How to Fix Error ‘This Device Cannot Start’ (Code 10)

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The Device Manager typically fails to start USB or audio devices, which results in the Code 10 error. The drivers can’t be used with your operating system because they are out of date. Fortunately, there are several ways to guarantee that your hardware devices are constantly operational. The error “This device cannot start (code 10)” can be brought on by network adapter drivers that are incompatible, out-of-date, or are not present at all. According to reports from Windows users on various online forums, the code 10 error typically occurs after updating Windows 11. This error means that your Device Manager was unable to launch the hardware device or connect to it.

The code 10 error, “this device cannot start,” frequently affects portable devices. It manifests when Windows is unable to properly operate a piece of hardware, such as a printer or USB flash drive. It might appear as a result of Windows attempting to install the driver for a new device. On occasion, it might stop storage devices, Bluetooth hardware, or CD drives from appearing in This Computer. Affected devices’ status will also be displayed on the General tab of their Device Manager entry, which we’ll talk about later. Code 10 frequently occurs as a result of issues with USB or audio devices in particular.

Ways to Fix Error ‘This Device Cannot Start’ (Code 10)

Reboot Your Computer

The code 10 issues and other PC issues can be resolved with a quick reboot. Therefore, always begin with this straightforward troubleshooting step before moving on to complex solutions. Restart your computer after disconnecting all attached devices. Reconnect all of the hardware components and check the system once more. It’s time to move on to complex troubleshooting if the error still appears in the stop code for an inaccessible boot device.

Update the Device Driver

This machine won’t turn on. A device driver that is no longer current can also result in (Code 10). The device driver should be updated to the most recent version in order to resolve this problem.

Press the Windows key and the X key simultaneously to display the WinX menu.

Select Device Manager.

Go to Universal Serial Bus Controller and expand it.

Right-click on the target device driver and select “Update Driver Software” from the pop-up list.

Select “Automatically search for updated driver software” from the pop-up window.

Windows will begin searching for the latest device driver and follow the rest of the wizard to complete the entire update process.

Replace the Faulty Device

If none of the aforementioned fixes work for you, the gadget might be broken. The device will have to be changed out for a new one. However, if it’s a digital data storage drive, there ought to be a tone of files there. This free software was created specifically to recover lost and deleted data from various storage devices, including hard drives, SD cards, memory cards, pen drives, CD/DVD discs, and more. It can also locate the drive’s already-existing files. To see if this software can locate the files you require, try out the trial version first. To obtain this freeware, click the following download button.

Open the software and you will directly access the interface of this PC.

Select the external hard drive from the interface and press “Scan”.

The software will start scanning the selected drive. You will need to wait patiently until the entire scanning process is finished.

If the software is able to find the files you want to recover from the drive suffering from the Code 10 Device Unbootable Error, you can upgrade this software to the full version to recover all files without any limitations. You can directly restore these files to a new external hard drive.

Undo the Recent Changes on the Device Driver

when you obtain This machine won’t turn on. You can remember whether you installed a device or changed something in Device Manager just before this error occurs (Code 10). If so, there is a good chance that Code 10 was brought on by these changes. These modifications could be lacking. If restarting your computer doesn’t solve the problem, try these other solutions:

Remove or reconfigure a newly installed device.

Roll back the driver to a version prior to the update.

Perform a System Restore to undo any recent related changes in Device Manager.

If a Code 10 error occurs on a USB device, you can uninstall all devices under the Universal Serial Bus Controllers section of Device Manager. This would include USB mass storage devices, USB host controllers, and USB root hubs.

Modify the Related Value in Registry Editor

The registry may contain the UpperFilters and LowerFilters values, also referred to as upper and lower filters, for a number of device classes. However, the values in the DVD/CD-ROM Drives class are most frequently corrupted and problematic. To fix the problem, remove these values.

Press Win+R to open “Run”.

Type regedit and press Enter to enter the Registry Editor.

Go to ControlClass under CurrentControlSet in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE.

You must select the class GUI.

Select the UpperFilters and LowerFilters values and delete them.

Try an Older Driver Version

The most effective driver version is typically the most recent one. But that isn’t always the case. The device driver may occasionally have serious issues, which causes the Code 10 error. In such a case, you can attempt an older driver version to determine whether the problem can be fixed.

On their websites, almost all device manufacturers still offer previously released drivers. You can look up the driver online, identify your device’s brand, and download and install it on your computer. You can then proceed to see if you can use the device normally after that.

Power Flush

Turn off the PC.

Unplug all cables, especially the power cable.

Press and hold the power key for 30 seconds.

After connecting the power cables, turn on the computer.

Now check to see if the network adapter problem has been resolved.

Final words

We hope you like our article on how to Fix Error ‘This Device Cannot Start’ (Code 10). One of several Device Manager error codes is Code 10. It is produced when a hardware device cannot be started by Device Manager, which is typically brought on by out-of-date or damaged drivers. If a driver produces an error that Device Manager is unable to interpret, a device may also encounter a Code 10 error. In other words, a Code 10 error may occasionally be a very general message indicating a hardware or driver issue of some sort. Though the majority of Code 10 errors appear on USB and audio devices, the error could affect any hardware device in Device Manager.