Laptop freezes when USB device connected

Problem description:

The laptop freezes completely when USB device connected.

Possible cause:

1. Defective USB device.
2. Bad USB port.
3. Corrupted software.
4. Motherboard failure.

Possible troubleshooting steps and repair solution:

1. It’s possible the USB device is defective. Test your laptop with another USB device.

2. If the laptop freezes when USB device is plugged into one particular port, most likely the port itself is defective. Repair or replace the defective USB port or use the laptop with remaining working USB ports.

3. If the problematic USB device requires a special driver, try reinstalling the driver and test this device again.

4. Go to the device manager and uninstall all entires from the Universal Serial Bus controllers. Restart the laptop and let it re-detect USB ports and reinstall drivers. Test your device again.

5. It’s possible that some core system files are corrupted. Try reinstalling the operating system from scratch. Test your USB device after that.

6. If none of the above mentioned steps help, most likely there is a problem with the USB controller on the motherboard. In this case you’ll have to replace the motherboard.

By the way, instead of replacing the motherboard you can try using the laptop with a PCMCIA USB card. You plug this card into the available PC slot in your laptop and get 2 or 4 USB ports instead.