After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Discussions related to using VirtualBox on Windows hosts.
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GenghisKhan
Posts: 9
Joined: 23. Feb 2018, 17:54

After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Post by GenghisKhan »

Hello,

I updated my Windows Server 2012, where I had VirtualBox Manager 5.2.22 with a couple of VMs, and after doing the restart to complete those updates, I notice that on one VM guest, I was unable to load a USB device automatically.

So I double check all the USB devices connected to this windows, and this usb device was plugged, so I tried to unpplug and plug again on a different USB port but same result, in Windows there was the device, but still nothing in my VM guest.

As a start, I tried to upgrade my Virtualbox Manager and also the extent package, to the latest version 6.0.10, but same result.

There were no changes in VM guest.

I really dont know how to solve this, I had this VM guest working before, day after day, in other Virtuabox Manager version without problem.

Do you know what can be?
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Last edited by GenghisKhan on 24. Jul 2019, 11:54, edited 1 time in total.
scottgus1
Site Moderator
Posts: 20965
Joined: 30. Dec 2009, 20:14
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Windows, Linux

Re: After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Post by scottgus1 »

Go through USB basics and troubleshooting step by step, and if you can't get the device in the guest, provide the asked-for command outputs.

Also, please post pictures using the forum's Upload Attachment tab. Scale if needed to get under the 128kB limit, and PNGs are best.
GenghisKhan
Posts: 9
Joined: 23. Feb 2018, 17:54

Re: After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Post by GenghisKhan »

I made the attachment in forum storage.

After rebooting this system, I went again in VirtualBox GUI, and it gave me a message with an error, but no details, and then there was no VMs there. Anyone knows how can I "relink" GUI objects? I notice that the virtualbox.xml is still intact with all the that. How can I re add that XML to virtualbox GUI?
File location: C:\Users\Admin\.VirtualBox

Error message:

Virtualbox - Error
Failed to acquire host network interfaces
And nothing in details
scottgus1
Site Moderator
Posts: 20965
Joined: 30. Dec 2009, 20:14
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Windows, Linux

Re: After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Post by scottgus1 »

If the VMs (called 'guests' in Virtualbox parlance) are gone, then you may have logged in on another account than the one you were using to run Virtualbox last time. The Virtualbox.XML list is by default kept in the "C:\Users\{username}\.Virtualbox" folder. If you log in on a different account, then {username} will be different, and a different Virtualbox.XML file will have to be made and/or used, thus a different set of guests or no guests.

If you are sure you are on the original account, then the original Virtualbox.XML may have been deleted. The Virtualbox.XML file also contains settings pertaining to your whole Virtualbox arrangement, such as special networks and custom host-key combinations made in the File menu, Preferences. A new Virtualbox.XML will lose these customizations.

Either log off and back on with the account you were using last time, or go find the .vbox files for each guest and double-click each .vbox file. This will open one main Virtualbox window for each guest that is registered. You can close these windows until you get all the guests registered. If any of your guests were linked clones of other guests, you need to register them in the order they were originally made. You will have to re-customize with Preferences.
GenghisKhan
Posts: 9
Joined: 23. Feb 2018, 17:54

Re: After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Post by GenghisKhan »

scottgus1 wrote:If the VMs (called 'guests' in Virtualbox parlance) are gone, then you may have logged in on another account than the one you were using to run Virtualbox last time. The Virtualbox.XML list is by default kept in the "C:\Users\{username}\.Virtualbox" folder. If you log in on a different account, then {username} will be different, and a different Virtualbox.XML file will have to be made and/or used, thus a different set of guests or no guests.
I have logged in the right account. My .Virtualbox folder with XML is placed in the working area of this user who is the Admin and where I am trying to open VB GUI: C:\Users\Admin\.VirtualBox

I have also several scheduled tasks for those VMs, to start at startup system, under this user. Those VMs where launched through vboxmanage on a headless state.
scottgus1 wrote:If you are sure you are on the original account, then the original Virtualbox.XML may have been deleted. The Virtualbox.XML file also contains settings pertaining to your whole Virtualbox arrangement, such as special networks and custom host-key combinations made in the File menu, Preferences. A new Virtualbox.XML will lose these customizations.
I have the VirtualBox.xml in that folder that I mention above, and there are all the entries of my VMs, but I really dont know how to force VB GUI to read it. In VB GUI preferences, in General, I have two fields, "Default Machine Folder" and "WRDP Authentication Library", but I really dont know if I can force VB GUI to pick the necessary files to fix this issue, or if its not possible throgh that. For each time that I try to open VB GUI, it creates a selectorwindow.log as you can see in attached images.
scottgus1 wrote:Either log off and back on with the account you were using last time, or go find the .vbox files for each guest and double-click each .vbox file. This will open one main Virtualbox window for each guest that is registered. You can close these windows until you get all the guests registered. If any of your guests were linked clones of other guests, you need to register them in the order they were originally made. You will have to re-customize with Preferences.
I have already tried to log off and back on, but no result. If I try to open directly from .vbox file, I got the attached error.
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scottgus1
Site Moderator
Posts: 20965
Joined: 30. Dec 2009, 20:14
Primary OS: MS Windows 10
VBox Version: PUEL
Guest OSses: Windows, Linux

Re: After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Post by scottgus1 »

Sounds like you have the right account, good.

This could be the problem:
GenghisKhan wrote:I have also several scheduled tasks for those VMs, to start at startup system
While guests can be started this way, very often Task Scheduler gets the guests to start under a different account than the log-on account, or at least a slight nuance different from the log-on account, in order to run programs while the account is not logged on yet.

When guests are run using a different account than the account that is logged in, they can't be interacted with using the main Virtualbox window or through Vboxmanage on that account's command prompt. I don't know that I have heard of the guests not showing in the main Virtualbox window at all when run though Task Scheduler, but it could be a new quirk of Virtualbox. What to do about it, I wouldn't know.

You could test to see if the Task-Scheduler-start of the guests is interfering, by deactivating these tasks then rebooting the host.
GenghisKhan
Posts: 9
Joined: 23. Feb 2018, 17:54

Re: After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Post by GenghisKhan »

Thanks for the response scottgus1.

Under scheduled tasks, I run those VMs with the same user, logged on or not. Also there was one that I didnt had sheduled, and that didnt happear too. I will do the test by disabling those tasks and reboot to see, but I dont think that this issue could be from that. In any case if I continue to had this problem I will be forced to do a downgrade to 5.2.x. I will give some feedback about how it was from this side, to keep this post updated.
GenghisKhan
Posts: 9
Joined: 23. Feb 2018, 17:54

Re: After Windows update, USB device disappear from VirtualBox USB devices

Post by GenghisKhan »

After some tests, I notice that using USB ports directly from motherboard USBs, like I was using before and working, it was unable to see those in Virtualbox, but using the hub of USBs that came in the front of this machine, I was able to detect those. Seems like this feature is only available for front USB ports. This is a HP Proliant DL380p.

Anyone here have ever encounter this issue?
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