XXL 550: Computer will not recognise or connect.

[Arelde]

I have 2 Tomtom XXL 550 units that have been unused for some months and not upgraded for a year or so. When I attempt to connect to the computer I get the message 'device not recognised" Further investigation refers to an "Error 43" which is usually something to do with drivers. Attempts to upgrade the driver brings up 'you already have the latest driver for this device" I am stumped. Any suggestions?

 

[Arno]

Did you charge both devices for at least 2 hours each,
Did you install the newest version of HOME?

 

[Arelde]

Did you charge both devices for at least 2 hours each,
Did you install the newest version of HOME?

Yes to both ... still no luck. Thanks for the thought. Robbie.

 

[canderson]

Does your PC recognize any other external storage devices - like a thumb drive - if you have one handy? If so, we just need to remove your device and let it reinstall, allowing your PC to discover that it's a storage device again if it can. I should also ask -- it's the PC that's saying it doesn't recognize the device, not Home, correct?

The only other reason for a problem would be if the device's bootloader were misreporting the device to the PC, which isn't likely.

 

[Arelde]

Does your PC recognize any other external storage devices - like a thumb drive - if you have one handy? If so, we just need to remove your device and let it reinstall, allowing your PC to discover that it's a storage device again if it can. I should also ask -- it's the PC that's saying it doesn't recognize the device, not Home, correct?

The only other reason for a problem would be if the device's bootloader were misreporting the device to the PC, which isn't likely.

The PC recognizes other devices no problem ... thumb drives, external storage, cameras, smartwatches etc.. I have turned the PC off, left it 10 minutes, and tried plugging in and turning on an XXL still no luck. It says the device has malfunctioned , but it says that for both the XXL's and they both work OK , apart from being able to connect with the computer and upgrade.
I am wondering if perhaps AVG antivirus is interfering somehow, although it never has before.
Don't know about devices bootloader ... not savvy enough... will have to find a grandchild.
Oh yes ... I have loaded the latest Home and it appears to work as it should, just keeps telling me that there is no tomtom connected to the PC.
Cheers, Robbie.

 

[canderson]

OK - let's back up. The PC says the XXL units have 'malfunctioned' when you connect them? Can you be more specific? Also, what PC and OS there?

The PC has failed to recognize the XXL units as mass storage devices even though It knows about similar devices (hence can see thumb drives, etc.). So the best bet will likely be to 'uninstall' your XXL devices from your PC and plug them back in to be rediscovered again.

If you've got a Windows machine, do you know how to access "Control Panel" and then from there, "Device Manager"? If not, you can google it for your particular OS version.
Once you have Device Manager up and running with one of your XXL units plugged in, scroll down to "Universal Serial Bus controllers". Do you see a little warning triangle next to one of the entries in that list? Your XXL will be a "USB Mass Storage Device". If you don't see the warning triangle, unplug and replug the XXL and see which entry disappears and returns and make note of what it's called there.

Select and right click on the device in that list, and select "Uninstall". Once done, unplug and replug your XXL again to let it be newly discovered and see how it goes from there.

And I hate to rush, but will be unavailable after tomorrow evening, so the quicker we get you fixed up the better!

 

[Arelde]

OK - let's back up. The PC says the XXL units have 'malfunctioned' when you connect them? Can you be more specific? Also, what PC and OS there?

The PC has failed to recognize the XXL units as mass storage devices even though It knows about similar devices (hence can see thumb drives, etc.). So the best bet will likely be to 'uninstall' your XXL devices from your PC and plug them back in to be rediscovered again.

If you've got a Windows machine, do you know how to access "Control Panel" and then from there, "Device Manager"? If not, you can google it for your particular OS version.
Once you have Device Manager up and running with one of your XXL units plugged in, scroll down to "Universal Serial Bus controllers". Do you see a little warning triangle next to one of the entries in that list? Your XXL will be a "USB Mass Storage Device". If you don't see the warning triangle, unplug and replug the XXL and see which entry disappears and returns and make note of what it's called there.

Select and right click on the device in that list, and select "Uninstall". Once done, unplug and replug your XXL again to let it be newly discovered and see how it goes from there.

And I hate to rush, but will be unavailable after tomorrow evening, so the quicker we get you fixed up the better!

I have uninstalled Home, and reinstalled to make sure it was definitely the latest with no hiccups. In the device manager under universal Serial Bus controllers there is a warning triangle labelled 'unknown device' and investigating that it shows 'port # 0001 Hub 0007' and a note 'widows has stopped this device because it has reported problems'. I assumed this was the XXL but when I unplugged the yellow warning did not disappear. Tried again from scratch , same thing, so I guess it is something else I have plugged in that it is referring to. No other warning. The computer is running Windows 7 Ultimate with service pack 1 Also I uninstalled the device that was showing a yellow triangle, but it made no difference to the attempt to connect the XXL. I think the message about it having reported problems was just a red herring and refered to something else.

 

[canderson]

Home will NOT be your problem. The PC should recognize your device whether Home is installed or not.

I am concerned that nothing new shows up in the USB devices when you plug in your XXL. If Windows recognizes one as ANY kind of USB device, even one with broken driver issues, it should appear in that list.
By any chance do you have or have a friend with another Windows PC where you could plug in one of the XXLs and see if Windows recognizes it?
I'm also going to supply, as an attachment, a utility called USBDeview. Unpack it to any location you like and run the executable. It doesn't require any kind of installer.

It will provide a list of all connected USB devices and their status. Once you run it, plug in your XXL and see if an entry appears in THAT list. If so, we can talk about what it says about the XXL in particular.

 

[Arno]

Functionality of usbview.exe
I have problems with USB 2.0 and 3.0 ports; thought this program would be a godsend.
Installed the above programs on W10 and everything that was ever connected shows.
Unfortunately, everything shows as NO Connected even the drive letters that show in WX and can be opened and viewed.
Dont't know if W7 acts the same, but if active, look at the drive letter column.

(In my case, upon plug in Windows alerted that there was something wrong and to scan the drive(s).

 

[canderson]

I've never tried the program on W10, but should work on W7.
You can select ONLY for devices currently connected (see Options / Display Disconnected Devices)
Have my fingers crossed for the OP.

I see that there is a much more recent release of USBDeview here >> https://downloads.tomsguide.com/USBDeview,0301-13254.html

I am attaching a copy to this post.

Might be worth a try, Arno (and OP, if any issues with the one I left).

 

[Arelde]

I've never tried the program on W10, but should work on W7.
You can select ONLY for devices currently connected (see Options / Display Disconnected Devices)
Have my fingers crossed for the OP.

I see that there is a much more recent release of USBDeview here >> https://downloads.tomsguide.com/USBDeview,0301-13254.html

I am attaching a copy to this post.

Might be worth a try, Arno (and OP, if any issues with the one I left).

That is a neat program. Appears to work perfectly. Trouble is with my Windows 7 computer I think as it makes no difference at all if I plug the XXL in and turn it on or unplug. Cant understand why it will recognize everything else but not either of the XXL units. If it were just one I would thing it must be a fault in the XXL, but both?? It has me bluffed.
Cheers, R
Just tried plugging one into a Macbook pro and the XXL instantly asks 'do you want to connect to a PC', so I assume the fault has to be with my windows 7 program.
Cheers, R

 

[canderson]

I'm still unclear whether we have a failure to recognize the device type, or to see it at all, so I am going to have to shotgun this a bit.

First, for the 43 error, here is a handful of potential help >> https://troubleshooter.xyz/wiki/fix-usb-device-not-recognized-error-code-43/

I don't notice any comment about cables as yet. If you have a spare cable that fits an XXL, please replace the one you are using with the alternate. There are a few cables around that are POWER ONLY - NO DATA. That could also readily explain what is happening.

Don't know if you've tried a 'hard' reset, but please do if you have not.
With one of the units plugged in, try holding down the power button until the device begins to reboot and you see the TomTom logo and 'hands'. Then release the power button. See if USBDeview shows anything appearing.

 

[Arelde]

I'm still unclear whether we have a failure to recognize the device type, or to see it at all, so I am going to have to shotgun this a bit.

First, for the 43 error, here is a handful of potential help >> https://troubleshooter.xyz/wiki/fix-usb-device-not-recognized-error-code-43/

I don't notice any comment about cables as yet. If you have a spare cable that fits an XXL, please replace the one you are using with the alternate. There are a few cables around that are POWER ONLY - NO DATA. That could also readily explain what is happening.

Don't know if you've tried a 'hard' reset, but please do if you have not.
With one of the units plugged in, try holding down the power button until the device begins to reboot and you see the TomTom logo and 'hands'. Then release the power button. See if USBDeview shows anything appearing.

I have upgraded one of the units using another computer and everything worked fine, so the fault is not in the XXL or in the cable . I had already done a 'hard' reset. Now looking at Windows 7 fault, although I can't see how it selectively will not recognize the XXL's while it 'sees' any other plugin. At this stage I will chase up on the error 43 code as you suggest, and other than that find a guru. In the meantime one XXL is up and running fine, so I will be happy with that.
Many thanks for your efforts guys ... I really appreciate the help.
Cheers, Robbie.

 

[canderson]

Glad I was able to suggest a few things. On vacation for a week starting early tomorrow!

 

[Arno]

That is a neat program. Appears to work perfectly. Trouble is with my Windows 7 computer I think as it makes no difference at all if I plug the XXL in and turn it on or unplug. Cant understand why it will recognize everything else but not either of the XXL units. If it were just one I would thing it must be a fault in the XXL, but both?? It has me bluffed.
Cheers, R
Just tried plugging one into a Macbook pro and the XXL instantly asks 'do you want to connect to a PC', so I assume the fault has to be with my windows 7 program.
Cheers, R

FWIW, ZDNet says one can still upgrade to W10 for free.

https://www.zdnet.com/article/heres-how-you-can-still-get-a-free-windows-10-upgrade/

[I have not yet installed the up-to-date USBDview version.]

 

[Arno]

The old USBDview showed nothing connected. After,several tries of installing the new on deleted all folders connected with the old one and installation proceeded without a hitch.
Current one displays connected items on light green background.

I have 2 rear ports and 4 front ports, they are not on a hub.

#2 and #4 worked with USB 2.0, nothing at #1 or #3. Bought a 3.0 126 GB SSD stick last night which is recognised on 2,3 and 4.

Don't know why port #1 seems to be dead.