If a USB drive or other USB device is not being detected on the Satechi USB-C On-the-Go Multiport Adapter (ST-UCMBAM / ST-UCMBAK), the usual causes are the port the device is plugged into, the cable connecting the adapter to your computer, or a device that needs more power than the adapter can provide. The adapter is plug-and-play with no drivers required, so the steps below resolve most detection issues.

How to Fix a USB Device That Is Not Detected

1. Make sure the device is plugged into a data port. The USB-C Power Delivery (PD) port is for pass-through charging only and does not transfer data, so a device plugged into the USB-C PD port will not be detected. Use the USB-C data port or one of the two USB-A 3.0 ports instead.
2. Check the connection to your computer. Connect the adapter to a USB-C Power Delivery or Thunderbolt 3 port on your computer, tablet, or phone. For best results, the port should support Thunderbolt 3, Thunderbolt 4, USB4, or USB 3.2 Gen2.
3. Use one of the two included USB-C cables. If you are using a different USB-C cable, make sure the cable supports both power and data transfer.
4. Connect one bus-powered device at a time. Connected USB devices should not exceed 900mA per port, and the adapter draws its power from your computer. Devices that need more power, such as the Apple USB SuperDrive and other CD readers, are not supported. The USB-C and USB-A data ports also do not charge connected devices.
5. Try a different data port on the adapter to rule out a single port issue.
6. Unplug the adapter from your computer, restart the computer, then reconnect the adapter and the device.
7. If an external drive is still not showing up, open Disk Utility on Mac or Disk Management on Windows and check whether the drive appears there.
8. Keep your operating system up to date. The adapter does not need any driver installation, so no extra software is required.