FYI:
You might be able to remove all "ghosted devices" using Ghostbuster. Currently I don't have it installed.
See a few screenshots here.
Driver cleanup Solved - Windows 7 Help Forums
From memory it's possible to select to remove all ghosted devices. However if they don't show up as ghosted then you'd have to multiple select items and add them to the removal list.
Download GhostBuster - MajorGeeks
Thanks Callender for pointing me towards Ghostbuster on MajorGeeks.
Apologies for not replying sooner. We went into Covid lockdown here yesterday in WA (no complaints as we have largely avoided Covid here). Also when I rebooted my machine last evening it would not restart and went into Automatic Repair mode....so maybe I have bigger issues. I ran the option to fix common boot options and it restarted, but the system just doesn't feel right. I'm not sure if it's related to the unknown devices.
When I ran Ghostbuster it didn't specifically identify the unknown devices as ghosted. What it did identify was as per the attached image. The total number of these items (1032) corresponds to the number of unknown devices shown in Device Manager. But they show up as System devices and I think I read that Ghostbuster wont remove system devices?
A nuclear option to fix is looking more likely. I have read up on the Upgrade in Place option and it sounds promising. But are there any guarantees this will remove / fix the unknown device issues I'm having?
Thanks.
You're correct. You shouldn't use Ghostbuster to remove those. It does look like it might be a driver issue but I have no idea how to solve it.
@morgo1968
No, there is no guarantee an in-place will fix a driver issue, but if it is a system driver there is a high probability it can. In any case, the process of an in-place is very straightforward. In will keep all of your data and apps. It rewrites the system files, registry, and leaves your stuff alone. You may have tweaks to re-do. Typically it takes 30-45 minutes, so it's not a long lengthy process. Can't hurt to give it a shot and see. Back up first, always the sermon......
OK, so trying that....but not looking good.
I went through the process of starting the In Place Upgrade.....it made it to 25% progress about 30 minutes ago and hung there.
How long should I leave it before I get worried?
Also if it has hung, what are the option? What happens if I press cancel?
Can you see a disk activity light, or look at task manager for activity? If it's only been a half hour, it takes longer.
Phew! it has just ticked over to 30%.....
I didn't realise I could use Task Manager while this process was happening....so CPU is ticking over at about 20%, 9GB out of 64 RAM in use. So it's working.....
Thanks for all the help...
You can use the system, if needed, but keep it down. Best to not do anything intensive. You will see a message at the top somewhere around 95-98%, varies, that says "system will reboot shortly". That message will stay there for a short while. DO NOT use the system after that is displayed or you may get the rug pulled out from under you!
No need to post any progress.
So it made it to the Your PC will restart in a few moments 45 minutes ago....
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