Hi reden,
All hardware has to be installed through X-Plane. No other way. Not through your operating system or using the software provided with the hardware.
At present I cannot access my system but I understand if you connect your hardware item to your PC and then start X-Plane is should default to the configuration screen. Configure and then shut down. Connect the next item and restart. Repeat until all items have been configured.
Have a look at the following video from Michael Brown found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU_TuALAlJk Disregard the hardware item being configured and the brand . Follow the message.
Good luck.
Glenn