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Cannot install printer driver


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The saga continues! I updated to service pack 3, no difference, however I discovered when plugging in my pen drive that it would not function either. I have 4 usb ports on the rear of the computer and 2 on the front. I had tried installing to the port on the back where my previous printer was located and the ports on the front with no sucess. To check the port on the back I swapped my mouse into it, it would not work. Correct me if I am wrong, but this sounds like a port problem? Can I isolate and detect these 3 faulty ports and deal with them individually? I would rather not do a blanket removal of drivers as sometimes things go wrong.......ok I'm a wimp! My only other thought was connecting an extension usb hub with 3 or 4 outlets to a working port, would that be a solution?

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Try this:

START>CONTROL PANEL>SYSTEM>HARDWARE>DEVICE MANAGER,find the USB area and open it with the little + sign.

Scroll down to the ones that say USB ROOT HUB..... RIGHT CLICK>PROPERTIES>POWER MANAGEMENT>uncheck "Allow this computer to turn this device off to save power". Do all of the USB ROOT HUB ones.

Reboot and take it for a test drive.If this does nothing,go back in and reset USB Root Hub as it was.

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USB ports are quite fragile, both physically and electrically. I've seen lots of dead USB setups - there is a tiny (non-repairable) fuse attached to each outlet and it doesn't take very much for it to fail. The easiest thing to do, as it appears to be a desktop machine, is to install extra (new) USB ports via a PCI card.

I would not recommend extension hubs for use with a printer unless, perhaps, a powered hub. Even then, not the best choice.

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I don't know the full technical reason for external hubs not functioning with certain peripherals, and they are better than they used to be - especially the powered hubs but, I still find there can be problems with things like printers and scanners. I've also found that keyboards and mice connected via a hub can be unreliable.

It would be much more suitable (if you have the space on your motherboard) to install a PCI card with a collection on USB ports on it. These cards are not expensive and you could probably get four or more fully functional new USB ports on your machine for the price of a less versatile hub.

Have a look at http://www.ebuyer.com/search?q=usb+pci+card&x=60&y=18 - there are gazillions available. Be aware, though, that there are two types of PCI card - PCI and PCI Express. They are not interchangeable.

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