If you’ve tried all fixes and the warning still appears, work through this checklist:
As a last resort, you can run the service manually in debug mode to see the exact error:
usbipd --debug
This runs the service in the foreground and prints detailed logs. If it starts successfully here but not as a system service, the issue is likely permission or SID-related.
To prevent this warning in the future, set the service to auto-start:
Set-Service -Name usbipd -StartupType Automatic
Then start it once manually or reboot at your convenience.
A Complete Guide to Understanding, Fixing, and Preventing the USB/IP Service Failure
If you are a developer, system administrator, or advanced Windows user working with the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL 2), you have likely encountered the usbipd tool. This powerful utility allows you to attach physical USB devices from your Windows host directly into a Linux distribution running under WSL. If you’ve tried all fixes and the warning
However, a common and frustrating error message can appear when you try to list or bind USB devices:
"usbipd warning: the service is currently not running. a reboot should fix that"
While the message itself suggests a simple reboot, the underlying issue can be more nuanced. This article will dissect the warning, explain why it occurs, provide step-by-step solutions beyond a simple restart, and teach you how to prevent it from recurring.
If the service won't start, the driver might not be loaded. USBIPD includes a command to force the installation of the "stub" driver, which is required for sharing devices.
Fix: "usbipd warning: the service is currently not running" If you're seeing the error "usbipd warning: the service is currently not running; a reboot should fix that" while trying to attach USB devices to WSL2, you aren't alone. While a reboot often works, there are faster ways to get back to work without a full system restart. 1. Manually Start the Service (Fastest Fix)
The most common cause is that the usbipd Windows service failed to start automatically. You can force it to start using an Administrator PowerShell window: powershell sc.exe start usbipd Use code with caution. Copied to clipboard Alternatively, you can use the Windows Services Manager: Press Win + R, type services.msc, and hit Enter. Find USBIP Device Host in the list. Right-click it and select Start. As a last resort, you can run the
Ensure Startup type is set to Automatic to prevent this in the future. 2. Verify for Driver Conflicts
If the service starts but the error persists when you try to attach, check for software conflicts:
VirtualBox Conflict: usbipd-win uses drivers that can conflict with a full installation of VirtualBox. If you have both, try stopping VirtualBox services before using usbipd.
SC Executable Path: Ensure you are calling the official Windows service manager. If you have other sc tools in your PATH, try running the full path: $env:windir\system32\sc.exe query VBoxUsbMon. 3. Reinstall via Winget
If you’ve started using usbipd-win (a popular tool for sharing USB devices from Windows to WSL 2 or other virtual machines), you may have encountered this warning when running the usbipd list command:
Warning: The service is currently not running. A reboot should fix that. This runs the service in the foreground and
While the message suggests a reboot as the solution, that’s not always necessary—and in some cases, it can be avoided entirely. This article explains what the warning means, why it appears, and how to resolve it quickly.
You’ll see this warning if:
The message claims a reboot should fix it because a restart typically triggers automatic service startup (if configured correctly). However, rebooting is often an overreaction.
To understand the fix, you must understand the architecture. usbipd acts as a server on the Windows host. It "shares" physical USB ports so that the Linux kernel inside WSL can connect to them as if they were physically attached to the Linux machine.
This functionality relies on a Windows Kernel Driver. When you see the warning "The service is currently not running," it usually points to one of three scenarios:
The "A reboot should fix that" suggestion is the developer's way of saying, "The kernel driver state is stale, and Windows needs to reload it from scratch."