Linux Kernel in a Nutshell

Devices

Linux supports a vast range of different types of devices (more than any other operating system ever has). This section shows how to enable some of the more common types.

USB

Linux supports many different types of USB devices. To enable USB support, you must first enable support for a USB controller, which drives the USB connection on the machine.

To determine if your machine has a USB controller, and which type it is, run the following command:

$ /usr/sbin/lspci | grep USB
00:1d.0 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801EB/ER (ICH5/ICH5R) USB UHCI Controller #1 (rev 02)
00:1d.1 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801EB/ER (ICH5/ICH5R) USB UHCI Controller #2 (rev 02)
00:1d.2 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801EB/ER (ICH5/ICH5R) USB UHCI Controller #3 (rev 02)
00:1d.3 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801EB/ER (ICH5/ICH5R) USB UHCI Controller #4 (rev 02)
00:1d.7 USB Controller: Intel Corporation 82801EB/ER (ICH5/ICH5R) USB2 EHCI Controller (rev 02)

Note that your response will probably not be identical; what is important is that the command shows some USB controllers.

Enable PCI support for the kernel:

Bus options (PCI, PCMCIA, EISA, MCA, ISA)
	[*] PCI Support

Enable USB support for the kernel:

Device Drivers
	USB Support
		[M] Support for Host-side USB

Enable the specific USB Host controllers for your machine (it is safe to enable them all if you do not know which you have):

Device Drivers USB Support --- USB Host Controller Drivers [M] EHCI HCD (USB 2.0) support [M] OHCI HCD ...