Sometimes Windows chooses not to load the driver because it thinks the hardware isn't present (since it's virtual). You can force it via PowerShell (Admin):

If the problem persists after a reboot, check if the service is disabled or if driver conflicts exist. Would you like troubleshooting steps for when a reboot doesn’t fix it?

Before diving into the error, it is important to understand the architecture of usbipd-win.

If the service is not running, the client tool cannot communicate with the USB subsystem, and thus you see the warning:

usbipd warning the service is currently not running a reboot should fix that

The message suggests a reboot because installation typically sets the service to start automatically at boot. However, a reboot is not always the solution—and sometimes it doesn't work at all.

The usbipd service relies on other Windows components. If dependencies fail, the service won’t start.

To check all dependencies in one command:

sc qc usbipd

USB/IP (USB over IP) allows USB devices connected to one computer to be accessed over a network. The usbipd-win project implements this for Windows, enabling WSL 2 (Windows Subsystem for Linux) to use USB devices like flash drives, Arduino boards, or RF dongles.

Usbipd runs as a Windows service in the background. When that service is stopped or not running properly, you’ll see the warning above.

Start-Service -Name usbipd
Get-Service -Name usbipd