all usb stopped working

[robbo]

hi guys
my mesh system is 4 years old and out of warranty.
all 6 of my usb are no longer working.
my usb are shown under device manager with no yellow marks. any usb i attach is not recognised by computer.
i have tried uninstal usb then restart computer with no effect.
i have tried all 6 diffrent slots with various usb devices(ie keyboard/camera/memory stick) but none work.

does this mean the motherboard is going or is there any other action i can take?

i currently have p5nsli. if new motherboard is required any recommendations.(have around £100 at moment. processor E6600

Thanks robbo

[GoNz0]

do you have a spare hard drive to install a test copy of windows to ?

or even boot to safe mode and try a usb mouse

[robbo]

hi Gonzo

thanks for replying

yes i have spare hard drive. currently have acronis true image and have copied entire hard drive.
i only have old style wired keyboard and mouse.

any suggestions as to what to do would be much appreciated

thanks robbo

[smargh]

4 years is the rough timeframe where the capacitors on the motherboard and particularly the power supply go bad.

Check the voltages from the power supply with this program: http://www.almico.com/speedfan.php - the figures are not always accurate when read with software, however.

Check the appearance of the capacitors all over the motherboard. The tops of them should be flat, not rounded or bulging and definitely nothing leaking. You do have to look carefully, as it can be awkward to identify slightly bulging caps sometimes.

Bad cap example: http://blogs.mie.utoronto.ca/roller/...12-badcaps.jpg

[GoNz0]

have you tried booting to safe mode and testing a usb device ?

[robbo]

Hi guys.

thank you both for replying

1. i booted in safe mode. no change
2. i looked at the capacitors but could not see any problems.

i replaced power supply about a year ago. so i hope this is ok.(ocz gaming supply)

Your advice is greatly appreciated.

what can i try next

[GoNz0]

sounds like the 5v lines blown on the USB, unless you want a new motherboard you can always buy a pci card with usb on it.

[robbo]

thats great thanks.

if i purchased new mobo
what would be a good replacement, and is it mobo easy to change?
current mobo p5nsli
processor e6600

robbo

[4444405]

Cheapest option is to do as above i agree....buy this....

Scan-5-Port-PCI-USB2-Card-ALi-Chipset

with change from a tenner!

[GoNz0]

and very expensive delivery for a small item, shop elsewhere.

[Blastuk]

boot a linux live cd like knoppix and see if usb devices work there.. it only costs a blank cd to try

[robbo]

hi guys. sorry more problems.
went out and brought 5 port pci as suggested. bargain about £6
when i went to fit i found i only have 2 pci on mobo.
currently occupied by
x fi sound card and marvel yukon ehternet controller

i thought i would swap for sound card and see what happens

as soon as i plugged pen drive into usb computer switched of. i rebooted but pen drive not shown.
i took pen drive out and put printer cable in. printer works fine.

Any suggestions?

Robbo

[Splash]

hi guys. sorry more problems.
went out and brought 5 port pci as suggested. bargain about £6
when i went to fit i found i only have 2 pci on mobo.
currently occupied by
x fi sound card and marvel yukon ehternet controller

i thought i would swap for sound card and see what happens

as soon as i plugged pen drive into usb computer switched of. i rebooted but pen drive not shown.
i took pen drive out and put printer cable in. printer works fine.

Any suggestions?

Robbo

So you've gone from no USB ports working with any device to the printer working fine, but the pen drive not working? Looks like it's time to replace that pen drive if that's the case.

[robbo]

just to keep you updated. i plugged my archos into usb. no problems.

so my issue now is
1. no sound card.
2. what would cause the pen drive to turn computer of.

Robbo

[cheesemp]

just to keep you updated. i plugged my archos into usb. no problems.

so my issue now is
1. no sound card.
2. what would cause the pen drive to turn computer of.

Robbo

I'm guessing but the pen drive may have developed an electrical short. This could have blown your computers existing USB ports. I'd throw it away if I was you - and certainly not try it in your PC again.

Regarding the sound card you could always get a USB sound card from deal extreme/led shoppe for now. Its not going to be brilliant but will allow you the time to save up to replace the motherboard etc.

[vinnyT]

Another possibility is a pair of usb headphones, most bypass the soundcard, so you don't need a soundcard for them to work.