Critical failure of USB controller on board

What is USB-CTL-DEAD?

Critical failure of USB controller on board (USB-CTL-DEAD) is a critical-severity fault affecting the motherboard. Some or all of the USB ports have completely stopped responding, the mouse and keyboard are not working. Common triggers are dead battery CR2032, short circuit on the motherboard, aborted BIOS update process and age of capacitors. Use the steps below to track down and fix the cause.

Common Causes

• Dead battery CR2032
• Short circuit on the motherboard
• Aborted BIOS update process
• Age of capacitors

Step-by-Step Fix Guide

• 1
  Replace the CMOS battery on the motherboard

  Replace the CMOS battery on the motherboard is the first thing worth trying, since it resolves USB-CTL-DEAD for most affected systems.

• 2
  Use the USB BIOS Flashback function (if the board has a button)

  For the minority of cases that need more work, the later steps dig into less usual mobo instability causes.

• 3
  Check the rear I/O panel for a short

  This step, "Check the rear I/O panel for a short", specifically rules out short circuit on the motherboard.

Commands & Diagnostics

Frequently Asked Questions