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