R3 owners - USB 3.0 port problems

My USB 3.0 ports on the right hand side are CONSTANTLY going undetected.

The device manager isn't showing any missing devices, but if I plug in a USB device, you don't hear the classic Windows audio tone that something just got plugged, and the system doesn't recognize anything is there.

If I reinstall the drivers, it helps for maybe one boot cycle.

I really don't feel like doing a fresh install (I already am on a fresh install basically) but I don't know what's causing it. I think its software more than hardware here because the reinstalling the drivers seems to fix it temporarily.

I really don't feel like dealing with warranty repair, but that may be my next step.

Is anyone else having these problems, or have a fix for mine?

 

Is this on multiple devices or just one or two repeated devices that you're having issues with?

No problems with mine. I have a USB keyboard plugged in there 24/7 through multiple power cycles without issue.

 

Good to know that it SHOULD be working and that its not seriously flawed.

I will try some other devices.

I had the issue with 2 devices so far.

 

Still having the issue. Doesn't matter what I plug into them.

Gonna run the diagnostics check at bootup. If that comes back ok, gonna reformat again.

Irritating.

 

Are you using 3.0 or 2.0 devices? I have tried both on mine and they seem ok.. flash drive, keyboard, mouse, etc.

 

I don't have any 3.0 devices.

But after doing a hardware scan, they aren't even being recognized half the time.

So unfortunately it appears to be a hardware issue. I'm calling and asking Dell for a new mobo & daughterboard.

 

Dell said they would dispatch a tech. After 45 minutes of painfully being on the phone wasting my time.

I decided to reseat the daughterboard myself and see what happens.

So far they are working, but it was always off and on.

 

Hi! Ive had the same sort of problem, did a fresh install for my ssd as soon as i got the laptop, the drivers are installed, the ports did work before, but now, like you said, just get the windows ding and nothing comes up. How do you reseat the daughterboard? Do I have to take it apart? because im really not up for that.......... Help me please!

 

Try the latest drivers first

SONY/NEC/RENESAS Drivers & Firmwares

If that doesn't solve it do this

Unplug from a/c power
Remove battery
Press and hold power button for 1 minute

Put machine back together and see if it's working. If it is - that may be a permanent fix for you.

If it's not, reseating the daughterboard requires removing:

battery
hard drive
keyboard
touchpad/palmrest

Then you will have access to the daughterboard. I noticed mine only had 1 screw holding it in place, though there are 2 screw holes. So I reseated it and added a second screw and it seems to be working so far.

Let me know if I can help any further.

 

Cheers. Tried the drivers, didnt work, well, work a little bit then cut out through transfers, so just waiting to hear back from alienware. Dont fancy risking exposing my clumsiness on it. Dropped it the second day i had it! luckily i'd installed the ssd...... Thanks again.

 

Let me know what parts they replace, and if it solves your issue.

 

I see that AlienFusion has some option for disabling USB hubs as part of a power profile. Could one of these be set? Because the two ports on the right are USB3.0 ports that are not integrated into the chipset, I wonder if that is the "hub" the setting references.

 

Good looking out.

I don't have AlienFusion installed - for me it was definitely reseating the daughterboard (and adding the missing screw. Thanks for that one Dell!).

I'm going to install Fusion anyways to change my LED colors around, etc - I'll check out that setting then.

 

What usb 3.0 flash drive has worked successfully for you in your M11x?

Have you or do you know anyone who has a Dell with usb 3.0 that successfully runs SuperTalent's SuperCrypt or RaidDrive usb memory?

 

I think I may have figured out what causes the issue with the USB 3.0 ports. Basically, I did a restore using Alienrespawn which took me to the point prior to when I plugged in a USB mouse and USB harddrive into the other port. I believe that everytime both ports are connected at the same time, it causes some sort of driver conflict and ultimately drops the USB controller. I don't think it is a faulty logic board after all, but crappy NEC drivers. Maybe Dell will release updated USB 3 drivers that prevent these issues. I am still testing my R3 to see if the ports hold up with a mouse connected. I would be interested to see if anyone else has consistently used two devices at a time on the right side and never have any problems.

 

Also, in case any R3 owners are reading this old post I found that details the exact issue I have described recently, I found another thread from the Dell XPS forums also describing the same problem with USB 3.0. It seems that it isn't a hardware issue since many have claimed after 10+ hours on the phone with Dell and multiple motherboard and daughterboard replacements, the USB issue persists.

Does Alienware not believe this is an issue? I just got my m11x 2 weeks ago and it apparently still exists, yet when I call Dell/alienware, they act like they never heard of this problem:

Dell XPS USB 3.0 Issues - CNET Dell Forums

 

Works fine for me. Had this when i got it, was some stupid USB power saving option on that power saving feature alienware includes(alien fusion). Take your time and set the settings right.

EDIT: USB selective suspend option <- i think i turned that off and works fine now.

 

Where can I find that option?

 

AlienFusion -> advanced settings of your power plan -> USB settings

 

Thanks for responding! +1

 

I had a question that I was hoping to get answered because I have until the end of next week to return my unit. So after doing a restore to a point prior to when I first noticed the issue with my usb controller failing and getting some beeps, my unit today has worked flawlessly. My mouse plugs into usb 3.0 and works. I can reboot and the mouse still comes on. I synced my ipad and iphone without problems and I bought a new seagate usb 3 go flex drive and it seemed to work fine as well. Assuming I don't run into further issues again, do you think my unit is good and not suffering some sort of faulty logic board?

 

your motherboard sounds fine, since software fix worked. Not saying some hardware cant be fixed to an extent using software, but if it wasn't software at fault you would still have that problem.

 

Thanks! I did actually have the issue appear once last night when I booted up. The only thing I figured may have triggered the issue was that I bought and tested a brand new Seagate Goflex 500 gb USB 3.0 drive which worked prior to me booting up last night. I realized I did not disable the USB suspend mode as you suggested, so I did that, rebooted and the mouse and driver came back without having to reinstall! So how does just changing a setting in the power plan cause a USB host controller from not starting and missing from the device manager list to actually working again?

 

well it basically turns off the USB 3.0 controller whenever it feels like it from my experience.