I recently upgraded my main workstation from Windows 10 to Windows 11, hoping to get better performance and some new features. The machine is a custom build with a mix of older and newer USB devices: an external SSD, a mechanical keyboard, and a USB headset. Since the upgrade, I've been experiencing random USB disconnects that cause the external SSD to unmount unexpectedly during file transfers. I've updated all drivers I could find, including chipset and USB controller drivers, but the issue persists. I also tried changing USB ports and disabling selective suspend in power settings, but no luck so far.

Does anyone know if Windows 11 has known quirks with USB stability on mixed hardware setups? Are there any logs or diagnostics I can check to pinpoint what's causing these disconnects? Also, would rolling back to Windows 10 be my best bet if this can’t be resolved, or is there a fix I haven’t tried yet?

@TechWhiz123, your situation sounds frustrating, especially with the external SSD dropping mid-transfer. Windows 11 does have some quirks with USB power management on mixed hardware, and sometimes the default drivers don’t play well with older devices. Since you’ve already disabled selective suspend and updated drivers, you might want to check the Event Viewer under “System” logs for any USB-related errors or warnings around the disconnect times. That can sometimes reveal if it’s a driver crash or power issue.

Also, if your motherboard has a BIOS update available, flashing that can sometimes improve USB stability with newer OS versions. As a last resort before rolling back, you could try using a powered USB hub for the SSD to rule out power delivery problems. If none of that helps, going back to Windows 10 might be the safest bet until more stable driver updates come out.

On 02/03/2026 at 5:20 PM, hikerkind said:

@TechWhiz123, your situation sounds frustrating, especially with the external SSD dropping mid-transfer. Windows 11 does have some quirks with USB power management on mixed hardware, and sometimes the default drivers don’t play well with older devices. Since you’ve already disabled selective suspend and updated drivers, you might want to check the Event Viewer under “System” logs for any USB-related errors or warnings around the disconnect times. That can sometimes reveal if it’s a driver crash or power issue.

Also, if your motherboard has a BIOS update available, flashing that can sometimes improve USB stability with newer OS versions. As a last resort before rolling back, you could try using a powered USB hub for the SSD to rule out power delivery problems. If none of that helps, going back to Windows 10 might be the safest bet until more stable driver updates come out.

@hikerkind

Good call on the Event Viewer tip - digging into the “System” and “USB” logs can reveal if the disconnects are tied to specific error codes or driver resets. I’ve seen cases where Windows 11’s USB stack gets a bit twitchy with mixed-gen gear, especially when the external SSD’s firmware isn’t fully optimized for the newer OS.

Another angle worth trying is updating the SSD’s firmware directly from the manufacturer’s site. Sometimes those updates fix compatibility issues that drivers alone can’t. Also, if you haven’t already, running a full power cycle (shut down, unplug everything for a minute, then restart) can clear any lingering USB controller glitches.

If none of that works, I’d hesitate to roll back right away. There might be a Windows update or hotfix around the corner addressing these USB quirks. Meanwhile, using a powered USB hub for the older devices

On 01/27/2026 at 1:55 AM, TechWhiz123 said:

I recently upgraded my main workstation from Windows 10 to Windows 11, hoping to get better performance and some new features. The machine is a custom build with a mix of older and newer USB devices: an external SSD, a mechanical keyboard, and a USB headset. Since the upgrade, I've been experiencing random USB disconnects that cause the external SSD to unmount unexpectedly during file transfers. I've updated all drivers I could find, including chipset and USB controller drivers, but the issue persists. I also tried changing USB ports and disabling selective suspend in power settings, but no luck so far.

Does anyone know if Windows 11 has known quirks with USB stability on mixed hardware setups? Are there any logs or diagnostics I can check to pinpoint what's causing these disconnects? Also, would rolling back to Windows 10 be my best bet if this can’t be resolved, or is there a fix I haven’t tried yet?

@TechWhiz123, I ran into something similar after switching to Windows 11 on a mixed USB setup. One thing that helped me was checking the Event Viewer under “Windows Logs” → “System” for any USB or disk-related errors around the disconnect times. Sometimes it points to a driver or power issue that isn’t obvious otherwise.

Also, since you mentioned updating drivers, did you try uninstalling the USB controllers from Device Manager and then rebooting? Windows will reinstall fresh drivers, which sometimes clears out weird conflicts. If that still doesn’t work, I’d hold off on rolling back immediately and maybe try a clean boot to rule out software conflicts.

It’s definitely a tricky one with mixed hardware, especially older devices. Hopefully, a little more digging with logs and selective driver resets gets you stable without losing Windows 11’s perks.

On 02/03/2026 at 5:20 PM, hikerkind said:

@TechWhiz123, your situation sounds frustrating, especially with the external SSD dropping mid-transfer. Windows 11 does have some quirks with USB power management on mixed hardware, and sometimes the default drivers don’t play well with older devices. Since you’ve already disabled selective suspend and updated drivers, you might want to check the Event Viewer under “System” logs for any USB-related errors or warnings around the disconnect times. That can sometimes reveal if it’s a driver crash or power issue.

Also, if your motherboard has a BIOS update available, flashing that can sometimes improve USB stability with newer OS versions. As a last resort before rolling back, you could try using a powered USB hub for the SSD to rule out power delivery problems. If none of that helps, going back to Windows 10 might be the safest bet until more stable driver updates come out.

@hikerkind, good call on the Event Viewer tip - those “System” logs can reveal USB controller errors or device disconnect events that aren’t obvious otherwise. I’d also add checking the “USB” logs under “Applications and Services Logs” if available; sometimes those give more granular clues about power or driver resets.

One thing I’ve seen help in mixed hardware setups is manually uninstalling the USB controllers from Device Manager (not just updating drivers) and then rebooting to force Windows to reinstall fresh drivers. It can clear out some corrupted configs that updates don’t fix.

Also, if the external SSD supports a firmware update, that’s worth checking. Some older drives have known compatibility issues with Windows 11’s USB stack. Rolling back to Windows 10 is a last resort, but it’s better to exhaust these diagnostics first.

On 02/07/2026 at 12:00 PM, qwert said:

On 01/27/2026 at 1:55 AM, TechWhiz123 said:

I recently upgraded my main workstation from Windows 10 to Windows 11, hoping to get better performance and some new features. The machine is a custom build with a mix of older and newer USB devices: an external SSD, a mechanical keyboard, and a USB headset. Since the upgrade, I've been experiencing random USB disconnects that cause the external SSD to unmount unexpectedly during file transfers. I've updated all drivers I could find, including chipset and USB controller drivers, but the issue persists. I also tried changing USB ports and disabling selective suspend in power settings, but no luck so far.

Does anyone know if Windows 11 has known quirks with USB stability on mixed hardware setups? Are there any logs or diagnostics I can check to pinpoint what's causing these disconnects? Also, would rolling back to Windows 10 be my best bet if this can’t be resolved, or is there a fix I haven’t tried yet?

@TechWhiz123, I ran into something similar after switching to Windows 11 on a mixed USB setup. One thing that helped me was checking the Event Viewer under “Windows Logs” → “System” for any USB or disk-related errors around the disconnect times. Sometimes it points to a driver or power issue that isn’t obvious otherwise.

Also, since you mentioned updating drivers, did you try uninstalling the USB controllers from Device Manager and then rebooting? Windows will reinstall fresh drivers, which sometimes clears out weird conflicts. If that still doesn’t work, I’d hold off on rolling back immediately and maybe try a clean boot to rule out software conflicts.

It’s definitely a tricky one with mixed hardware, especially older devices. Hopefully, a little more digging with logs and selective driver resets gets you stable without losing Windows 11’s perks.

@qwert, since you mentioned the disconnects happen during file transfers to your external SSD, I’d double-check if your USB ports are running at their full speed (USB 3.x) after the upgrade. Sometimes Windows 11 can default to a generic USB driver that doesn’t fully support the hardware’s capabilities, especially with mixed-age devices. You might want to look into using the Device Manager to see if the USB controller is recognized correctly or if it’s using a Microsoft generic driver instead of the OEM one.

Also, digging into the Event Viewer under “System” logs around the time of the disconnects can reveal if there are any USB-related errors or warnings that point to driver or hardware issues. It’s a bit of a pain but can help pinpoint whether it’s a driver conflict or power management glitch. If you haven’t tried it yet, using the Windows USB Troubleshooter might catch something overlooked.

Rolling back to Windows 10 is a