Undesirable icon

[Adrian67]

I have a "removable device" icon on My computer (Windows XP pro). It doesn't seem to correspond to anything. Maybe it came after I plugged in some time ago a camera that's unplugged now. How do I get rid of that icon? Thank you.

[Adrian67]

OOps, I'm wrong, the icon is for a portable device. Anyway, I wonder how I can remove it.

[BipolarBill]

Leave it.

[Adrian67]

I don't know how I can leave if no portable device is connected. There's probably something to do in the registry, but what?

[BipolarBill]

The PC is working now, right? There is no assurance that it will continue to work if you should start "fixing" things that don't really need to be fixed. Forewarned is forearmed...

If you really want to know what this device is, check it's Properties. If you then want to know where it's connected, open Device Manager and click View > Devices by connection and you can trace where it is connected there. It's still not "easy".

Most likely, this is a USB device that you haven't properly loaded the drivers for - like a card reader port in a printer. The only way to clear that up is to fully install the proper drivers for the device. If you let Windows install drivers automatically or allow Windows to install drivers from a folder, the installation may be incomplete. It's best to run the full "Setup" for any new device.

[Adrian67]

The computer is working now, but the problem may be connected to another one: I can't connect the computer to a PNG (Navigon 7100) with Microsoft active sync . In fact the PNG is probably the device that made this icon come. But now it remains in My Computer at any time. I can't see the properties of this device when right-clicking on its icon in My Computer, all I see is Open, Explore, Make shortcut. No way to see it in Device Manager even by clicking View>Device by connection. Yes, it is a USB device. But I can't see it in Device Manager, so I don't know how to reinstall the driver.

[BipolarBill]

So it's not actually an "undesirable" icon so much as an unknown one.

Now that you know what it is, ask yourself if it really matters. After all, you can update this device on another PC if you think that you need to update it at all.

I would test the device on another PC. If it fails there, it is defective. If it works on another PC, contact the manufacturer for troubleshooting advice.

[Steve R Jones]

Adrian67, it wouldn't hurt to mention the other things you've tried that have been suggested on other sites;)

[Adrian67]

Sorry, no I still don't know what it is. There's no portable media device connected and the icon Portable Media Device is on My Computer. Thank you for your replies. Is there a way to find an entry in the registry ? I'll back it up before trying to fix this.

[Adrian67]

In fact, it does not refer to a real device. I clicked on Display-Details and it said it is a system file. Rather weird, isn't it?

[BipolarBill]

I will stick with my original advice - leave it alone. I have seen these things clear up by themselves over time. Sometimes, Windows Update fixes it.

[Adrian67]

I did it! And I did it myself! I want into device manager/usb bus controller and unabled the mass storage hardware entry, then to My Computer and right-clicked on Appareil mobile, deleted it, this time it was possible, and then reenable the previous entry et voila!

Thank you for all your kind replies.

Andre