Serial ports have been around for decades. These are the oldest peripheral connectors for PCs that connect old modems, printers, and other devices. Since the revolution of computing devices, these have been replaced by USBs. However, some of these devices connect to modern PC require a serial port on your computer. This is when you can opt for Prolific USB to serial driver connectors.
What are Prolific USB Serial Connectors?
The Prolific USB to serial connectors helps convert USB to Serial/UART/RS232, allowing you to easily connect any legacy peripherals to your modern PC.
However, if you are using a dedicated USB to Serial converter by Prolific and it has stopped working, this blog will surely help.
Reason for Prolific USB connector not working.
It has been observed that the issue often prevails due to the driver issues on your PC.
This blog discusses fixing Prolific USB to Serial drivers not working on your Windows 10/11 PC.
Read the post till the end!
Best Ways to Fix Prolific USB to Serial Driver Not Working on Windows
To resolve any issue on your PC, you need to understand three things –
- What is causing the error?
- Why is it causing the error?
- How to fix the error?
So, let’s break down the Prolific USB to Serial issue into these three categories. First, let’s address the What –
What is Causing Prolific USB to Serial Connectors to Stop Working?
The reason behind the error is clear: the drivers have malfunctioned on the PC.
Drivers are key components that allow a computer to communicate with the devices connected to it. When they are missing, outdated, or corrupt, everything you connect, be it an internal device like GPU or an external device like a keyboard, gives certain issues.
Why Has Prolific USB to Serial Driver Stopped Working?
When you have an issue related to drivers for any device, the reason behind the error is generally one of the following –
- Device drivers not installed properly
- Outdated USB to Serial drivers on Windows
- Corrupt Driver files on Windows
These three issues may cause the Prolific USB to the serial connector to stop working on Windows 10/11.
How to Fix Prolific USB to Serial Driver Issue on Your Windows PC?
Now that you know the what and why breaking down the how part does not seem that difficult. To fix the issue related to drivers, you need a solution. Well, there are two ways you can approach the fix –
- Install the latest version of drivers to support the device.
- Roll back to the last stable version of the USB to Serial drivers.
Let’s discuss these two fixes in more detailed and try to understand how you can fix the Prolific USB to serial connector driver issues on your PC.
2 Ways to Fix Prolific USB to Serial Drivers Not Working on Windows
Method 1 – Install the Latest Updated for Prolific USB to Serial Drivers
The first fix is to find and install the latest updates for your USB to serial connectors. There are multiple ways to do so.
The manual method is to log on to the Prolific official website and look for drivers for your device.
Once you have downloaded the driver file per your devices, you must individually install them.
However, knowing the latest version, you might need help with this approach. Although the devices that Prolific offers have dedicated codes through which you can identify them. But, if you are unaware of these codes, you might end up downloading the incorrect driver, causing more trouble.
To eradicate such issues, there is a dedicated automated procedure that you can opt for, Advanced Driver Updater. It is a dedicated tool that allows you to find the best updates for your installed drivers and update them automatically. To give you a quick overview, here’s how the tool works –
- Run the application on your Windows PC. (Install it using the button given below)
- Start a Scan for all the outdated drivers.3. Wait for the scan to finish.
- Once you have the results, update the drivers you want by clicking Update driver. Or you can update all the outdated drivers with a single click by using the Update All option.
- Once you update the drivers, restart the PC, and your device should work properly. The update the tool fetches are straight from a trusted source. So, you do not have to worry about malicious attacks on your PC.
Method 2 – Install the Last Stable Version of the Driver
Now, if updating the drivers does not fix the issue, you need to understand that it may be because the driver might have some issue. In such a case, you can either stop using the device as it is no longer supported or install the previous version of the existing drivers to keep the device alive.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to do it manually, –
- Open Device manager on your PC. You can search for the Device Manager in the start menu or press Windows + X to find it in the Quick Access menu.
- You will find your Prolific USB to Serial connector in the Ports COM & PT category. Expand it to find the device that has an error.
- Right-click on it to select find the Update driver option.
- Select the second option from the pop-up window.
- Select Let me pick from a list of available drivers on my computer.
- Navigate to the downloaded older versions of the drivers. Select the file and click Next.
- This will install the selected older driver.
Once the process ends, you will have the older driver running.
- Restart the PC for effective changes. This should work.
The problem with rolling back drivers is that it needs to be done correctly, otherwise it may corrupt your device. This is another area where Advanced Driver Update can help. If you are an active user of Advanced Driver Updater, you can create a stable backup of your drivers that you can restore anytime you feel some drivers are causing the issue. It is easy to do and safe.
Conclusion
All in all, it will not be wrong to say the Advanced Driver Updater can be the ultimate solution to Prolific USB for Serial Drivers not Working on Windows. The devices that use Serial connections are extremely helpful. Thus, they cannot be eradicated. You can only move to USB-based devices partially, as car OBDs and ECUs still use a serial connection.
I hope this blog gives you proper insights on making things work when the Prolific USB to serial drivers stop working. Good luck!
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