Many users, when trying to connect their phone to a computer using a USB cable, are faced with the fact that the computer does not recognize the connected gadget. The connected device is charging, but there is no access to the smartphone itself and its internal contents. I also encountered this synchronization problem, and in this material I will tell you why the computer does not see the phone via USB, and I will also share various methods for solving this issue.
I would divide the whole complex of reasons for the problem that the PC does not see the smartphone via a USB cable into hardware and software, and below I will list each of them, simultaneously providing instructions for correcting it. But before using the methods I indicated, try restarting your computer and smartphone - this does not help as rarely as it seems. This problem mainly occurs with devices from Samsung, Lenovo, HTC, LG and Fly.
So why doesn’t the computer see the phone via USB, but charges - hardware reasons
1. The cable is damagedUSB. It often happens that the cause of this dysfunction is damage to the USB cable itself. Cables from little-known or “non-name” manufacturers do not have a large margin of safety, and can fail within just a couple of months from the start of operation, and as a result, the computer will not recognize the connected phone.
In addition, even the most reliable cables from global brands are subject to stochastic damage - they can be accidentally damaged during use, chewed by pets or spoiled by children. Therefore, first of all, inspect your USB cable for the possibility of mechanical damage, and, if the cable is externally intact, try using it to connect your device to another computer. If the device is not recognized on another PC, try replacing the cord.
2. The port is damagedUSBon the computer. USB ports used on a computer are also susceptible to various mechanical damage, including damage to the USB controller, as well as the south bridge of the motherboard. Try inserting the cable into a different USB connector; if this does not help fix the phone’s connection to the PC, follow the further advice.
3. The cable socket on the phone is damaged. Has water entered the smartphone socket or is it damaged? If yes, then it needs to be replaced.
4. Try to remove the battery. According to reviews from some users who also had a problem with the computer not seeing the phone through US-ES-BI, removing the battery from the smartphone helped.
Turn off the battery, remove the battery from it for a few seconds, then put it back, and turn your device back on.
If nothing helps you fix this problem, then describe your situation. What you have already done, and what happens to your Android device when you USB connect the gadget to the PC in the comments, I will try to help not only me, but also everyone who has encountered this problem.
The computer does not see the phone via USB - software reasons
After describing the hardware reasons, we will list the main software reasons. If your computer still does not recognize a cell phone connected using a USB cable, follow the further instructions.
1. Working with the settings.We go into the settings of our device, select “Memory” there, click on the three dots at the top (Properties), select “USB connection to a computer” and check the box next to “Media device” (“USB drive”). If you have a checkmark next to using USB as a modem, uncheck it.
The Windows Update service (to download drivers for the phone) and the New Device Discovery service must be enabled on the PC. Don't forget to unlock your phone when connecting to your computer, this is important.
If you are a conservative and have Windows XP, download the MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) for XP from the Microsoft website and install it on your computer.
2. If your drivers are lostUSB-ports, the computer may not see the phone.If drivers for USB ports malfunction, the latter simply stop working. To fix this problem, install USB drivers from the “native” driver disk for your PC’s motherboard, or download the latest drivers from the motherboard manufacturer’s website.
Also, due to some reason, power may be turned off for a number of ports.
3. Device drivers have crashed. Go to Device Manager and see if there is a question mark or exclamation mark under “Portable Devices.”
Check if your device is there and make sure it is working properly by right-clicking on it and clicking “Properties”. If it is not there, or you have doubts, remove the driver, disconnect the phone from the computer, and then turn it on again, and let the system install the driver again. This may help solve the problem that the smartphone does not connect via USB to the computer.
It also wouldn’t hurt to go to your smartphone manufacturer’s website and download the latest drivers for it to your PC (for example, there is special Samsung Kies software for Samsung).
4. Install the updateK.B.3010081 (K.B.3099229). For Windows 10 owners, you may need to install update KB3010081, which is responsible for working with Windows Media Player. This player is directly related to the normal operation of the MTP service (Media Transfer Protocol), so download and install the update data.
Also, a common cause may be an unreliable build of the OS itself on the PC. The only thing that will help here is to reinstall Windows to a more working version.
5. Custom firmware is not working. The desire of many fans to play with the firmware for their Android device can do them a disservice in the form of the device’s failure to work normally with the computer. Try restoring the standard firmware or restoring from a backup (if you have one).
There are no drivers for the phone on the computer
Although, usually, a computer with the latest OS detects and sees a smartphone via USB without problems, the opposite cases may also occur. Try looking for a driver for your smartphone on the Internet; sometimes a driver for similar models of the same brand may be suitable.
The phone may not be detected by the computer due to viruses
It’s trite, but all kinds of virus programs can block work with external mobile devices. Try checking your computer with Dr. antivirus applications. Web CureIt! may help in some cases.
If the problem of the computer detecting a mobile device is not resolved, reset the settings
If still, your computer does not see the phone via USB, resetting the smartphone settings using Hard Reset. Go to the settings of your phone, select the “Backup” menu item, and in it select “Data reset”.
But I warn you right away that you will lose your files and settings located in the internal memory of the phone (files located on the SD card will remain untouched), so this item should be used only as a last resort!
Conclusion
As you can see, problems with the lack of visibility of a connected phone on a PC can be both software and hardware in nature, and there are a considerable number of such problematic factors. I would advise you to first pay attention to possible mechanical damage in the cable and device, and only then switch to software methods.
In many cases, simply rebooting the smartphone (temporarily removing the battery), as well as working with the phone’s USB connection settings, can help. If all of the above does not help and the computer does not see the phone via USB, but is charging, then you may need to contact a qualified service center.
P.S. For those who like visual demonstrations, I present a video on the issue:
Most owners of Samsung mobile devices use the Samsung Kies application to facilitate connecting their gadget to a computer and simplify the process of exchanging information between devices. But it often happens that the computer does not see the phone. Where to look for the cause of the malfunction and how can it be fixed?
The computer does not see the Samsung phone
If your PC does not recognize your device as a connected device, do not be discouraged right away. The USB ports may have failed - alternatively, try connecting to another computer. Update your system drivers and scan your operating system for viruses.
If the PC recognizes the connected device, then you should look for problems in the settings of the mobile gadget or application.
Samsung Kies does not recognize the phone
So, the operating system has recognized your device, but the Kies application stubbornly claims that nothing is connected. First of all, unplug the USB cable from the device and close the program. Then reconnect the gadget to the PC (alternatively, you can select a different USB port, but do not use extension cords) and try to launch the Kies application until the icon of the connected device appears.
A common reason why Samsung Kies does not see the phone lies in the settings of your mobile device. Go to the “Connection to PC” menu item and check the Kies application there. It is also worth selecting the “USB Debugging” option in the “Connection” menu item. If it still doesn’t help, then reboot the device in case of a system failure - in many cases this was an unexpected solution to this problem.
If Samsung Kies still does not see the phone, then you need to remove and reinstall the mobile device drivers. To do this, click “Start” - “Control Panel” - “Device Manager” - “Mobile Device”, right-click on the entry, select “Properties” and in the window that appears, click the “Delete” button. Restart your computer, and then install official drivers from the manufacturer for your gadget. Then try to connect again.
If the method above did not produce results, and the phone still does not connect to Kies, reinstall the application itself. Maybe there were errors during installation, there was a system crash during your last session, or you just have an old version of the application. Click “Start”, then “Add or Remove Programs” (this menu item in Windows 7 is called “Programs and Features”), remove the Kies application. After completing this procedure, you need to clean the registry from possible “traces”. For these purposes, it is better to use the capabilities of programs that specialize in cleaning the registry (for example, CC Cleaner).
After cleaning the registry, restart your computer and install the program again. You can download the latest, most current version of the application on the manufacturer’s official website. Before starting the installation process, disable the firewall and antivirus. Do not forget that the application should be installed under an account with administrator rights.
Also, the reason why Kies does not see the phone may be a file with an incorrect extension contained in the device’s memory. The device tries to read all available files, and such extensions often experience a software failure, which ultimately leads to connection errors.
Remove the memory card and connect the device to the PC. If it helps, then the problem is in the removable media. Otherwise, set the device settings to “Connect as a flash drive,” connect it to the PC and copy the necessary files. Then you can return them back at any time.
There are many reasons why the PC does not see the Samsung phone. Try all the options listed, and only then call a specialist.
How does the web design process work?
You bought a brand new smartphone and, say, you want to download your playlists from your computer to it. Or your phone is already a year old and only now you decided to connect it to your computer. But that was not the case: the computer simply does not see the phone connected via a USB cable.
There may be several reasons why this happens. Let's deal with everything in order.
The first thing you need to pay attention to is the cable with which you connect the phone to the computer. If you purchased an inexpensive cable for this, it may easily not meet the necessary resistance or material requirements. In this case, it is better to use the standard cables that come with the phone.
The second thing to check is Computer USB port, to which the phone is connected. Connect the phone to any other port on the computer; if everything is fine, then the port itself is faulty. The reason for this may be either uninstalled drivers, or the USB port is simply not connected to the motherboard.
Now try it restart your computer and phone. It happens that after a banal reboot, the devices begin to “see” each other. When the phone is turned off, remove the battery from it, wait a couple of minutes and insert it back - this may also help.
If you have the Windows XP operating system installed and you connect an Android device to your computer, then install Media Transfer Protocol on your computer. It can be downloaded from the official Microsoft website: https://www.microsoft.com/en-US/download/details.aspx?id=19153.
For some phone models, when connecting to a computer, you can select USB connection option. Place a marker next to the item "Media device (MTP)". If you don’t see such a menu, then go to “Settings” – “Network” and enable one of the parameters: or "Media device (MTP)", or "USB drive".
Another reason why the computer does not see the phone via USB may be installed drivers. First, disconnect your phone from your computer. Then go to “Start” - "Control Panel" – "Device Manager".
Here we click on the transparent arrow opposite the item "USB Controllers" to open the list. Now connect your phone using a cable to your computer. Device Manager should refresh and the new device will appear in the list. For comparison, I posted two photos. After connecting, on the second, it appeared.
Everything is fine with my drivers. If you have a yellow exclamation point or a red cross next to this item, as shown in the figure below, this means that the drivers require updating or are not installed at all.
To fix this, right-click on the item "USB Mass Storage Device" and select “Properties” from the context menu.
Then you can find drivers by device instance code. How to do this is described in the article. If you have the Windows 7 operating system installed, from the drop-down list instead of "Device Instance Code" look for "Equipment ID".
Another problem why the computer does not see the phone can be viruses. Check your devices with an antivirus program; if it finds anything, delete the malicious files. Then restart your computer.
I hope one of the tips will help you and a similar problem will not arise in the future.
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Sometimes you need to connect Android to your Windows computer to transfer certain files. Sometimes problems arise and the computer does not see the phone via USB, charges, but does not allow you to move files.
We offer a general overview of possible options, and then discuss all solutions to problems.
Reasons why the computer does not see the phone via USB
This may be due to software incompatibility or technical problems. From time to time the cable gets damaged and the contacts in the smartphone break. In the first case, you need to try a different cord, and in the second, contact a service center to replace the connector. A broken port on your computer can also cause problems, so switch the wire to a different socket to fix the problem. These are the most common hardware failures.
With software errors it is more difficult, since there are many reasons for failures. These could be missing or outdated drivers, incorrect connection modes (when the computer charges the smart phone, but blocks the transposition of documentation into folders) and other incompatibilities, which we will discuss in detail below.
What to do if the computer does not see the phone?
Listed below are all the methods that can help solve the cable connection problem.
Check your USB connection settings
This method will help if charging occurs during pairing, but the information cannot be reset. To transfer documents, you must connect Android as a media device (MTP). To do this, follow these steps:
Attention!In some cases, you may have to connect your phone to your computer and switch between different options several times before the desktop recognizes the device as a media device.
If you have older versions of Android, try this.
Connect the device to the computer, it should be recognized.
Install the USB MTP driver
It happens that the smartphone does not display due to problems with the driver, so try updating it.
Once the driver is installed, the PC should recognize the Android phone. You may need to restart your computer for the update to take effect.
Download and install Media Feature Pack for Windows 10
We have already mentioned that you must use the MTP protocol to transfer content. It is bundled with Windows Media Player, and some versions of Windows 10 do not have Windows Media Player or support for related technologies. If your version of Windows 10 does not recognize Android, download and install the Media Feature Pack from the official Microsoft website. 
Use the included USB cable
Remove Android Drivers
Sometimes the system does not have the latest drivers or they are not installed correctly. It is recommended to remove them and install them again.
It remains to check whether the method worked.
Enable USB Debugging
From time to time, the connected gadget is recognized when USB debugging is active. If you are using Android 4.2 or later, this feature may be hidden. To enable it, do as follows.
- Go to "Settings - About phone".
- Click on “Build Number” 7 times.
- Go back.
- Open "Settings - For Developers".
- There, scroll down and activate “USB Debugging”.
Sometimes it is already turned on, in which case it should be turned off.
Turn on airplane mode
If Windows stops seeing your phone, launch airplane mode through the quick settings panel in the curtain or by going to “Settings - More”. Often after this the device is recognized by the PC. This is a simple method, so don't be lazy to try it. 
Reboot your phone in Recovery or Fastboot mode
Read about how to enter it in our other article, where we described the process for each manufacturer. After you enter Fastboot or recovery mode, connect your smartphone to your PC and wait until the necessary components are installed. After this, a guide should open in front of you with a suggestion of what to do with the connected device. When finished, reboot Android. 
Install KIES from Samsung
If your Samsung gadget is not recognized by Windows, download the KIES software from the manufacturer's official website and install it on your computer. With its help you can definitely connect your smartphone.
Use USB 2.0 ports
Try switching the cable from USB 3.0 to USB 2.0. Users reported that it worked for them sometimes.
Reinstall ADB
Windows occasionally does not recognize the smartphone due to problems with the Android Composite ADB interface, so you should reinstall it.
This solution works with Android 5.0 and newer OS, but it can also be compatible with older versions of Android. Users have reported that it is not always worth downloading the USB driver from Google, and often the problem is resolved simply by following the first four steps.
Reboot your Android device
Sometimes this simple solution is the most effective. People have repeatedly reported that after rebooting the phone, the computer recognized the mobile phone without any problems.
Connect your phone directly to your computer
Some USB devices may not be recognized if you connect them to a USB hub or extender. Therefore, if you are using a USB hub, disconnect it and connect your Android directly to the PC to solve the problem.
Clear cache and data for external system storage and storage systems
This solution works on Android 6 and above. But if you have an older system, try this anyway.
After deleting the cache and data, reboot the gadget and connect it to the computer again.
Sync Android with PC using a third-party app
This does not guarantee 100% performance, but it often helps. Just install a synchronization application from the Play Market, which will help your computer recognize. Try, for example, Mobile Go to connect and transfer data from Android and iOS to PC.
There are many reasons why your computer can't see your Android phone. We hope these solutions will be useful for you and you will solve your problems.
If you are faced with the fact that the phone does not connect via USB, that is, the computer does not see it, in this guide you will find all the options known to the author for the reasons for what is happening, as well as ways to fix the problem.
The steps below apply to Android phones, which are the most common among us. However, they can be used to the same extent for Android tablets, and some points can help you understand devices on other OSes.
Why is my Android phone not visible via USB?
I think it’s worth starting by answering the question: did the computer always not see your phone or did everything work fine before? The phone stopped connecting after actions with it, with the computer, or without any actions at all - the answers to these questions will help you quickly figure out what exactly is the matter.
First of all, I’ll note that if you recently purchased a new Android device and it is not seen by a computer running Windows XP (while an old Android phone can easily be connected as a USB flash drive), then you should either update the operating system to one of the currently supported ones, or install MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) for Windows XP. You can download MTP for XP from the official Microsoft website here: http://www.microsoft.com/en-US/download/details.aspx?id=19153. After installation and restarting the computer, your phone or tablet should be detected.
Now let's move on to the situation where the phone is not visible via USB in Windows 7, 8.1 and Windows 10. I will describe the steps in relation to Android 5, but they are similar for Android 4.4.
Note: For devices that are locked with a pattern or password, you need to unlock the phone or tablet connected to the computer in order to see files and folders on it.
Make sure that the phone itself, when connected via USB, reports that it is connected, and not just for charging. You can see this by the USB icon in the notification area, or by opening the notification area in Android, where it should be written what device the phone is connected to.
This is usually a storage device, but can be a Camera (PTP) or a USB modem. In the latter case, you will not see your phone in Explorer and you should click on the notification about using a USB modem and turn it off (you can also do this in Settings - Wireless network - More).
If your phone is connected as a camera, then by clicking on the corresponding notification, you can enable MTP mode for file transfer.
On older versions of Android, there are more USB connection modes and the optimal one for most use cases will be USB Mass Storage. You can also switch to this mode by clicking on the USB connection message in the notification area.
The phone does not connect via USB to the computer, but only charges
If no notifications about connecting via USB to the computer appear, then here is a step-by-step description of possible actions:
- Try connecting to a different USB port. It would be better if it was USB 2.0 (the ones that are not blue) on the rear panel. On a laptop, accordingly, just USB 2.0, if available.
- If you have compatible USB cables from other devices in your home, try connecting using them. A problem with the cable may also be the cause of the situation described.
- Are there any problems with the jack on the phone itself? Did it change and did he fall into the water? This could also be the reason and the solution here is replacement (I will outline alternative options at the end of the article).
- Check if your phone connects via USB to another computer. If not, then the problem is in the phone or cable (or you didn’t check your Android settings properly). If yes, the problem is on your computer. Do flash drives connect to it at all? If not, try going to first Control Panel - Troubleshooting - Device setup(to try to fix the problem automatically). At the same time, you should try disabling power saving in the device manager for Generic USB Hub.
If nothing from the list helps solve the problem, then describe the situation, what was done and how your Android device behaves when connected to USB in the comments, I will try to help.
Attention: The latest versions of Android by default connect via USB to the computer in charge-only mode. Check the notifications for the availability of selecting the USB operating mode if you encounter this (click on the item Charging via USB, select another option).
