Quick overview:
Is your CD/DVD drive not working? The sound card stutters? A look at the Device Manager reveals that something is wrong! If you see a yellow exclamation mark here, this usually indicates a more serious problem. The various error codes, which we present to you in more detail in this article, will help you. [By Sandro Villinger]
Normally, device installation follows the same pattern: you install a device (or plug it in), Windows recognizes the device, installs the driver and assigns various system resources to it. But what happens if the device does not work? How to check for a possible device or driver conflict...
Start Device Manager
You start the Device Manager by pressing the "Windows key+R" simultaneously and press "devmgmt.msc" into the Execute field. Now confirm with "OK".
You will now see various entries, each representing a device or component of your PC/notebook. If you see a yellow exclamation mark here, the device is not installed correctly, has an error or no driver was found. If you see a red X (for Windows XP) or a blue arrow (Vista), the device is deactivated. You can then simply right-click on it and select "Activate" to switch it on again.
If you double-click on the entry, you will always be presented with an error code:
As is so often the case in the Windows world, these error codes are not always unique. There are around 30 error codes in total, all of which have different meanings, causes and solutions. The following table lists all error codes clearly and gives you advice...
The error codes in the device manager
Code 1 | "This device is not configured correctly": Reinstall the device driver or use a different driver. |
Code 3 | "The driver for this device is either corrupted or there is not enough memory or other resources available": Try downloading the driver again from the manufacturer or ask for a replacement CD/DVD. It is also possible that you have too little memory for the device (e.g. a modern graphics card), which is why you should upgrade. |
Code 10 | "The device cannot be started": See code 1. |
Code 12 | "This device cannot find sufficient resources that can be used. If you want to use this device, you must deactivate another device on this system": There is a resource conflict here. It is better not to touch the resource management, but to try to connect the device to another slot or port. |
Code14 | "You must restart the computer for this device to work properly": Restart your computer. |
Code 16 | "Not all resources used by the device could be identified": See code 12. |
Code 18 | "The drivers for this device must be reinstalled": Driver files have been damaged (.inf, .sys, etc.). You should reinstall the driver here. |
Code 19 | "Windows cannot start this hardware device because its configuration information (in the registry) is incomplete or corrupted": There is a problem with the Windows registry. You can try reinstalling the driver, restoring a newer driver version or restoring the registry to the correct status using XP System Restore. |
Code 21 | "The device will be removed": After a few seconds, the device will be removed from the Device Manager, for example after you have started an uninstall. |
Code 22 | "The device has been deactivated": The device was switched off by right-clicking and deactivating. You can rectify this via Activate. |
Code 24 | "This device is either not available, is not working properly or not all drivers have been installed": The device probably has a hardware defect if reinstalling/updating the driver did not help. |
Code 28 | "The drivers for this device have not been installed": Install a driver via Update. |
Code 29 | "This device is not working properly because the device's firmware does not provide the required resources": Update the device's firmware. You can usually find more information about the process on the manufacturer's website and it is very likely that there are also convenient Windows applications that can perform this task. If this involves an onboard component (e.g. graphics card, sound card or network card integrated in the mainboard), you should check whether these are also activated (enabled) in the computer's BIOS. |
Code 31 | "The device is not working properly because Windows cannot load the drivers required for the device": Update the driver. |
Code 32 | "A driver (service) has been deactivated for this device. Another driver may be able to take over this functionality": In this case, use a newer and, if possible, WHQL-authenticated driver. |
Code 33 | "Windows cannot determine which resources are required for this device": The device is defective and must be replaced by the manufacturer. |
Code 34 | "Windows cannot determine the settings for this device. Consult the documentation supplied with the device and use the "Resources" tab to set the configuration": Redistribute the resources via Resources in the Device Manager. |
Code 35 | "The system firmware does not contain enough information to configure and use the device correctly. Request a firmware or BIOS update from the computer manufacturer if you want to use the device": Download the latest BIOS version from the website of your motherboard manufacturer and install it. Older BIOS versions in particular have problems with the resource allocation of new devices. |
Code 36 | "The device requests a PCI interrupt although it was configured for an ISA interrupt (or vice versa). Reconfigure the interrupt for the device using the computer's setup program": Check the BIOS to see whether it is possible to assign more IRQs to PCI or ISA devices. If not, you may need to swap the cards. |
Code 37 | "The device driver for this hardware could not be initialized": Uninstall the driver and reinstall it. |
Code 38 | "The device driver for this hardware could not be loaded because an earlier instance is loaded in memory": Restart the computer. |
Code 39 | "The device driver for this hardware could not be loaded. The driver may be damaged or not available": Uninstall the driver and reinstall it. |
Code 40 | "This hardware cannot be accessed because the information in the registration key is not available or has been recorded incorrectly": Uninstall the driver and reinstall it. |
Code 41 | "The device driver for this hardware was loaded successfully, but the device could not be found": Make sure that the device is still correctly seated (PCI, AGI, PCI-E etc.) or connected to the computer (USB, Firewire etc.). Delete the driver, connect the device and reinstall the driver. |
Code 42 | "The device driver for this hardware could not be loaded because such a device is already running": Do you have two devices of the same type installed that share the same resources? If so, there is usually nothing you can do except remove the second device. A restart could also help. |
Code 43 | "The device was stopped due to an error": The device or the driver is defective. |
Code 44 | "This hardware device has been deactivated by an application or service": Restart your computer. |
Code 45 | "This hardware device is not currently connected to the computer": The device is no longer available but is still displayed. |
Code 46 | "This device cannot be accessed because the operating system is shutting down": Wait until the shutdown process is complete. |
Code 47 | "This hardware device cannot be used because it has been prepared for "Safe removal" but has not been removed": Remove the device and plug it in again or restart the computer. |
Code 48 | "The software for this device has not been initialized because it is causing errors on Windows. Please contact the hardware manufacturer to obtain a new driver": Update the driver and make sure to download WHQL-authenticated drivers. |
Code 49 | "New hardware devices could not be started because the system structure is too large (maximum size of the registry database has been exceeded)": Here you should uninstall some drivers that you do not need. |
You now have the first clues and solutions if your devices are not working correctly...
Yours, Sandro Villinger

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