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Cannot Pair Oculus Quest 2 controllers: How to Fix

In this guide, we will show you the steps to fix the issue of being unable to pair their Oculus Quest 2 controllers. The second iteration of the virtual reality headset from Meta beholds a slew of intriguing features in its arsenal. Moreover, it supports both the Android-based operating system as well as the Oculus-compatible VR software.

Cannot Pair Oculus Quest 2 controllers

However, in spite of all the goodies that it has to offer, it isn’t free from its fair share of issues either. As of now, numerous users have voiced their concerns that they are unable to pair their Oculus Quest 2 controllers. And if they somehow manage to get the controllers paired, it gets disconnected in a matter of minutes.

The issue is equally troublesome for first-time users as they are unable to proceed past the pairing setup. Instead, they get stuck at the ‘remove the tabs from your controllers’ error and are unable to proceed ahead. If you are also getting bugged with these issues, then this guide shall help you out. Follow along for the fix.

Fix Cannot Pair Oculus Quest 2 controllers

Cannot Pair Oculus Quest 2 controllers

In order to resolve this issue, you will have to sideload the version 43 firmware onto your Oculus Quest 2. Given below are the shorter instructions to get this job done. If you are looking for an in-depth explanation, then do check out this guide instead: How to Install Firmware via ADB Sideload in Oculus Quest 2.

  1. To begin with, download and extract the Android SDK Platform Tools on your PC.Cannot Pair Oculus Quest 2 controllers
  2. Then download the V43 firmware for your Oculus Quest 2 and transfer it to the platform-tools folder.Cannot Pair Oculus Quest 2 controllers
  3. It is recommended that you rename the firmware to rom, so that the complete name becomes rom.zip.
  4. Now power off your Quest 2. Then press and hold the Volume Down and Power buttons for a few seconds.
  5. Your VR will now boot to the Recovery Mode.  So use the Volume keys to highlight ADB Sideload and press the power key to confirm it.Cannot Pair Oculus Quest 2 controllers
  6. Your VR is now sideload-ready. So connect it to the PC via the cable.
  7. Then head over to the platform-tools folder, type in CMD in the address bar, and hit Enter.command-prompt-inside-adb
  8. This will launch the Command Prompt. Now type in the following command in the CMD window to sideload the firmware.
    adb sideload rom.zip
  9. The installation process will now begin and could take a few minutes.Cannot Pair Oculus Quest 2 controllers
  10. Once done, boot your VR to the installed firmware via the Power button [if it doesn’t boot up automatically].

That’s it. You should now be able to pair your Oculus Quest 2 controllers without any issues. If you have any queries concerning the aforementioned steps, do let us know in the comments. We will get back to you with a solution at the earliest.


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  • Hi. I tried this with both 43 and 50. Still no joy.
    I had not used the quest 2 for just under a year and both controllers stopped.
    Have factory reset, changed batteries etc. Reinstalled the meta app.
    Now there are no controllers paired and neither the app nor the headset sees them.
    Spoke to Meta who said nothing can be done and will send new controllers but only to USA!!!
    Totally useless.
    I am desperate and on verge of binning the whole thing.
    Do you have any last minute suggestions?