Mbps Down 30 Mbps Up
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    HP DVD1040e Lightscribe - External USB2
windows would/should prompt for the card readers driver when first plugged in ,
check device manager with the adapter plugged in to see if it shows up with a yellow ! or red x ,if it does then it needs driver installed to use it
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win8.1.1 enterprise
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Hinze57
    CPU
    AMD FX 6100 6core 3.30gHz
    Motherboard
    gigibyte ga-78lmy-s2p
    Memory
    4gig ddr3
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radon hd5000 Series
    Sound Card
    onboard realtek hd
    Monitor(s) Displays
    19" viewsonic/ 22"Samsung
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    128gig ssd Kingston
    80gig WD 10000 rpm spinner
    Case
    micro
    Keyboard
    microsoft curve 200
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless M215
    Internet Speed
    high speed 20
    Browser
    ie 11
    Antivirus
    windows defender
    Other Info
    updated enterprise apr 2/14
@ alphanumeric in Nova Scotia: you are right...I'm a newbie [far removed from being a techie] but I pick up things fast. It didn't initially occur to me that the problem could be the thing I was using is not in fact a "thumb drive" but one of those cheap portable card readers you just plug into a USB hub. I'm learning to navigate my new computer & Windows 8.1 through trial & error as I find the tutorials & reading about stuff doesn't always connect with me. I'm a "hands on" learner. Anyhow...I did keep in mind that not ALL of my USB's are 2.0's & my flashdrives [or thumb drive] work on a 2.0 connection. I do have a couple ports that are the newer 3.0. So I kept in mind that there may be a compatibility issue. However, I tried all the USB's & still I wasn't finding anything anywhere.

In the meantime I've managed to figure everything out myself [I'd not seen all the suggestions or more accurate replies]. I was busy navigating through "my pc" & I found out the following:

The way my computer works is that it shows an icon that looks like an external hard drive for any USB powered flash drive or thumb drive device connected to the computer. It shows up as SDHC or just SD. I didn't know to recognize this. Also, if the device is RECOGNIZED by my system..then the itty bittyest little icon shows up in bottom right side of my 'lower' task bar on my desktop. When I click upon that tiny arrow then a microscopic menu appears with some icons within it [no options to enlarge & nearly need a magnifying glass to see) in this small list of icons it showed SDHC, when I clicked on that it said "browse files"....it also showed that an :F drive had appeared...well this was my SDHC reader. That's the solution I found...I had to take my mini-sd card OUT of the portable thumb drive card reader & put it into this larger flat adapter [leftover from a Bell micro-sd card I had for a cellphone on Bell network). This proved to be helpful, as I suspected a port on the side of my computer marked "SSD" was for the adapter. I found this to be what worked.

Evidently my portable card reader is not recognized on my system. I wouldn't even know where to begin to find a driver download for that...it doesn't matter to me cause if I need to make the files portable...I can just use the adapter to copy from the micro-sd card onto my system....then just move the files to a thumb drive. I have these really handy duracell stick drives...a 16GB & 4GB.

I hope that everyone can follow my meaning & what I discovered about my system. I've resolved the issue on my own. I'm still very grateful & appreciative to everyone who replied. I've made myself a computer note itemizing the steps & recognition patterns so that I can retrace my actions & remember where to look in my system next time.

Just for the sake of curiosity...to the man in Serbia I think, who said the make & model of the card reader would be helpful. It's just some cheap generic thing I bought a few years ago. It looks like a little flat hockey puck but it's been very useful. Best $16 [with tax] I ever spent. It just says CG on it. They're not even produced anymore; I picked it up on clearance...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 23
    CPU
    AMD A6 5200 APU
    Motherboard
    ??
    Memory
    4 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon HD 8400
    Monitor(s) Displays
    23 " led back-lit flatscreen
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 landscape
    Hard Drives
    1TB HDD
    PSU
    external black box
    Cooling
    fan located inside device
    Keyboard
    HP wireless chiclet style
    Mouse
    HP wireless optical mouse
    Internet Speed
    6.02 mbps download .62 upload (Bell sympatico/Fibe 5)
    Browser
    Comodo Dragon
    Antivirus
    AVG 2014
    Other Info
    dual layer optical drive. DVD/RW/CD; 6 in 1 card readers, 6 USB ports...3-2.0, 3-3.0.
OK, Ok, you are excused for now on account of "newbyness" (lol) but you said that it doesn't show up any where so it's normal to think that it either needs a driver or it doesn't work. What you described you did later with new adapter is the normal way it should be. So you solved it, good for you, good way to learn.
Keep on learning, computing, rocking, trucking or what ever you do and may force be with you.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home made
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen7 2700x
    Motherboard
    Asus Prime x470 Pro
    Memory
    16GB Kingston 3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus strix 570 OC 4gb
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 960 evo 250GB
    Silicon Power V70 240GB SSD
    WD 1 TB Blue
    WD 2 TB Blue
    Bunch of backup HDDs.
    PSU
    Sharkoon, Silent Storm 660W
    Case
    Raidmax
    Cooling
    CCM Nepton 140xl
    Internet Speed
    40/2 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    WD
.
file explorer would have been the first place to look.oh well
its great you got it fixed ,on your own ,, good luck ,happy computing
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win8.1.1 enterprise
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Hinze57
    CPU
    AMD FX 6100 6core 3.30gHz
    Motherboard
    gigibyte ga-78lmy-s2p
    Memory
    4gig ddr3
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radon hd5000 Series
    Sound Card
    onboard realtek hd
    Monitor(s) Displays
    19" viewsonic/ 22"Samsung
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    128gig ssd Kingston
    80gig WD 10000 rpm spinner
    Case
    micro
    Keyboard
    microsoft curve 200
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless M215
    Internet Speed
    high speed 20
    Browser
    ie 11
    Antivirus
    windows defender
    Other Info
    updated enterprise apr 2/14
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