SanDisk ImageMate 5 in 1 reader can't find drivers

  • Thread starter Thread starter Michael Ray Brown
  • Start date Start date
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Michael Ray Brown

When I plug in my ImageMate 5 in 1 reader, Vista reports it can't find the
drivers. It also mistakenly identifies it as the ImageMate 9 in 1 reader.
I've gone to the SanDisk Web site, and there's nothing about any driver
updates for Vista. Technical support says I need to contact Microsoft for a
Vista driver, but I have a feeling Microsoft will tell me to contact
SanDisk. This card reader worked fine in XP, with the native XP drivers.
This reader is only 6 months old, but unless I can find the drivers, I'll
have to buy a different one... or revert back to XP. Has anyone else
encountered this problem, and found a solution?
 
Michael,

If Vista misidentifies the reader, than that could be the problem, but I
have no way of knowing for sure. I'll look around the Internet for a
possible answer, but I don't promise anything. I'll post an answer if I find
something. If you don't get an answer here, you can try google to see what
you get. anyone else?
 
Thanks for all your suggestions. I've tried every one of them, and still no
joy.

I have a dual-boot system with XP on another partition, and the card reader
works fine there. It still mis-identifies it as a 9-in-one reader, but it
works. I've searched various sites like Buy.com, NewEgg.com, and
CircuitCity.com, but have yet to find an SD reader that's advertised to work
with Vista.

I can always boot into XP to transfer pix from my SD card, but that's a
hassle. And I have to remember to unplug the reader before booting back to
Vista.
 
Michael,

My second post above references a reader advertised to work in Vista, so now
you've seen one.
 
Freddy,

The Athena product is a Smart Card reader. I need a device that will read
Secure Digital media. Today I purchased a Dazzle memory card reader for SD
and MMC, but Vista failed to find the drivers for it, as well.
 
Michael said:
Freddy,

The Athena product is a Smart Card reader. I need a device that will
read Secure Digital media. Today I purchased a Dazzle memory card
reader for SD and MMC, but Vista failed to find the drivers for it, as
well.
Click to expand...

If the devices work properly in XP, I would use the XP Device Manager
to find out exactly what drivers XP is using. If XP is not using
any exotic drivers then Vista shouldn't need them either -- but it
would be nice to know for certain.
 
Windows XP reports the card reader as a "Generic Storage Device." I tried
to update the driver in Vista by electing "Generic Storage Device" from a
list, but again it failed to recognize it. It's particularly frustrating
because the card reader is advertised on Amazon.com with users reporting
that it works fine in Vista.
 
There is a happy ending to this story. After trying the Dazzle reader, I
made one last attempt with the SanDisk reader. This time, Vista recognized
it as a Storage Device on a UMBus Enumerator in Portable Devices, the same
as it did for the Dazzle reader. However, it again couldn't locate the
drivers. I right-clicked, and tried to update the driver. Again, no luck.

But then I selected the option to choose from a list of device types. Only
one choice was shown: Microsoft WPD FileSystem Volume Driver. I
highlighted that, and clicked "Next." Vista installed the drivers, and the
reader showed up in "Computer" as a Removable Disk. It appears to be
working now. Apparently plugging in the Dazzle device jogged Vista in the
right direction.
 
One thing I should mention: Every time Windows boots up, it again asks me
to install the drivers for the SanDisk reader. So it does work, but it's a
nuisance to keep re-installing the drivers.
 
Michael and All,

Some folks have had good fortune in resolving problems such as you have by
deleting the INFCACHE.1 file. It's located at C:\Windows\inf (scroll down to
the file). It's OK to delete the file even when it has nothing to do with
the problem. You've tried everything esle, so now try that.
 
Freddy,

Thanks. I saw you suggest that on another posting. Well, I tried deleting
INFCACHE.1, but Vista wouldn't let me. And I'm logged in as Administrator.
 
Michael,

That's something others haven't had a problem with doing. Go figure. I'm
wondering whether you can delete it from a command prompt. Try that. Post
back.
 
I was able to delete INFCACHE.1 by going into its properties and giving
myself permission. I'm still getting the hang of this "permissions" thing
with Vista. That didn't solve the problem, though. Vista still refuses to
find the drivers. I found another card reader offered for sale, and the ad
specifically states it works in Vista. I may buy that, but I'm losing hope.
Check it out at:

http://www.buyextras.com/syalhiusb20c.html?gclid=CPSeq5nb0IwCFRPBYAodqnm56g#product_reviews
 
Michael,

I returned here to suggest you check the file's Properties to give yourself
permission (Securities tab), but you beat me to it. Too bad removing that
file didn't work. I wonder why removing it works for some people but not for
others? Go figure. I agree, just try a new reader. Let's hope the problem
doesn't repeat.
 
Michael said:
One thing I should mention: Every time Windows boots up, it again asks
me to install the drivers for the SanDisk reader. So it does work, but
it's a nuisance to keep re-installing the drivers.
Click to expand...

I was hoping that the INFCACHE.1 trick would work :-( This is one more
variation on a very common theme, so it would be nice to understand it.

When you say Vista 'asks' you to install the drivers, do you mean asks
for permission? For the location of the drivers? Or what?
 
Vista asks for the location of the drivers. These are generic drivers, but
it never finds them.
 
Well, I ordered the Syba multi-card reader from the Web ad I mentioned in my
earlier post. Unfortunately, Vista fails to find the drivers for it, as
well. The included CD contains only drivers for Windows 95 and Windows
98SE.

That makes four different USB 2.0 multi-card readers I've tried with Vista.
All of them work in XP, but none of them work in Vista. I'm giving up.
 
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