Yah, you're right about the necessary drivers already being installed in XP. The flash drives normally detetect as a USB Mass storage device or something to that effect.
I had a system that would do that in normal mode, but in safe mode it would detect and install properly. Ended up being some problem with an application or combination of applications in their startup/services. Otherwise it could possibly be a driver problem or, more likely, something screwy in the registry. Sometimes system restore can save your arse if the problem started recently. You need to have these files... %SYSTEMROOT%\USBSTOR.INF %SYSTEMROOT%\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\usbstor.sys If they're not there or suspect damage, insert your XP cd with the appropriate service pack and copy the files back onto the computer from a comand prompt with: expand -r d:\usbstor.in_ %systemroot%\inf expand -r d:\usbstor.sy_ %systemroot%\system32\drivers I assume D: is the CD drive. Substitute as required Worst case might involve doing a Repair install. Good luck -Tharin O. Thane Sherrington <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: I've got an XP machine that won't install drivers for thumbdrives, even though they should be built in. Every time I put a thumbdrive or card reader in the machine, it tells me an error has occured installing the new hardware. Any idea how I can make sure the drivers in Windows are all installed? T