Connecting Samsung Galaxy by usb
 

For ages I've been able to connect my old Galaxy A5 to my laptop using the USB cable - normally just plug it in and I get all teh prompts I need

recently been having issues - sometimes the PC sees the phone and sometimes it doesn't - any ideas? tried different cables but same issue

It could be the connector on the phone is failing.

yeah - its quite old......................

All of our household phones are Samsung, and have been for many years.
Over time, I have learnt that some Samsung phones are fussy about connections. One of the usb sockets on my desktop accepts everything other than Samsungs. The Samsung phones won't use at least two of our leads. Getting the right lead in to the right socket can be a real pain.

and don't mention the "moisture in socket " warning.............. :*

[Might be related]
My eight year old MotoX has (had) finicky cable preference.
Turned out the micro USB port had accumulated some pocket lint.
Bright light, high power magnifying glass and a toothpick* later, cables seat properly.

(* Plastic toothpick from a Swiss army knife. It's flat sided.)

That worked! I can now see the phone on my PC

But I think there's something wrong with the OS on the phone itself

I connect , the PC sees various folders but now claims they are all EMPTY - which they clearly are not

Is connection by bluetooth an option?

What worked?

When I connect mine, an option shows up "Use USB for".
Choices of:
'Charging only'
'Transfer Files (MTP)'
'Transfer photos (PTP)'
Do you see those choices (or something like it)?
I use MTP

I had that on IPad - PC, and needed to respond to a message on the Ipad to 'Allow' access by the PC, then the files appeard.

Cleaning the port seemed to help but I don't get any choices

Previously I'd get a message on the phone asking if I wanted to connect using USB - and maybe a message on the PC saying "usb device detected" - but neither appears now

Some USB cables supplied with mobile phones only have the power supply pins connected for charging and don't support a data connection. They're not that common but sod's law says that when you're trying to diagnose a dodgy cable, the first spare cable you try will also be a dud. It caught me out once.