I've bought a wireless adapter for my PC a long time ago. It came with a disk that contained the software but I have no computers that can read it because it is a very small disc. I went to the Microsoft webpage and downloaded the software from there and it was successfully downloaded. When I plug the adapter in my computer it does power on and work, though every time i plug it in it says that the driver device was unsuccessful in installing(like the little pop up message when plugging a new usb device in). I've tried running the program on an older version of windows,mine being windows 7, but does not work. Tried re-installing the software but that did not work. and have tried many times just to connect my controller but it will not connect to my adapter ever.

If anyone has an answer to this please let me know.

Your adapter may have gone bad, there are a lot of cheaply built knockoffs that are Microsoft branded.

First, if you bought one of the off brand ones, like fleabeard said, there's a good chance it simply broke. Don't try and save money by buying one of the off brand ones. Get the official one by Microsoft. I hear nothing but horror stories about the off brand wireless adapters. That having been said, if it was the official adapter and it's been a while, which it sounds like it has, it still may have just broke. I recently had to replace one of these after about 5 years, so they don't last forever. I unplugged it to add a graphics card to my PC, and when I plugged it back in, the light didn't even come on. I bought a new one, didn't even uninstall the software, plugged it in, and it worked right away. You could also use some software to more thoroughly uninstall the drivers, then reinstall, but from the sound of it, it probably just went bad. Since the controller isn't syncing with it, it may just be time to get a new one. You should still be able to buy one for around $20 on Amazon.

@tyrrael: I had purchased my current one from amazon, but how do I tell if it was off brand or not?

It's failing automatically but I know there's a way to look for driver manually. On device manager now, I have "Microsoft Common Controller for Windows Class" and "Xbox 360 Wireless Receiver for Windows". Look for those options.

@ez123: In my device manager it is under "other device" and labeled as "unknown device". And whenever i click it to try and update it or install it, it says that windows was unable to install driver.

I encountered the same problem as you when I bought a cheap adapter from Ebay. Followed this guide and everything worked flawlessly.

The problem Tyrrael is describing is that an known issue with the "windows dongle" for the 360 controller is that it has a notoriously sketchy fuse and USB is notoriously sketchy in amp/voltage regulation. It is easy to bust the fuse and end up with a non functional receiver for the controller. You can try to replace the fuse but they are not easy to find and require skill to replace.

Basically, after going through this myself I came to the conclusion I should have just gone with Logitech. :/

@oddballs: Thank you for the guide. It worked in making the unknown device into "Xbox 360 Wireless Receiver for Windows". but for some reason it still wont connect. @extomar I'm assuming if the fuse was damaged my light wouldn't work, but it is on and working. unless there is another effect from having a broken fuse.