http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315539
1. open cmd.exe command window
2. set devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices=1
3. start devmgmt.msc
4. then under View menu, select hidden items in device manager.
Useful for network cards that have been removed but are holding an IP address. Also good for removing disconnected USB serial port adapters that are hoarding COM ports!
But... if you have hundreds of ghosted devices, you can use some software to remove them in bulk: http://ghostbuster.codeplex.com/
Tested OK in Windows 2003 too.
Stumbled on devcon - seems to be in XP - command line alternative to device manager - might be good for fixing randomly broken speaker output on my laptop (instead of rebooting or clicking around for 2 minutes on Device Manager)
tags: winxp, w2k, devices, hidden, remove, windows, device manager, ghost, ghosted