I have spent no less than 20 hours trouble-shooting my installation issues with my Arduino Uno.
In the process I have run across no less than XXX threads on forums around the internet outlining problems and solutions very similar to mine. Here I will describe the fix to my problem and link to solutions provided by other people (which didn't happen to work for me).
Here goes:
Symptoms
When I initially tried to install my drivers I had read enough to avoid the FTDI drivers. I pointed my computer to the correct /drivers/ folder of the latest release. The installation proceeded but halted at "System cannot find the specified file." I tried every permutation possible, to include the solutions listed above, and failed. I finally spied that people were looking through "setupapi.dev.log". So I looked through it too.
This is what I found:
flq: Inf : 'c:\windows\system32\driverstore\filerepository\arduino uno rev3.inf_x86_neutral_65ebaae8c82d2ccd\arduino uno rev3.inf'
! flq: Missing SourceDisksFiles/SourceDisksNames information from INF.
flq: Source root path based on Main INF
flq: SourceRootPath: 'C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\arduino uno rev3.inf_x86_neutral_65ebaae8c82d2ccd'
flq: {FILE_QUEUE_COPY}
flq: CopyStyle - 0x00002000
flq: {FILE_QUEUE_COPY}
flq: CopyStyle - 0x00002000
flq: [color=red]SourceRootPath - 'C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\arduino uno rev3.inf_x86_neutral_65ebaae8c82d2ccd'
flq: SourceFilename - 'usbser.sys'
flq: TargetDirectory- 'C:\Windows\system32\DRIVERS'
flq: TargetFilename - 'usbser.sys'[/color]
flq: {FILE_QUEUE_COPY exit(0x00000000)}
flq: {FILE_QUEUE_COPY exit(0x00000000)}
inf: {Install Inf Section [DriverInstall.NT] exit (0x00000000)}
dvi: Processing co-installer registration section [DriverInstall.NT.CoInstallers].
inf: {Install Inf Section [DriverInstall.NT.CoInstallers]}
inf: {Install Inf Section [DriverInstall.NT.CoInstallers] exit (0x00000000)}
dvi: Co-installers registered.
dvi: {Install INTERFACES}
dvi: Installing section [DriverInstall.NT.Interfaces]
dvi: {Install INTERFACES exit 00000000}
dvi: {Install FILES exit (0x00000000)}
dvi: Default installer: Exit
dvi: {DIF_INSTALLDEVICEFILES - exit(0x00000000)} 18:04:08.330
ndv: Pruning file queue...
dvi: {_SCAN_FILE_QUEUE}
flq: ScanQ flags=620
flq: SPQ_SCAN_PRUNE_COPY_QUEUE
flq: SPQ_SCAN_FILE_COMPARISON
flq: SPQ_SCAN_ACTIVATE_DRP
flq: ScanQ number of copy nodes=1
! sig: GetNameSDInfo
! sig: [color=green]Error 0: The operation completed successfully.[/color]
flq: ScanQ action=200 DoPruning=32
flq: ScanQ end Validity flags=620 CopyNodes=1
dvi: {_SCAN_FILE_QUEUE exit(0, 0x00000000)}
ndv: Committing file queue...
flq: {_commit_file_queue}
flq: CommitQ DelNodes=0 RenNodes=0 CopyNodes=1
flq: {SPFILENOTIFY_STARTQUEUE}
flq: {SPFILENOTIFY_STARTQUEUE - exit(0x00000001)}
flq: {_commit_copy_subqueue}
flq: subqueue count=1
flq: {SPFILENOTIFY_STARTSUBQUEUE}
flq: {SPFILENOTIFY_STARTSUBQUEUE - exit(0x00000001)}
flq: source media:
flq: [color=red] SourcePath - [C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\arduino uno rev3.inf_x86_neutral_65ebaae8c82d2ccd]
flq: SourceFile - [usbser.sys][/color]
flq: Flags - 0x00000000
flq: {SPFQNOTIFY_NEEDMEDIA}
flq: {SPFILENOTIFY_NEEDMEDIA}
flq: {SPFILENOTIFY_NEEDMEDIA - exit(0x00000000)}
flq: {SPFQNOTIFY_NEEDMEDIA - returned 0x00000000}
!!! flq: source media: SPFQOPERATION_ABORT.
!!! flq: Error 2: The system cannot find the file specified.
flq: {_commit_copy_subqueue exit(0x00000002)}
!!! flq: FileQueueCommit aborting!
!!! flq: [color=red] Error 2: The system cannot find the file specified.[/color]
flq: {SPFILENOTIFY_ENDQUEUE}
flq: {SPFILENOTIFY_ENDQUEUE - exit(0x00000001)}
Solutions that did not work.
I tried all of the following and whatever else I could think of. I hope that maybe these might be useful to people with similar problems to mine.
http://adafruit.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=25&p=135815 << "Unknown Device."
http://www.arduino.cc/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?;num=1287472095 << "Windows XP won't recognise driver and install."
Arduino Forum << "Arduino UNO Rev3 Windows 7 Unknown Device - SOLVED! (for me at least)"
http://riverembedded.hackhut.com/2011/12/28/my-arduino-uno-rev-3-and-windows-7-64-bit-installation-unknown-device/ "Unknown Device."
http://forums.adafruit.com/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=20257 << "Unknown Device."
http://www.arduino.cc/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1291934290/15 >> "Windows Vista fails to install driver for UNO"
My solution.
After I spotted the "file not found" in the install log I decided that maybe I ought to hunt down the missing file "usbser.sys". I had to grab an install disk for Windows 7 and hunt around its innards to find it. Once I found it I pasted it into all of the locations that I could see in the log file.
Then I ran my install again and viola! It worked!
I have included the "usbser.sys" for those who may need it. If you don't trust my file, grab a Windows 7 install disc and 7zip and mine it out of there (open install.wim >> Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository\mdmcpq.inf_x86_neutral_1b9e317b2982c778".
I hope this helps people!
usbser.sys (27 KB)