Error Code 16 - What is it?
Code 16 is a type of Device Manager error code. Windows XP users are most likely to encounter it. This error pops on XP systems that are running legacy or not plug-and-play hardware.
Error code 16 is displayed in the following format:
‘Windows cannot identify all the resources this device uses. (Code 16)’
Solution
Error Causes
Error code 16 occurs when you use a peripheral device such as an external drive or a printer and that device is not properly or completely configured. Though the device may have been recognized before Windows fails to verify its configuration. Simply put, error code 16 appears when devices are partially configured.
In addition to this, another cause of error 16 is outdated or corrupt device drivers. Devices often fail to run successfully because of driver problems.
Device drivers are programs that provide instructions to control different devices attached to the computer system such as audio devices and printers to name a few.
Though error code 16 is not fatal like other PC error codes such as BSoD; however, it may hamper your ability to use certain devices installed on your system and lower your work productivity.
To avoid inconvenience, it is advisable to resolve the error immediately to avoid inconvenience.
Further Information and Manual Repair
PC error codes are often considered technical and difficult to resolve which is why many prefer to hire a professional for the repair job rather than doing it themselves.
Small repair jobs like fixing error code 16 by a professional computer programmer may cost you hundreds of dollars.
So, why incur so much cost when you can repair it easily by yourself even if you are not a technical whiz.
Error code 16 is easy to repair.
Here are some effective DIY methods that you can use for resolving error code 16 on your PC. These methods require no technical background, knowledge or expertise for that matter. Just simply follow the instructions and resolve the error code 16 issue.
Let’s get started…
Method 1 - Setup from the Disk that Came with the Hardware Device
Run setup from the disk that came with the hardware device, or you can simply copy the setup software file to your hard drive/flash drive. Refer to the vendor’s direction to set up.
If for any reason you’re unable to find the directions, simply uninstall the device. Then go to the start menu, Control Panel, and select ‘Add New Hardware’.
Now pick the appropriate hardware and follow the steps that the Wizard suggests. This is most likely to resolve the error code.
Nonetheless, if the error code still persists, then try method 2.
Method 2 - Allocate More PC Resources
Another alternative method to resolve error code 16 is to allocate more PC resources to the device. To specify additional resources:
- Go to the start menu
- Type Device Manager
- Then go to the Device properties and click the resources
- Here specify the device in the Device Manager
- If you see a resource with a question mark, assign that resource to the device
- However, if for any reason the resource is unable to change, then simply click ‘Change Setting’.
- If Change Settings is not available, then click the box to the ‘Use Automatic Settings’ box. This will make the option available.
Method 3 - Install DriverFIX
As previously stated above, device manager error codes like error code 16 may also occur due to driver problems. If this is the underlying reason for error code 16 on your system, then the best way to resolve it is to install DriverFIX.
DriverFIX is user-friendly, advanced, and feature-filled software deployed with an intelligent programming system, which detects all problematic device drivers automatically in seconds.
It matches these drivers with their latest versions and updates them smoothly without any hassle, resolving error code 16 right away.
And furthermore, once you install this software on your PC, you don’t have to worry about driver problems anymore typically because it updates drivers on a regular basis with compatible and new versions, ensuring that your computer functions properly. It is easy to install and is compatible with all Windows versions.
Click here to download DriverFIX to repair error code 16


If you consider yourself a power user or you value your privacy then firefox is the browser for you. It is open source and is packed with great features like reporting when your email has been used for a known data breach, it stops annoying pop-up notifications, stops browser fingerprinting, and many more. Firefox is also a cross-platform browser making it a great choice if you want to transfer and use your data across multiple devices with one account. The downside of firefox however is its speed, this browser is the slowest on this list, I guess features and advantages took their tool in the speed department, but if that is not a concern for you and you feel like the positives outweigh some slower speed, grab it
Chrome browser has been a game-changer when it was released and even today some of its features are still great and needed. It is packed with some great features like tab freezing, for example, it is cross-platform meaning that also as firefox you can change data between browsers on different devices. it is a very expandable browser with tons of extensions and its speed performance is very very good. The downside of Chrome are two things sadly, one of them is its hunger for RAM, the browser takes a big chunk of RAM once it is active and on some older computer with limited RAM it performs slowly, another is telemetry which its sending, in other words, other browsers don’t come with the lingering fear that Google’s just a little bit too involved in all of our lives. But if downsides do not trouble you and you have a decent amount of RAM in your system chrome might be the best solution for you, grab it
Or should I say Microsoft edge 2.0 since this new Edge is completely recoded and rethought, a completely new browser based on chromium. The first version of the edge was an inhouse attempt from Microsoft and it was a disaster, I guess the lesson was learned, and this new edge we have today is a great Browser, it is lightning fast and packed with some great features with one among them standing out I just love, that is the ability to save web pages as applications and truth to be told you have to try this in order to see al great advantages it offers. A very interesting feature is that edge itself wins the speed race from all of the 5 contestants here which is a great surprise. Of course, the downside of annoying Microsoft pushing it to be your default is, well it's Microsoft, as chrome is tied to Google so is edge tied to Microsoft, and the same dreaded feeling that big MS is watching you. If however, you do not concern yourself with these kinds of things, since it is already part of Windows 10, give it a spin and try it, I am sure you will at least love its blazing speed.
A new kid on the block, relatively unknown Browser Vivaldi offers some great customizable features no other one on this list offers, a very unique and down to each detail customization option, you can literally tweak each and every aspect of this browser making it best customizable and personal browser ever. How it is also based o chromium, every chrome extension works in it naturally. It is very good in speed and constantly updated and developed. The downside, well if you are anything like me, you could spend ages trying to customize it, ages, it has tons of features, and making it really feel and tick as you want can consume a really lot of time. If this thing does not bother you at all, grab Vivaldi
Last but not least, we have another relic of the old browser age, the Opera browser. Packed with great security and great in-house features like a built-in VPN, built-in ad blocker, built-in crypto wallet, etc this browser seems like a swiss army knife. Opera is full of features and it shows once you start using it. The downside of opera is that its look and feel are specifically tailored to a certain type of user and not everyone will find that appealing or attractive, add some great but hidden and hard to come by features and it may go unnoticed. However, I think you should really give it a go since it definitely deserves more attention than it gets. Grab it
Reddit is one of the most popular websites in the world and how Microsoft is opening doors to everyone in its new store Reddit took a logical step and made a Progressive web application and placed it in it.
Being a Progressive web app makes it more familiar and feels like a home experience using it for a lot of Reddit users.
Reddit itself has a large community and active topics discussions all the time about anything. Bringing it to Windows as an application is, in my opinion, a great move since as an application it is independent, more light-weighted, and offering some other advantages specifically tied to being a standalone windows application.
Everyone familiar with and using the Reddit website will feel right at home in this app and you can start using it right away.
Bad or good news, depending on your view comes from RIOT for their game Valorant. It seems that Riot has decided to enforce Windows 11 TPM 2.0 feature into Valorant running on Windows 11 and there is a rumor that it will be de facto standard and that it will move to Valorant in general no matter on which system it runs.
Furthermore, there is a rumor circling around that other developers are also talking about implementing TPM 2.0 requirements so they can harvest advanced security features of Windows 11 in order to prevent hacks and other cheats in their games.
This is an interesting point to stand on, on one side, sure, advanced features that will prevent cheating and hacking is a great thing. On other hand denying access to many computers that do not support TPM 2.0 and removing them from the game can be a permanent loss of customers and therefore loss of money. It is a risk to be sure and I am not really sure that alienating gamers is a good choice for long-term income, especially when you will be able to install Windows 11 on an unsupported PC as stated by Microsoft.
We will all see how this Riot decision will reflect on their business, as not a big Valorant player myself I am not impacted too much with this decision, but it will be interesting to see if others will indeed go with this trend or they will decide to wait a while until much more PC’s are upgraded. 