How to Uninstall a USB 2.0 Driver

USB 2.0 devices are increasing in number since they can be used in all modern laptops and desktops. While common peripherals like mice and keyboards do not need drivers for their basic functions to be used, other USB 2.0 devices like webcams, mobile phones, printers, and scanners may require drivers that are usually provided in a CD or found in the manufacturer's website. Once you find yourself not using the driver anymore, uninstalling it will help free some disk space, which can help speed up your system performance.

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Computer or laptop with one or more USB 2.0 slots
Windows XP (or newer)

Instructions

- 1
  
  Eject the device that is powered by the driver that you will uninstall. This is necessary to ensure that any file involved in the driver are no longer used in memory so that it can be safely removed. You can easily eject any USB 2.0 device that is plugged in by looking at the system tray (next to the clock on the taskbar) and left clicking once on the green arrow (or USB icon with green check mark on Windows Vista/7) and selecting the device to eject.
- 2
  
  Head to the "Device Manager" by going to the "Control Panel" and then launching the "System" item. If you are running Windows XP or an older Windows version, click the "Hardware" tab and select the "Device Manager" icon. Choose the category that your device belongs to and expand it by clicking the + sign next to it. Right-click the device that you wish to uninstall and click "Uninstall".
- 3
  
  To ensure that the driver is completely removed, check the Start menu for any traces of the driver and see if there is an uninstall shortcut in the menu group. If not, there may be an item in the Add/Remove Programs (or "Programs and Features" in Windows Vista/7") that can be clicked on to run the uninstaller.

Tips & Warnings

If you cannot see any icon in the notification tray, it may be hidden. Click the small arrow on the left of the icons to reveal the other icons and then eject from there. If there is still no icon, unplug the device instead.
Once you uninstall a USB 2.0 driver, you will not be able to reinstall it unless you have the driver CD or setup file.

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How to Uninstall a USB 2.0 Driver

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