System was reading the 7-1 card reader correctly until i "fixed" it.

[Mickerry]

I really need help. The system was reading the 7-1 card reader correctly until i "fixed" it. It's a Mitsumi FA404M combined floppy drive and card reader. The computer was correctly reading the floppy as A drive and reading the two kinds of card readers as two different drives, E and F.

Then a little sliding metal door came off a floppy and was stuck inside. I unplugged the unit and slid the unit out of the bay and coaxed the metal clip out (gravity). I re-installed the unit.

Since then My Computer has failed to register the card readers as drives E and F. Instead XP Pro has decided i have installed an unknown usb device. I've uninstalled it in Device Mgr, and it re-installs it.

What can i do to get my computer to recognize my card readers as drives? A million thanks for anyone putting their time and experience into this!

Mikl

MSI K8N Neo2 Platinum (Socket 939)
AMD Athlon 64 3400+
Twin 512 MB Corsair DDR
Plextor PX-716A CD/DVD
Maxtor 160 GB SATA
Mitsumi FA404M floppy drive and 7-1 card reader
ATI Radeon (Diamond Viper) 9600xt
Creative Labs Sound Blaster Audigy 2 zs (256)
XP Pro SP2

 

[bcastner]

forum750 is a good bet.

(But I suspect you are in trouble).

 

[micker377]

In Device Manager, delete ALL USB devices. Reboot and let Windows find, and sort, them again.

 

[Mickerry]

bcastner, i was pretty sure i was/am in trouble, is why i posted ! <g>

micker377 - i didn't think the card readers (there are two in the Mitsumi) ARE usb devices. The had registered as removable drives when the system was working properly ...

but nothing ventured etc ...

Mikl
a bird in the hand makes typing difficult

 

[Mickerry]

PS - i'm new to XP, am hoping there's an XP function that can restore the card readers to their premorbid Removable Drive status, is why i posted here ...

Micker, i've got 3 USB root hubs,
and two of
Standard OpenHCD USB Host Controller
and one
standard enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller
........... Delete all of those?

Mikl

 

[bcastner]

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=870893

But count me sceptical.

The reason I suggested a forum change for your question is that there are hardware folks who never see the threads here. Some of these guys are unbelievable.

 

[Mickerry]

thx, bcastner - in the past i was once discouraged from re-posting in a different forum, but i may have made a mistake here - being so new at XP and knowing so little, i thought the solution would have to do with XP managing something, but perhaps my Q is better posed to those folks over in the peripherals (i think it was) forum.
I agree - there are some completely amazing and generous people who contribute in this place, is why i love and respect this site.

Mikl

 

[Mickerry]

oh, and thx for trying to help, but your USB device KB article reference isn't on the beam b/c when they're set up right these devices (card readers) should not be registering as USB devices, but as removable drives E and F.

Hope i'm getting clearer ...

Mikl

 

[bcastner]

You are making the issue clearer.

I am just saying that having exhausted the operating system options here, and ruling this out, give the question to the folks who eat 7-1 card readers for breakfast, and hard disks for lunch. They are an amazing bunch of folks.

Best wishes,
Bill Castner

 

[micker377]

uses an internal USB 2.0 connection" - from Mitsumi web site.

Did you plug in any other cable that the drive needs? Yes, delete ALL USB entries and reboot. XP will find them all over again. Just remember, Windows will see the drives in the order it wants. A: (and B- floppy, C: - hard drive, D: CDrom, and hopefully card slots should be E: and F:.

 

[Mickerry]

thx micker377 for the usb device note - so it's ONLY registering the usb device and not the removable drives themselves ... yes, both cables are plugged in just as they had been when the system was functioning properly. I will try removing usb devices.

would re-installing windows possibly give it a "fresh start" at re-recognizing drives?

Mikl

 

[bcastner]

I honestly do not think so.

 

[LloydSev]

What cables did you plug in on the back? Were they just a power cable and floppy cable? Or did you indeed plug a USB cable into it as well?

Computer/Network Technician
CCNA

 

[Mickerry]

a couple of days ago Win XP Pro magically recognized the drives correctly and organized the USB hub appropriately, and it has stayed stable.

I have no idea why XP Pro suddenly "saw" the removeable drives. It was nothing i did nor was it responsding to any deletion of USB data.

Thx for your help and thoughts. Tek-tips people are the best.

Mikl

 

[LloydSev]

just for your info regarding the issue.. Windows would still recognize the device as a USB device, but still show it as a "Removable Media" in Explorer.

Computer/Network Technician
CCNA

 

[Mickerry]

Actually, LloydSev, it was being reported as an "Unknown USB Device" in Device Mgr.

 

[LloydSev]

understood... as if the drivers did not install.

Computer/Network Technician
CCNA

 

[stduc]

That's XP for you!