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Help S5 to PC Connection Problem

Firey05, which version of Windows is your PC running?

With Win7x64, my S5 gets a drive letter, and must be "safely removed" just like the majority of USB storage devices. I have the option of leaving it connected as "an installer" (I really don't know what that means, as I've never seen it before) or pulling down the notification bar and changing it to MTP or PTP. However, it looks to me like, when left as an installer, I am seeing less files in Card and Phone then I see using MTP.

This all occured BEFORE I rooted, too. I was able to transfer the files needed for the root modifications by USB cable to the Card folder while setting up to use Safestrap. But none of my internally running apps (I have not moved any to the SD) were able to write their backup files to the SD card until after Safestrap and the appropriate SD writing fix were applied.
 
Zoandroid said:
Firey05, which version of Windows is your PC running?

With Win7x64, my S5 gets a drive letter, and must be "safely removed" just like the majority of USB storage devices. I have the option of leaving it connected as "an installer" (I really don't know what that means, as I've never seen it before) or pulling down the notification bar and changing it to MTP or PTP. However, it looks to me like, when left as an installer, I am seeing less files in Card and Phone then I see using MTP.

This all occured BEFORE I rooted, too. I was able to transfer the files needed for the root modifications by USB cable to the Card folder while setting up to use Safestrap. But none of my internally running apps (I have not moved any to the SD) were able to write their backup files to the SD card until after Safestrap and the appropriate SD writing fix were applied.
Click to expand...

This makes me wonder if it is a x64 problem. Has anyone else had issues with 64 bit OS's and connecting their devices?

I am running Windows 7 (32 bit) and don't get all those extra options / hassle in connecting the device.

Here is an image of how it appears on my PC (Image from the internet but represents what I see)

Wp7-USB-Storage.jpg
 
Zoandroid said:
Next question. How long has it been since you did a completely clean reformat and installation of Windows on your PCs? "Windows rots". Sometimes tough problems can only be solved by starting over from scratch. It's easier to change a lightbulb than to do microscopic analysis on all the atoms of the filament to see which one lost cohesion, and why. ;)
Click to expand...

I have tried on a fairly clean install of Win7 with no difference in the results.

Peter
 
Here's some ideas that come to mind:

It sounds like your Win7 installations do not have the MTP driver, or if they do it is corrupt? Have you accepted all the Win7 suggested updates?

Have you tried creating a new user profile on one of your PCs, installing the Samsung driver, and then seeing if it would connect? Corrupt user profiles can cause a ton of headaches.

Was Win7 installed to all of your PCs from the same disc? I know you'd need different activation codes, but if you used the same physical disc to do them all, there might be a defect on the disc itself dealing with getting that driver installed. This leads me to asking if you have tried a "repair/installation"? Win7 can re-install over itself without losing your data and settings, often fixing any messed up drivers that were Win7 provided.
 
Have you seen this rather intriguing reported solution when dealing with the S3? I'd never heard of this before:

"
Posted 03 October 2013 - 05:29 PM
Solution for me came from: http://answers.micro...bb-63c7ed9a79f9

If your Samsung device has any device administrators with SD card control, it will prevent install of the MTP driver. For me, both Kies and Email (for corporate email account) had admin privileges. Once I disabled these the driver installed normally.

Steps:
1) On your phone, go to Security -> Device administration->Device adminstrators
2) Check if there are any app have admin privilege, you have deactivate them to gain MTP access.

Please remember if the applicaiton is like an email or something, then you will lose all data when you revoke admin privilege

Hope this helps!"

-----------

On my S5 there are 2 listings under Device Administrators, but neither of them is checked. If you see some checked on your S5 you might try clearing the checkbox and see if that helps.
 
Zoandroid said:
Here's some ideas that come to mind:
Click to expand...

Zoandroid - Thanks for the reply.

All of my PCs do have the MTP driver, latest version. I have re-copied the individual driver files from my friend's PC where everything works fine but that didn't do anything. I have a hunch that the problem is not my MTP driver itself but rather something else that's preventing the MTP from loading.

I did try a new user profile early-on and that didn't change anything.

Each of my Win7 PCs was set up from a different install disc. I don't think I have tried a re-install but I did try an almost-clean Win7 install on one of the PCs.

I am still intrigued by why does the MTP driver try to load on my PCs but seems to be unnecessary on my friend's PC?

Thanks for your help!

Peter
 
Sorry if you've mentioned the answer to this question previously, but I don't recall if you have actually tried connecting some OTHER Samsung device to one or all of your Win7 PCs. If one of your friends has a Samsung phone or tablet, ask them to connect it to your PC. If that works, it then seems to indicate the issue is within your S5 itself. If theirs don't connect either, then I would start looking at what applications and utilities you have installed in common on all of your Win7 PCs, and start un-installing them one by one on ome of the PCs and keep trying to connect the S5 in between each app removal.

One of the big problems with Windows OS is that installing some program today 'can' completely mess up some program or driver you had previously no trouble using. It seems Win7 is not as bad with this as some previous Windows OS versions, which let any supplied dll file simply overwrite an existing one during program installation, regardless of how ancient the 'newly installed' dll is by comparison. Some programmers are too lax in finding the most current version of a dll and just toss in some outdated version they know will run "their" program, despite that it hoses other programs. So it may be a case of some program, utility, or driver you run on all your PCs, that your friend does not run on their PC, which is standing in the way.

You may need to do a completely clean drive format and re-install of Windows 7 on one of your PCs before you ever solve this problem. Then keep a watch as you customize it and set up all your apps to see at what point your S5 suddenly stops connecting to it via MTP. That will tell you whatever step you had just taken on the PC points to the cause.
 
Zoandroid said:
Sorry if you've mentioned the answer to this question previously, but I don't recall if you have actually tried connecting some OTHER Samsung device to one or all of your Win7 PCs.
Click to expand...

I have tried connecting my friend's S4 to all of my PCs. Exact same results as connecting my S5; it doesn't connect However both her S4 and my S5 DO connect to her Win7 PC.

I have tried on an almost clean install of Win7. When I built and set up one of my PCs I created a disk image right after installing Win7 and then running Windows Update but before installing other programs (except the imaging program). I recovered that original image and tried my S5 and had the same problem. Weird!

Do you have any thoughts about why the MTP Device Driver loads/fails on my PCs but, on my friend's PC where my S5 does connect, that MTP Device Driver does not even try to load?

Thanks!

Peter
 
smith058 said:
On your almost clean install did you install the Samsung drivers?
Click to expand...

I first tried the S5 before installing the Samsung drivers and then after. Same problem before and after. The "MTP Device Driver" (which is Windows, not Samsung) failed to load.

The "Samsung USB Composite Device" driver did load (after installing) but as soon as the "MTP Device Driver" failed everything came to a screeching halt.

I continue to be curious about why this "MTP Device Driver" is even trying to load on my PCs? It does not load on my friend's PC where my S5 does connect. It does not seem to be necessary on my friend's PC.

Peter
 
What happens if you selected PTP instead of MTP from you phone when you connect. Just wondering if it will accept picture mode...
 
Is your PC you are mentioning here that had the disc image restored a PC that you bought retail, or that you built up from a motherboard?

I ask this because my next thought is to start suspecting the USB drivers for the PC. Have you tried downloading all the latest chipset drivers for your motherboard and installing them? This kind of weird problem is definitely in the wheelhouse of a USB issue, for sure!

Have I mentioned how much I hate USB? :p :D

If it is a retail built PC it can be harder to get the chipset drivers. If a motherboard build you should be able to find them on the support site for the board, although they sometimes archive ( hide ) the drivers for older boards. But they will be there somewhere. I'd do that next, if you haven't tried it already.

Have you ever seen any other kind of USB issue on your Win7 PCs?
 
Zoandroid said:
Is your PC you are mentioning here that had the disc image restored a PC that you bought retail, or that you built up from a motherboard?
Click to expand...

My main desktop PC (the one I did the disc image restore on) is one I built. I installed the latest chipset and USB drivers from ASUS (motherboard) a couple of months ago.

To the best of my recollection, all USB devices I have ever connected to this PC, including other phones, have worked flawlessly except for my S5 and my friend's S4.

I have also done a lot of testing of this problem on my main laptop which is from Dell. Plus three other PCs. Exact same problem on all of them. It is very odd to me that I'm having this problem on five different PCs.

Peter
 
pmokover said:
My main desktop PC (the one I did the disc image restore on) is one I built. I installed the latest chipset and USB drivers from ASUS (motherboard) a couple of months ago.

To the best of my recollection, all USB devices I have ever connected to this PC, including other phones, have worked flawlessly except for my S5 and my friend's S4.

I have also done a lot of testing of this problem on my main laptop which is from Dell. Plus three other PCs. Exact same problem on all of them. It is very odd to me that I'm having this problem on five different PCs.

Peter
Click to expand...

Odd indeed. And I feel your pain! This has to be hair-pulling-ly frustrating for you. I presume when you connected OK to your friend's PC you were using the same USB cable you use at home? If so that likely rules out the cable as the cause.

When I've had similar problems with older phones connecting, one thing that sometimes helped was to:

- completely disconnect the USB cable at both ends (I swear I don't know why it matters that I unplugged it from the PC, but it DID. It is like Windows knows the cable is connected even though there is nothing on the other end).

- Reboot the phone, reboot the PC. Then hook up the cable and try again.

When you finally solve this issue, one caveat you may also encounter at that point, once you get the connection, is that your files may refuse to copy. If that happens, look for sources on the phone that have obscenely LONG path names for the files. Card/Android and Card/Evernote (if you use Evernote) are the guilty party for me. I can not copy those folders to my PC. The copy will start, and then just stop, as if it were completed, without copying any files. Once I started deselecting those folders, I was able to copy all the other Card subfolders that do not start with a period in the name. ( Those are system files anyway, so I don't need to back them up).


Someday if android app devs ever realize they need to have a user option to save content and backups to the REAL ExtSdCard for every app they make, we won't have a need to backup any of the Card files anymore.

I keep asking myself the same question. What is "different" about this fellow's home PCs than that of his friend's in another location. I can't think anything wifi related would be involved in this.

I know you won't like this next suggestion, but I think it is worth a try if you have no other options. Reformat the C drive on one of your PCs and install Win7 from scratch, and see if it will THEN connect after you install the Samsung USB driver.

Hey, have you seen this:

"I just spent HOURS on Google trying to figure this out. More than likely this is the answer, somehow your Qualcomm Modem settings got changed.
If you are using Android 4.3 open the dial pad and dial *#0808#
Android 4.2 *#7284#

then under Qualcomm USB or USB settings it should be on MTP or MTP+ADB, it was probably on RMNET + DM + MODEM. Make the change and choose OK.

All should be fine now.
biggrin.png
"

Might be worth looking into.

I just read something that brought back some really moldy memories of Windows Gone By ---

First, check Device Mgr. and make sure you don't have any yellow triangles, especially in the USB section. If there are none, then try THIS:

(This is a real zebra hunt move, but at this point I'd be trying it)

Boot SAFE MODE. Look in Device Mgr. for any yellow triangles. Believe it or not, sometimes a device can have multiple listings of the same "unrecognized device" yellow triangles attached to it, and for some odd reason they will NOT show up unless you look in SAFE MODE. If you find any, remove ALL of them. Then reboot normally and check Device Mgr. again. If no triangles, try connecting the phone. If it still doesn't connect, WHILE the cable is still hooked up, check Device Mgr. again. It might yield a clue to what is wrong.

Also, have you ever looked at the Windows System Event Viewer? That might tell you something too from each time you connected the phone. It's under Control Panel / Administrative Tools / Event Viewer. It's often rather cryptic, but it might help.
 
So far (knock on wood) my S5 has connected to my both my home computer and my work computer with no issues. I simply plugged it in using the USB cord it came with and it worked.

It should and does show up as a portable device in Windows explorer. I have Win7 X64 Pro at both locations. I also get a drive letter as well or actually I get 2. Actually I think those are pre assigned from when I use flash drives. Or they are from the 1 flash I have plugged in which is a hardware lock and maybe the other is the mouse. When you look at your phone in the device manager. You should see a series of drives all under the "Portable Devices" device.

E:\
F:\
Galaxy S5

The above is how mine looks in the device manager. I'm at work at the moment, I'll verify my home is the same later.

When looking at the device manager you should already see portable devices and maybe E:\ F:\ should already be there (different for different people). Then when you plug in your phone it will add Galaxy S5 to the list. When you unplug it will disappear yet the E:\ and F:\ will remain (those letters may be different for other people).

When looking at windows explorer it is the same. E:\ and F:\ should already be there (note you cannot click on either and see anything depending what they are). However when you plug your phone in it should show up as a portable device. On the left pane it will say Galaxy S5 and on the right pane it will show up under the heading Portable Device. Actually to clarify this is what you should see if you click on the start button and then click on "Computer" (which used to be My computer in XP).

All of the above is based on default settings.
 
On all the android devices I have I resort to ES Explorer. Share a Dir or a drive on the PC with everyone . Switch to NETWORK / Lan in ES Explorer on the phone ,enter the IP of the PC , user name and password and you have a FAST Wifi connect Bi-directional. Way faster than blue tooth. A lot of PC's don't have blue tooth anyway. I even use it on my $29 android dongle hooked to my TV to watch movies and Music videos that have been downloaded to the PC. It's a free app on the Play store, there are several to choose from, I use the one with the 3 on it.

Have fun play nice
 
hakit said:
On all the android devices I have I resort to ES Explorer. Share a Dir or a drive on the PC with everyone . Switch to NETWORK / Lan in ES Explorer on the phone ,enter the IP of the PC , user name and password and you have a FAST Wifi connect Bi-directional. Way faster than blue tooth. A lot of PC's don't have blue tooth anyway. I even use it on my $29 android dongle hooked to my TV to watch movies and Music videos that have been downloaded to the PC. It's a free app on the Play store, there are several to choose from, I use the one with the 3 on it.

Have fun play nice
Click to expand...

ES Explorer is a pretty handy tool, yet doesn't seem to get much dialogue on the forums. Did you also know about its Backup tool? You can have it create backup copies to your SD card of the APK installation file for pretty much every app on your device.

I've been playing with a USB drive plugged into my router to use as networked storage. So far the only easy way I've seen to quickly have read/write access to its files from Android devices is via ES Explorer. Years ago I had some issues and questions with ES Explorer, so I contacted the developer. He was very quick to reply and quite pleasant to talk to, solving my problems quickly. He's got some other nice apps too.
 
Zoandroid said:
ES Explorer is a pretty handy tool, yet doesn't seem to get much dialogue on the forums. Did you also know about its Backup tool? You can have it create backup copies to your SD card of the APK installation file for pretty much every app on your device.

I've been playing with a USB drive plugged into my router to use as networked storage. So far the only easy way I've seen to quickly have read/write access to its files from Android devices is via ES Explorer. Years ago I had some issues and questions with ES Explorer, so I contacted the developer. He was very quick to reply and quite pleasant to talk to, solving my problems quickly. He's got some other nice apps too.
Click to expand...

I've played with all of the features, backup works great and fast. I used to switch back and forth between apps to get all of the features I wanted but now ES Explorer has most of them. Working with files on most devices, including Cloud , blue tooth, Lan and Local , it hasn't been beat in awhile. If you have WiFi available I don't know why you would want to play with USB , the 2.0 ver. of USB is slower than most Wifi connects , unless you have the new 3.0 . My S5 has it but not on my PC , and I'm not in a rush to get it. I have a USB key on my router, works fine. I only use it as a storage device that I expose to the Web .
 
hakit said:
I've played with all of the features, backup works great and fast. I used to switch back and forth between apps to get all of the features I wanted but now ES Explorer has most of them. Working with files on most devices, including Cloud , blue tooth, Lan and Local , it hasn't been beat in awhile. If you have WiFi available I don't know why you would want to play with USB , the 2.0 ver. of USB is slower than most Wifi connects , unless you have the new 3.0 . My S5 has it but not on my PC , and I'm not in a rush to get it. I have a USB key on my router, works fine. I only use it as a storage device that I expose to the Web .
Click to expand...

I bought a USB 3.0 PCIe card for my PC specifically because the S5 has it, just to see if it really was all that much faster as claimed. It IS faster than 2.0 to transfer files from the S5 to a Win7x64 Home OS PC, transferring several GB of files at 1.24 times as fast as USB 2.0. But where USB 3.0 really shines is when I transfer files from that USB drive I mentioned to my PC. It is a WD Passport, and supports USB 3.0. File transfer between them is very impressive. I measured it about 2.24 times as fast as USB 2 speeds transferring a 3.28GB block of files.

I have not run similar tests by wifi, but the results would interest me, so I may do just that, between the S5 and my PC using ES Explorer. I know that a 4.2GB nandroid transfers to my PC by USB 2.0 at 2:22 (minutes) or by USB 3.0 at 1:51 (minutes).
 
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