How to obtain and to install USB 2.0 drivers in Windows XP Service Pack 1

This article describes the availability of universal serial bus (USB) 2.0 driver support in Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 1.

USB 2.0 support for any Enhanced Host Controller Interface (EHCI) compliant host controller is available in Windows XP Service Pack 1 (SP1). If you have recently installed Windows XP Service Pack 1 on your computer, follow the directions in this article to obtain the latest USB 2.0 drivers.

How to determine whether you do not have to upgrade

You do not have to upgrade the USB 2.0 support if any one of the following conditions is true:

• You purchase a new USB 2.0-capable system that came with Windows XP Service Pack 1 pre-installed. Your original equipment manufacturer (OEM) makes sure that the system has the latest USB 2.0 driver stack.
• You already have Windows XP Service Pack 1 installed on the computer. You add a new USB 2.0 compatible PCI add-in card. In this situation, the latest Windows XP Service Pack 1 drivers for USB 2.0 are auto-selected during driver installation.
• You purchase and install Windows XP with Service Pack 1 included on the CD-ROM.
• You purchase a system from an OEM that slipstreams and pre-installs Windows XP Service Pack 1. Your OEM makes sure that the appropriate USB 2.0 drivers are identified and are installed on the system during GUI-mode install.

How to upgrade to the USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller driver in Windows XP Service Pack 1

If your computer supports USB 2.0, and you have a pre-installed USB 2.0 driver from the OEM, you can continue to use the earlier pre-installed drivers for USB 2.0. You can do this even after you install Windows XP Service Pack 1.

To upgrade to the USB 2.0 Enhanced Host Controller driver in Windows XP Service Pack 1, follow these steps:

1. Make sure that Windows XP Service Pack 1 is installed. Make sure that you have restarted your computer if you receive a message to do this.
   
   For more information about Windows XP Service Pack 1, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
   http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc768378.aspx (http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc768378.aspx)
2. Open Device Manager. Locate Devices by Type.
   
   To open Device Manager, either run Devmgmt.msc at a command prompt, or follow these steps:
   1. Click Start, right-click My Computer, and then click Manage.
   2. Expand System Tools, click Device Manager, and then click Devices by type on the View menu.
3. Right-click USB 2.0 EHCI Host controller, and then click Update Driver.
   
   You can find the USB Host controller entry in either of the following locations:
   • Universal Serial Bus Controllers.
   • Other Devices
     
     Note In the Other Devices location, the USB Host controller entry is labeled Universal Serial Bus controller with a yellow exclamation mark.
4. Click Install the software automatically (Recommended), and then click Next.
5. Click Finish when installation is finished.
   
   Note You may receive a message to restart your computer to finish the installation.

How to confirm driver versions

Make sure that you have the latest USB 2.0 drivers that are available in Windows XP Service Pack 1. You can do this by verifying your driver version in the following table:Note When you install the USB 2.0 drivers from Windows XP Service Pack 1, this overwrites any third-party vendor provided USB 2.0 driver stacks for your PCI add-in cards. We recommend that you remove these driver stacks before you install the Windows XP Service Pack 1 USB 2.0 drivers.

Advanced information

USB 2.0 is a specification revision of the original USB 1.1 specification. USB 2.0 was approved April 2000. The corresponding EHCI specification was finished March 2002.

Windows XP did not include support for USB 2.0 technology for the following reasons:

• There were no production quality EHCI 1.0 compatible host controllers.
• There were not enough production-quality USB 2.0 devices for testing.

The Windows XP Service Pack 1 installer is designed to update all drivers and all files that are included with Windows XP. Because USB 2.0 drivers are not included with Windows XP, you must follow the steps in this article to obtain the latest drivers after you install Windows XP Service Pack 1.

For more information about the most current articles that describe USBs, visit the following Microsoft Web site: