Slow USB in Windows 7 | 4 Methods to Fix It

One of the common problems we encounter when using our laptops or PCs is slow file transfers to and from USB devices . This article will tell you how to fix a slow USB connection in Windows 7.

If you are trying to transfer some files from your PC to a flash drive but the USB transfer speed is very slow, this can be really annoying, especially if we are trying to transfer files that are very large.

To end this problem, we will show you some effective ways to speed up your USB transfer speed on all versions of Windows. And we will also show you how to recover your data if you lost it during USB data transfer.

Slow USB on Windows 7 is one of the most common problems faced by users. Actually, slow transfer via USB can occur due to two reasons, the first is the transfer speed of the USB port and the other is the slow reading speed of the target. In this article, we will introduce you some simple and working ways to solve this slow USB transfer.

Method 1. Enable the USB 3.0 port on the computer

When it comes to solving slow USB on Windows 7, you need to enable the appropriate port as the first workaround. USB 3.0 is also known as SuperSpeed ​​USB.

To enjoy high speed via USB, you need to enable the appropriate ports on your device which is USB 3.0. It is the latest and improved port. The previous version only had 4-pin connectors but this latest version has 9-pin connectors. It supports a transfer rate of up to 5GB per second.

Steps to enable USB 3.0 what you should do is the following:

• Step 1: Press Win + R and your Run dialog box will open.
• Step 2: Type devmgmt.msc in the box and press Enter, it will open the device administrator.
• Step 3: Click the small arrow next to the Universal Serial Bus controller section and expand it.
• Step 4: There is an entry called USB Root Hub. Check the USB port version, select USB 3.0 if mentioned.

Method #2. Update USB Drivers

Sometimes, the computer does not recognize the device you insert into the port, and if it does recognize it, it may not work. To resolve this type of problem that also causes slow USB on Windows 7, you need to update the USB drivers.

There are many ways to do it, but we will recommend the best solution which is to update the operating system that will bring updated drivers.

The steps to fix slow USB transfer speed are as follows:

• Step 1: Open Windows Settings.
• Step 2: Click Update & Security after Windows Settings opens.
• Step 3: Check for updates and if available, Update.

Method #3. Optimize USB flash drive performance

This is another solution for slow USB on Windows 7. To optimize the performance of the USB flash drive, you need to enable “Write Cache.” It is a process that firstly places the files you want to copy into a cache in the RAM and then sends them to the USB device’s readable flash memory.

Write caching enables the file dialog box that causes the device to close sooner. The actual copying still takes longer, but it all happens in the background. Write caching is disabled for USB devices by default, but you can enable it in Device Manager using the following steps:

• Step 1: Click the Start menu and right-click “Computer.” Choose “Properties.”
• Step 2: Click on “Device Manager” in the left pane. Double-click on “Disk Drives.”
• Step 3: Right-click on the USB drive entry of interest. Choose “Properties” again to fix the slow USB transfer.
• Step 4: Click on the “Policies” tab. Choose the “Better performance” radio button.
• Step 5: Click the “OK” button and close Device Manager.

Method #4. Convert USB system from FAT32 to NTFS

For some reason, if you've formatted your hard drive with the FAT32 file system , you've probably found that you can't copy large files to that drive. So, how do you fix that, and how do you convert the file system from FAT32 to NTFS ? Don't worry, I'll show you the best way to do it.

Method 1: Convert the file system directly

• Step 1: Open a symbol of the system with administrator mode.
• Step 2: Type convert G: /FS:NTFS (“G” is the drive name, set it according to yours)
• Step 3: Wait a moment, the conversion takes time. And you will have successfully converted it.

Method 2: Reformat the drive

If you don't have much important data, this method is the best to solve slow USB in Windows 7. Just reformat the drive.

• Step 1: Right click on the drive, choose forma tear.
• Step 2: Select NTFS from the system drop-down menu.
• Step 3: Finish formatting, copy your data.

You might be interested in: How to Update Graphics Drivers in Windows 7 and Windows 10

How to Recover Lost Data from USB Flash Drive after Formatting

When trying to solve slow USB in Windows 7 you accidentally delete a file to format the USB flash drive, you may want to perform recovery of that file. If you are lucky, maybe you will find them in the Recycle Bin. But if not, things can get a little difficult, but don’t worry, that’s not the end.

To make this arduous task easier and reduce stress, you can use iBeesoft Data Recovery . This tool helps you recover deleted files or data from a formatted flash drive on your Windows machine.

• Step 1: Download the data recovery program on your computer. After launching the software, select all the lost file types that need to be restored.
• Step 2: As a next step, select your USB flash drive to scan all the lost files. Click on the Scan button to scan the files from USB.
• Step 3: Once the scanning process is completed, you will be able to see the missing files listed. Select all of them and click the Recover button to save them to your computer.

Final words

Slow USB speeds in Windows 7 are a common problem, but not all users know how to fix it. This article offers some solutions to help you resolve the issue.

You can try them without any problem and you will see that they will help you greatly improve the speed of file transfer between your PC and any USB you connect to it.