SD Cards No Longer Recognised

AdamM

New Member
Messages
8
Hello,

I have a Toshiba Satellite Pro L870 running Windows 8.1.

It has an SD card slot on the front of it which I have used with no problems for quite a while. However, for the last couple of months, it has become temperamental, sometimes recognising the card and sometimes not. The other day, it has given up entirely and refuses to recognise any SD card.

I have an external USB card reader which I have tried to use, but it is also refusing to recognise the SD card.

This is where it gets a bit confusing. If I insert a 1gb SD card I have, the card reader recognises it and I can use it. However, it won't recognise two 32gb SD cards that I have. I have tested these on another laptop and they are both working fine. The 1gb SD card doesn't work in the front slot though.

Does anyone have any idea why I am having these problems?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
You can try to check with the manufacturer website if they have:
  1. Latest BIOS
  2. Latest Driver for SD slot.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    8.1x64PWMC Ubuntu14.04x64 MintMate17x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Brewed
    CPU
    I7 4970K OC'ed @4.7 GHz
    Motherboard
    MSI-Z97
    Memory
    16 GB G-Skill Trident X @2400MHZ
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450
    Sound Card
    X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Professional Series
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dual HP-W2408
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1200
    Hard Drives
    256 GB M2 sm951, (2) 500GB 850EVO, 5TB, 2 TB Seagate
    PSU
    Antec 850W
    Case
    Antec 1200
    Cooling
    Danger Den H20
    Keyboard
    Logitech
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance Mouse MX
    Internet Speed
    35/12mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
Follow directions in this MS article, see if that helps: Advanced troubleshooting tips for general USB problems in Windows XP

If not, try this:
  • Shutdown and unplug all USB devices.
  • Boot to BIOS Setup and load defaults (F5 or F9 usually).
  • Boot your computer and create a new Environment variable called devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices and set it's value to 1 as follows:
    • Right click on My Computer and select Properties
      • XP - Click on the Advanced tab
      • Vista or Windows 7 - Click on ]Advanced System Settings in left pane.
    • Click on the Environmental Variables button
    • Click the New button under the User variables for xxxxx" area.
    • Set the Variable name as: devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices
    • Set the Variable value to: 1
    • Click OK as needed to close all the windows you opened.
  • Open Device Manager (Control Panel, System, Hardware tab, Device Manager)
  • Click on View then Show hidden devices.
  • Scroll down to USB and click on the plus to expand it.
  • Uninstall the ones that are somewhat greyed out (indicates not connected). DO NOT uninstall your mouse if you are using a USB mouse.
  • Shutdown and reboot, let Windows rediscover everything and load necessary drivers. This can take a few minutes, be patient.
Then try the SD card again.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaCenter K450
    CPU
    Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo
    Memory
    16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Integrated HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP h2207
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050@59Hz
    Hard Drives
    250GB Samsung EVO SATA-3 SSD;
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM001 SATA-2;
    1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA
    PSU
    500W
    Keyboard
    Wired USB
    Mouse
    Wired USB
    Internet Speed
    3GB Up, 30GB Down
    Browser
    SeaMonkey
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender; MBAM Pro
    Other Info
    UEFI/GPT
    PLDS DVD-RW DH16AERSH
Thanks for your replies.

I have followed these steps but I'm still having the same result.

Interestingly, the USB card reader I have also has an old CF card in it. If I have the 32gb SD card in at the same time, it doesn't work. However, as soon as I take the SD card out, I can use the CF card.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
Maybe the CF card has gone bad.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaCenter K450
    CPU
    Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo
    Memory
    16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Integrated HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP h2207
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050@59Hz
    Hard Drives
    250GB Samsung EVO SATA-3 SSD;
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM001 SATA-2;
    1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA
    PSU
    500W
    Keyboard
    Wired USB
    Mouse
    Wired USB
    Internet Speed
    3GB Up, 30GB Down
    Browser
    SeaMonkey
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender; MBAM Pro
    Other Info
    UEFI/GPT
    PLDS DVD-RW DH16AERSH
The CF card seems to be working ok. I've also tried removing it from the card reader, but it doesn't make any difference unfortunately.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
Can you try the card on another computer?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaCenter K450
    CPU
    Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo
    Memory
    16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Integrated HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP h2207
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050@59Hz
    Hard Drives
    250GB Samsung EVO SATA-3 SSD;
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM001 SATA-2;
    1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA
    PSU
    500W
    Keyboard
    Wired USB
    Mouse
    Wired USB
    Internet Speed
    3GB Up, 30GB Down
    Browser
    SeaMonkey
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender; MBAM Pro
    Other Info
    UEFI/GPT
    PLDS DVD-RW DH16AERSH
Does it work if you boot to Safe Mode?

Posted by Macboatmaster on G2G

Windows key + C.
Settings
Power
Hold shift key and click RESTART.
Click on Advanced Options then Startup Settings.
Click Restart and you have almost the full advanced Boot Options menu like XP, Vista or Win 7.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro X64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo IdeaCenter K450
    CPU
    Intel Quad Core i7-4770 @ 3.4Ghz
    Motherboard
    Lenovo
    Memory
    16.0GB PC3-12800 DDR3 SDRAM 1600 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Integrated HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP h2207
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050@59Hz
    Hard Drives
    250GB Samsung EVO SATA-3 SSD;
    2TB Seagate ST2000DM001 SATA-2;
    1.5TB Seagate ST3150041AS SATA
    PSU
    500W
    Keyboard
    Wired USB
    Mouse
    Wired USB
    Internet Speed
    3GB Up, 30GB Down
    Browser
    SeaMonkey
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender; MBAM Pro
    Other Info
    UEFI/GPT
    PLDS DVD-RW DH16AERSH
I have tried restarting the laptop in safe mode, but I am getting exactly the same results unfortunately!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
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