Rita1107,
Here are some thoughts: I'm concluding that the drive is a USB hard drive.
Vista generally shouldn't have an issue with USB, as it's fully compatible
with the USB standard. So, for now, I'll conclude that this isn't a Vista
issue, but there are exceptions.
Some hard drives can require more power to operate than that which is
available at the USB Port. Not all motherboards supply the same electrical
power to the port. If you plugged the drive into the front port, try
attaching it to a port on the back. Front ports sometimes don't have the
same level of power as do the back ports.
If this works, you should be able to tell whether the hard drive is
powering-up. You should be able to observe a LED flashing, to hear it spin,
etc. If you don't observe some indication that the drive is functioning,
then you don't have enough power. You can buy a power converter to operate
an external USB hard drive from an external power source, such as a wall
outlet. Check the Internet or your local computer store for such devices.
It has to be low voltage and designed specifically for such drives.
Moreover, don't use a long USB cable. That is, try staying with a cable no
longer than three feet. USB signals sometimes have issues with long cables.
Device Manager should show whether the drive is recognized. Also, Vista
emits a sound when you plug it in, or at least it should.
Let us know how this turns out.
--
freddy
"Rita1107" wrote:
> Freddy:
> I have an external hard drive that is not recognized by my computer. When I
> hook it up to the laptop, it works fine. But, not with the desktop. I
> believe that it has something to do with that darn VISTA o/s. My laptop is
> XP.
> It may be a driver issue, but neither the manufacture or seller have a
> solution. I don't think Microsoft does either. Any help will be appreciated.
>
> "freddy" wrote:
>
> > Jay,
> >
> > Just some items to consider, in a MS article:
> >
> > http://support.microsoft.com/kb/320081
> >
> > There seem to be enough possibilities.
> > --
> > freddy
> >
> >
> > "Jay In Denver" wrote:
> >
> > > I have several hard drives installed. (Windows Vista Home Basic)
> > >
> > > I use 1 drive as a back up drive only. I store all my music, videos and misc
> > > on this drive.
> > >
> > > I am able to read the files just fine. Play the files, or intstall any
> > > programs that are stored on this drive. Thie problem I am having is moving
> > > the files.
> > >
> > > When I try to transfer a file to a disc, or another hard drive I get an
> > > error message saying that it can not read from the source disk.
> > >
> > > When I access this drive from the network (another PC or my MAC) I am able
> > > to copy the files with no problems, and get no error messages. Its only when
> > > I try to do it from this machine (the one where the hard drive is installed)
> > >
> > > Not sure how to fix this since I can get the files from another computer.
> > >
> > > Any help would be great. Thanks.
> > >
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