Code 42 - What is it?
Code 42 Error is referred to as a Device Manager Error code. Before we explain what this code indicates, it is important to understand what ‘Device Manager’ is and its functions.
Device Manager is basically a Windows tool that helps manage devices attached to the system such as the Printer, Scanner and the USB Device. The Device Manager Error code 42 occurs when a duplicate device is detected.
Error Code 42 is displayed in the following format:
“Windows cannot load the device driver for this hardware because there is a duplicate device already running in the system. Code 42”
Solution
Error Causes
Narrowing down to one particular cause for error code 42 is not virtually possible because it may be triggered due to many underlying reasons. These include:
- When a bus driver incorrectly generates and creates 2 identically named devices
- When a device with a serial number is found in a new location without being removed from its original location
- Mis-configured drivers
No matter what the reason for this error code,, to avoid inconvenience and to ensure proper hardware performance, it is advisable to fix it right away without any delay.
Further Information and Manual Repair
If you’re not technically sound, the code 42 message display can panic you. But don’t worry, the error message sounds complex but it is quite easy to fix.
To resolve code 42 in a few minutes, simply try the methods given below. These methods are easy-to-perform, effective and more importantly require no technical expertise.
Method 1 - Restart Your System
Code 42 can pop up due to some temporary glitch in the Device Manager. By simply restarting your PC, you can resolve this problem.
Therefore, first things first, restart your system. However, in case it doesn’t work out, try other methods.
Method 2 - Launch the Troubleshooting Wizard
Launch the troubleshooting wizard to find the underlying problem and resolve it accordingly. To do this, proceed with the following steps:
- Go to the start menu
- Type Device Manager in the search bar and press enter
- Now click on the ‘General Tab’
- Then click on ‘Trouble Shoot’ to launch the Troubleshooting Wizard
- After that follow the instructions in this Wizard to diagnose the problem and resolve it.
Method 3 - Restore Your PC to its Previous State
Another method to fix code 42 is to use the System Restore tool to restore your PC to its previous working state before the error popped up. To do this,
- Go to the start menu
- Type System Restore in the search bar and press enter
- Now click on ‘Restore my computer to an earlier time’ and then click ‘Next’
- After that select the restore point on the restore point list and confirm settings
- Restart your PC to activate changes
- Before restoring your PC to its previous state, create a backup. By creating data backup you can avoid data loss issues, which are likely to occur during this process.
Creating backup manually can be time-consuming and a painstaking task. The best way to create backup and restore your PC to its normal state is to download DriverFIX.
It is a user-friendly device driver management software that helps create data backup automatically and simultaneously restores your PC back to its normal working state in a few seconds.
This software is compatible with all Windows versions.
Click here to download DriverFIX on your system to resolve error code 42.

Removing options all together
The first thing that would pop into my mind is that I have lost tons of work and that something in my hardware has gone very wrong and it is dead. Luckily that is not the case and this error means that due to Windows update drivers were not properly transferred due to some compatibility issues, maybe it was a corrupt update file, etc. Of course, the reason could be hardware malfunction as well, but if everything was working fine before the update, it is a software issue, and I must say it is a common one and fixable. Please keep reading this guide in order to fix the Device not migrated error.
Find device inside device manager, right-click on it, and choose properties. Go to the events tab and make sure that the device has migration issues.
You have now 3 options for updating the driver, you can do it manually, automatically, or with the driver installer. We will cover all 3 options so you choose which one best suits you.
OPTION 1: Manually.
Close the Properties tab, go to the device manufacturer website and download the latest driver, if there are no drivers there, the only executable installer for the device skip this step and try the other 2. After you have downloaded the driver package from the website, right-click on the device and choose update driver.
Now navigate to the folder where you have downloaded your driver package and update the driver. Reboot your system.
OPTION 2: Automatic update.
Close the Properties tab, right-click on the device and choose to uninstall.
Once the device is uninstalled, restart your system, and Windows will automatically search and install the latest driver for the device.
OPTION 3: Via driver installer.
If you have downloaded .EXE or executable driver installer from device manufacturers web site try installing it, if the installation fails, try using compatibility mode for the installer. Navigate where the installer is located, right-click on it, and choose properties. Go to compatibility TAB and try installing it with administrator privileges in Windows 8 mode.
Reboot your system after this step.
This should solve the issues, however, if the issue still persists, follow the next steps.
The scanning process and repair of files will take around 15 min. Leave it to finish completely, do not restart, work on the computer or shut it down while the process is active, and only after it is finished reboot your system.
Go to the Windows update tab and click on DOWNLOAD or click on check for updates for the latest Windows fix.


In the run dialog, type control panel and press enter to enter control panel, locate recovery and click on it.
Inside the recovery screen click on Open System Restore.
Choose a date when everything was working in order, the best bet is the date before Windows update and roll it back.
Click on date, and then on next.
