Windows 7 not installing any USB Flash drive drivers - Access Denied?

[lived666]

So I started out having the same problem. Critical update done on 05/23/2014. Came back to work the following Tuesday. Gives me the same access denied message. AND...I can't download updates. And I can't restore. Gives me an error message. I'm an admin. FRUSTRATED! My IT guy told me only option was to start all over. This wasn't what I wanted to hear. HELP!!!

Have you tried uninstalling the update?

 

[TheBossMan]

LOL had this same issue recently on 2 machines. Tell me did someone recently installed iLivid video downloader or something like that? A few sites has a malware infected copy of iLivid. That was the last thing both users remember installing on their machines. I might just be some malware that came from the website where they downloaded iLivid from.

Install and update Malwarebytes. Then run a scan with malwarebytes. Fixed it for both machines. I noticed also on USB drives access denied but thought it was only usb. But on installing new Nvidia drivers it also gave access denied. Basically any new driver trying to be loaded did the same. Malwarebytes removed what ever caused the problem.

Hope this helps.

 

[Census]

I've been having the same problem with a Laptop of a client that has been running with no problem. Suddenly it will not install the USB Root Hub drivers. In fact everything as ld13 described. I feel with you mate.

I don't have a solution but I am astounded a the amount of jackass advice that this problem seems to generate.

ld13 has spotted it properly and it is a Windows permissions problem. In my case the culprit is a fully legal Windows 7 Home Basic.

This has nothing to do with BIOS settings, with trying another device or with the Windows being downloaded from anywhere. I've been struggling with this problem for a week now and I see this kind on non-advice popping up on all kinds of forums together with the usual "reload Windows" guff. It's verbal fluff, not help. I just spent 5 minutes reading a thread on a forum where the theory for this issue was that the motherboard was the wrong one. Geez. Don't people think any more?

ld13 all I can tell you is this

I suspect that trouble is caused by a virus/malware or a buggy program/update. Trying to guess which permission is the culprit if all the obvious ones seem correct is almost impossible. In Home Basic there is no access to the Local Security Policy Editor. If you are able to access this tool you can at least check the permissions.

The other thing that nobody seems mention. Probably because it is unlikely but not impossible, is that the USB controller is blown. Easy enough to test, boot with a Windows PE or Linux bootable and plug in a USB drive.

Or you could always do what the hack mechanics do and RELOAD WINDOWS!

If the USB controller is blown, how the hell will the other USB devices work?

 

[TheBossMan]

If the USB controller is blown, how the hell will the other USB devices work?

Agreed with above. The controller is not blown. If you guys bothered to read the opening post. It's detecting the device, windows just says access denied trying to load the driver. Something is blocking access to the driver installation, that is why you are getting an "Access Denied" error.

Don't believe me try installing newer driver for any other device on the machine you will get the same "Access Denied" error.
More than likely some malware as I had on 2 machines recently. Run Malwarebytes just the free copy, don't have to buy it. Just do an update 1st.

Only thing I did on both machines was install Malwarebytes fully updated and Microsoft Security Essentials, but the malwarebytes scan picked up and fixed a bunch of items and asked for a reboot after which I was able to install drivers again.

If this does not fix it then something more serious on Windows and you might have to reload.

 

[ichigo]

Easiest fix for me earlier was to system restore before I installed Adobe Reader and seemed to work