Samsung does not see the computer but it charges

Why the computer does not see the phone when connected via USB

To the situation when the PC does not recognize the mobile device connected to it, lead to software and hardware failures:

  • Absence of device driver in the PC operating system.
  • Driver mismatch of device model.
  • USB driver is not available or fails to work.
  • Connection with a cable that is not suitable for data transfer or is damaged.
  • Faulty USB slot (on either computer or phone), USB slot group or USB controller on PC.
  • Malfunction of any of the computer hardware, blocking by static electricity.
  • Fault in phone system settings.
  • Blocking access to the phone by security software running on a PC (including viruses infecting the gadget).
  • Failure of the application that syncs the phone and PC (if you use it).

If there is a software problem, the computer generally does not display phone memory, but the device charges as normal when connected to it. If the problem has arisen because of a physical malfunction, charging most often does not go either, but there are exceptions, when only the data lines do not work.

samsung, does, computer, charges

Analysis of the previous situation helps to outline the range of possible causes. what was happening before the problem appeared. For example:

  • You reinstall the operating system of your computer or delete some drivers (the reason is that you do not have a driver you need.).
  • The phone (tablet) is not detected after flashing, cleaning from viruses, deleting applications, optimization and other manipulations with the operating system of the mobile device.
  • The device has been exposed to mechanical impact (the USB socket is damaged) or has been repaired (after replacing parts the driver needs a different version or the fault is not completely eliminated).
  • You are using a USB cable that you have never used to connect your phone to the computer (the cable is only for charging or is damaged), etc. д.

How to solve the problem

First, you must make sure that you are using a functioning cable for the connection. The easiest way is to charge the phone with the same cord. If it charges then the problem is definitely not in the cable.

The second point that users often overlook is that the wrong connection type is selected. When a person connects a smartphone to a PC, a notification appears on the mobile device screen offering to choose one of several pairing types:

The default setting is “Charge Only”. When connected in this way, the Android smartphone simply receives power from the computer. Check the pairing settings and select “Connect as a media device” or “USB storage device”. Only in this case PC will see your Samsung Galaxy S20 as a fully-featured storage device.

If nothing happens when your mobile device is connected to PC (the gadget does not even charge), you should check if the USB interface on your computer is working. For example, you can insert a flash drive or plug in a mouse.

Physical problems (broken cable or connectors) can only be solved by replacing the device components. And in a situation when you select the correct type of connection (media device) and use the correct accessories, the cause of the error is faulty drivers.

Usually it is installed automatically the first time you pair the smartphone and the PC. Software can be loaded only if you are connected to the Internet. If not connected to the network, the drivers will not be loaded. Therefore it is recommended to check internet access.

You can check if the drivers are working as follows:

  • Open the device manager (WinR and then type devmgmt.msc).
  • Find your MTP device or phone name in the list.
  • Double-click the left mouse button.
  • Click on “Update driver”.
  • Select “USB MTP device”.
  • Press “Next”.
  • Wait until the drivers reinstallation is completed.

If the smartphone does not appear in the Device Manager, it makes sense to turn on the Android gadget in developer mode:

  • Open the phone settings.
  • Go to “For Developers”.
  • Activate the function.
  • Click on “USB default configuration”.
  • Select “transfer files” option.

When none of the offered tips helps, the only way out is to reset the phone. This operation is performed if the owner of the device suspects that the pairing is missing due to the presence of viruses.

Your computer can’t see your Samsung Galaxy phone through USB. no problem

If the computer has a problem detecting our smartphone correctly, several factors could be the cause.

First we check if the cable through which we connected the devices is not damaged. It often happens that the cable may look functional on the outside, but it does not retain its properties due to broken internal transmission wires.

Then restart your computer and phone. The next step is to check Android settings.

Some phones have an automatic file transfer lock feature, which means they treat the computer‘s USB port as a charging port.

In this case you need to change the USB connection mode to “File Transfer”. At the end it is worth checking if our smartphone is updated to the latest (available for this model) version.

The computer does not see your phone via USB

After the user connects the device to the computer through a USB cable, nothing happens. the gadget is banal not detected. Really, a problem is very widespread and in most cases it is simple enough to solve. The most important thing is to find the source of the problem.

  • First of all we check the serviceability of the USB-cable. Cables from reputable companies are usually made in good repair and can last for years, if not decades, so most often they simply get jammed or chewed up by pets. In order to check the functionality of the wire, you must connect it to another computer. If it recognizes the device, then the problem is 99% the cable. Luckily the cable is not expensive and you can get it in many stores.
  • Next we look at the USB port itself. The fact that it may not work. How so, you ask, because yesterday it worked fine! Maybe there is a software malfunction. You must insert the cable into another port or simply restart the computer. Yes, you can laugh, but rebooting your PC can often fix many problems. If the problem persists after rebooting, it is very likely that the port drivers have failed. You can download them from your motherboard manufacturer’s Web site. In addition, you may have been turned off power to a group of ports. You can turn it on through the “Power” section of your operating system.
  • So if it’s not the USB ports and the cable, then the problem is in the phone or smartphone. Theoretically, when I plugged the device the computer should see it. Not so long ago something similar happened to my Android smartphone. Apparently, it was the most common glitch. The solution was very simple: rebooting the device did not help, then I decided to remove the battery from it. I plugged it in after five minutes and, voila, everything was back to normal! True, this method is not suitable for Apple phones, because it is impossible to remove the battery from them (you must completely disassemble the device).
  • USB connection settings of some smartphones can be confused. With what it is connected, is not clear. Restore them, for example, by resetting all the settings, which then have to be restored. If possible, try to restore the settings through the service (engineering) menu. Go into it by dialing a special number on the keyboard. You can find it out, for example, at the site of the manufacturer of your device.
  • Often the problem is caused by the installation of custom firmware. What to do in this case? Usually it helps to rollback to the original firmware or restore from backup, but not in all cases. Probably the function of a module is disturbed.
  • Often in the gadget itself the synchronization mode is disabled, which by default is always on. The synchronization mode is adjusted through the settings menu.
  • Another problem is the absence of drivers for the phone itself. Strange as it may seem, but it can also play a role. Generally, in most cases the standard driver built into the operating system is suitable. If you do not have it, you must install it on your computer. But it is not easy to find the driver, it often comes from completely different models.
  • Finally check your computer for viruses and other harmful files. They often cause failures which affect the whole system. It is recommended to use antivirus.

If you have any questions about the article, please ask. If your question is related to the problem described above, be sure to specify the model of your phone or smartphone, so that I can help you!

USB connection settings to the computer

The first thing you should pay attention to is the notifications. that pops up on your phone immediately after it is connected to the USB port.

By default, the phone is not always immediately visible in Windows. very often, if you do not specifically allow file sharing with the device, it will only charge (like the author of the question).

The notification in Android pops up immediately, once it is connected to USB. you need to open this notification (called “Device connected” ). See. example below.

Android. The device is connected (see “USB Connection Settings on your computer” on page 16). notification)

Next, note which connection option is selected:

  • The device can work in MTP mode. t.е. option that allows you to share files with it (which is what we need);
  • In charging mode : t.е. You will not have access to any other function or settings except charging the phone;
  • camera (PTP): allows you to send photos with the help of a special USB flash drive. software.

Actually, just tick the “Media device (MTP)” option. ideally it should immediately sound the connection sound of a new drive in Windows, and in “My Computer” (explorer) you will see your device. Mission accomplished?!

The device is working in modem mode

Go to the settings at “Wireless Networks → → Modem Mode”. In this section you must turn off all options of the device as a modem.

The thing is that if you switch to, say, USB-modem mode the device cannot simultaneously be both a modem (sharing internet to PC) and exchange files with it like a flash drive.

Try to run debugging via USB

Very often the “USB debugging” tool helps to solve the problem. This feature is built into Android. True, there is one peculiarity: it can be “slightly” hidden from view. Here are the options on how to run it.

Options on how you can find the link to run debugging:

  • Settings. Development. USB debugging (you just need to check the box next to this item);
  • Settings. For Developers. Debugging via USB ;
  • Settings. Applications. Development. USB debugging (most popular for Android 2.2. 3.0);
  • Settings. Developer options. Debugging via USB ;
  • Settings. System. About smartphone (phone or tablet). Look for the item “build number” and click on it 4-8 times (a special link for developers should appear). notification that you have become a developer). Next, go back to settings. and you will see the menu for developers.

Settings. for developers (previously this link was not available!)

No driver on the root USB hub, on the phone

Another popular reason for “invisibility” of the phone is the lack of drivers. And drivers can be absent as on USB-hub computer, and on phone itself (even modern Windows 10 is not capable to recognize and set automatically drivers on some kinds of phones).

To see the status of drivers. open the device manager (to do this you can either use the WinPause shortcut (and then see “Update drivers”). menu on the left). or Windows Control Panel).

In the Device Manager expand the tab “USB Controllers” and see if you have a USB hub.

I recommend to right click on it and in the menu that appears choose “Update Driver” and follow the instructions of the wizard.

Important!

Try both automatic and manual updates! Often with the manual option you can choose from several driver versions. try different ones.

Remark!

And in general, ideally, it would be better to run the special. the comprehensive driver update utility and test your system with it. For example, Driver Booster allows you to do this in minutes.

Root USB hub // Device Manager

Note that if the driver is installed on your phone, you should see the name of your device (most often just its model) in the “Portable Devices” section.

Portable devices (phone driver installed)

Why Android phone is not visible on the computer via USB and only charging occurs. simple reasons and solutions

Before proceeding to additional methods of solving the problem when your phone is not visible through a USB connection, I recommend paying attention to the following simple points: very often the cause turns out to be something of the following:

  • If you took a USB connection cable from not original cheap charger or included with other device (for example. to charge wireless headphones or other device, not intended for receiving and transferring data) the reason can be exactly this: not all cables can transfer data, there are no appropriate contacts, and you can not notice it externally. The solution. a working cable with guaranteed data transfer capability.
  • If you are faced with the fact that when you connect your smartphone to the computer it is not visible, and the phone was recently repaired and something related to the board or connector was repaired, there is a good chance that the repair caused the problem: very often the connectors are soldered so that after that only the charging works properly. The solution is only to redo.
  • If you have a Mac OS, just install the Android File Transfer app for data transfer capability, official website: https://www.Android.com/filetransfer/
  • If you still have Windows XP, install the MTP (Media Transfer Protocol) driver. https://www.microsoft.com/en-in/download/details.aspx?ID=19153

Additionally, keep in mind that connecting even a functioning cable through a USB hub (USB port splitter), to a faulty USB connector of a computer or laptop, and sometimes to the front panel of a PC can cause the problem in question. Try a direct USB connection, a different socket, the back of the PC if you connected to the USB 3 socket.0 (usually blue). check if the problem persists when connected to USB 2.0.

And one last simple point: once the phone is connected to your computer, it requires it to start showing up in Explorer with the ability to view photos, videos and other files:

  • Unlock the phone when connected, if it is locked. you will not be able to access data on locked modern Android phones.
  • In the notification area, click on the USB connection notification (by default, most phones are connected for charging only). If the notification does not appear, or rather it does not say that it is a USB connection, but only the text about charging, then from the “point of view” of the phone the connection does not serve for data transfer (wrong cable, damaged cable, connector on the phone or computer). Below are screenshots of the notification on Android 9 and 8, on Samsung Galaxy and on Android 6-7.
  • Select MTP file transfer mode for USB connection. On older versions of Android there may also be an option to connect as USB Mass Storage, it will also work, and may work even better.

If the listed methods did not help, let’s move on to more complicated ways of fixing.

Reasons why the computer does not see the phone via USB

Software incompatibilities or technical problems can be to blame. Occasionally the cable gets damaged, the contacts in the smartphone break. In the first case you should try a different cord, and in the second case apply to the service center to replace the connector. A broken port in your computer can also cause problems, so switch the wire to a different socket to fix the problem. These are the most common hardwired failures.

It is more difficult with software errors, as there are many reasons for failures. This can be missing or outdated drivers, incorrect connection modes (when the computer charges Smart, but blocks documentation transferring to folders) and other incompatibilities, which we will talk about in detail below.

What other ways are there to connect?

You always have a backup option. services with which you can transfer files between your computer and mobile device over the Internet. These are AirDroid, Pushbullet, and cloud storage like Google Drive, OneDrive, and Dropbox. They will allow you to do without Bluetooth and USB if these options don’t work or aren’t suitable.

This piece was first published in August 2017. In February 2021, we updated the text.