External Hard Drive Problem & XP

[Guest]

I have a Western Digital Caviar 80 GB Hard Drive that I used for a short time
on my old computer while waiting for my new one to arrive. After it arrived,
I wanted to install the Western Digital HD on my new computer. I found out I
could not and was told I can use it as an external hard drive (which sounded
wonderful to me).

I took this HD to my computer people had them reformat it, along with an
external HD case (high-speed external storage system for 3.5" HDD). He tested
it on his computer and it works fine. I get it home and I plug it into my
computer and it doesn't work.

I use XP, and it is supposed to immediately recognize there is new hardware
attached (plug and play). It doesn't do that at all. Yep, I've turned the
on/off switch to on. Am I doing something wrong or is there something else I
must do to get it to be recognized? and why would it work in the computer
shop and not here?

My computer is a Dell E5 10 with XP. I'm looking at the packing slip to find
out what kind/type of hard drive is installed and I'm not sure what to look
for but here's what I see - 160 GB serial ATA, 7200 RPM DIM.M. I usually
don't have a problem figuring out what to do, but this has me puzzed. Thanks
in advance!!

Lois

 

[Anna]

I have a Western Digital Caviar 80 GB Hard Drive that I used for a short
time
on my old computer while waiting for my new one to arrive. After it
arrived,
I wanted to install the Western Digital HD on my new computer. I found out
I
could not and was told I can use it as an external hard drive (which
sounded
wonderful to me).

I took this HD to my computer people had them reformat it, along with an
external HD case (high-speed external storage system for 3.5" HDD). He
tested
it on his computer and it works fine. I get it home and I plug it into my
computer and it doesn't work.

I use XP, and it is supposed to immediately recognize there is new
hardware
attached (plug and play). It doesn't do that at all. Yep, I've turned the
on/off switch to on. Am I doing something wrong or is there something else
I
must do to get it to be recognized? and why would it work in the computer
shop and not here?

My computer is a Dell E5 10 with XP. I'm looking at the packing slip to
find
out what kind/type of hard drive is installed and I'm not sure what to
look
for but here's what I see - 160 GB serial ATA, 7200 RPM DIM.M. I usually
don't have a problem figuring out what to do, but this has me puzzed.
Thanks
in advance!!

Lois

Lois:
Here are some general troubleshooting tips for this USB non-recognition
problem.
1. Access Disk Management (Start > right-click My Computer > Manage >
Computer Management > Disk Management) and see if the USB device is listed.
If so, but there's no drive letter assigned to the drive, see if you can
assign a drive letter to the device.
2. If the USB device is listed in Disk Management with an assigned drive
letter, right-click on its listing and select Explore from the submenu.
Hopefully, Windows Explorer will open and the device will be listed.
3. Connect the USB device *directly* to a USB port on the computer, not via
a USB hub. Try different USB ports should your computer have multiple ports.
4. Avoid using a USB extension cable.
5. Try alternate powering on/off methods. Try booting up with the device's
power on, then try powering on only *after* the system has booted to a
Desktop.
6. Try a different USB cable.
7. In the USB controllers section of Device Manager, uninstall all the USB
controllers listed and reboot.
8. If the device in question is HD which you installed in a USB enclosure,
jumper the USB external HD as Master (or Single if the HD is a Western
Digital disk). A number of users have reported that jumper configuration
corrected their non-recognition problem. In my own experience it didn't seem
to matter how a USB external HD was jumpered. But it may be worth a try.
9. If the device in question is a USB external HD, first check out the HD
with the hard drive manufacturer's diagnostic utility. If it checks out OK,
and you can remove the HD from its enclosure (without voiding any
applicable warranty), do so and install the HD as an internal HD to
determine if there are problems with the drive.

Presumably your SATA internal HD should not have any effect on this USB
non-recognition problem. This assumes, of course, that your internal (boot)
HD is functioning properly, i.e., it boots without incident and functions
without any problems.
Anna

 

[AJR]

midgepei - Anna's advice is great. Another thought - the HD did not
function , recognized by XP, internally ("...I wanted to install the Western
Digital HD on my new computer. I found out I > could not....").
The same problem still exists trying to use it externally.

You state "He (computer guru) tested > it on his computer and it works
fine." Maybe it did and maybe not! - was it tested in your presence?

Take it back to the computer man!

 

[Guest]

Anna!

Thanks for your advice. Ok, the hard drive has been recognized by XP but
it's not showing up. By that I mean it is definitely under hardware
devices>diskmanagement>USB>storage device; there is no drive letter assigned
to it so I can use it as a back up, etc.

Just to make my explanation a little clearer - this hd is one I HAD
installed on a previous computer for a very short time until this new one
came. I removed it from the old computer and found it could not be installed
as an another nternal HD on my new computer. So, I ordered a case for the hd
and want to use it as an external hd for backup, etc.

I'm sorry if you may have misunderstood my confusing explanation.

Now, I'm supposed to be able to assign it a drive letter to this external hd
but I'm unable to do it. The directions I receive when I click "help" just
dont jive with what I'm seeing on my screen. If I am finally able to assign a
drive letter, I'm assuming it will show up when I go into Windows Explorer
and I'll be able to use of for backup. BTW, on the front of this case for the
ext. hd, there is a light that is supposed to be either green or red. Well,
it's neither. Help, please and thanks!!
Lois

 

[Anna]

Anna!

Thanks for your advice. Ok, the hard drive has been recognized by XP but
it's not showing up. By that I mean it is definitely under hardware
devices>diskmanagement>USB>storage device; there is no drive letter
assigned
to it so I can use it as a back up, etc.

Just to make my explanation a little clearer - this hd is one I HAD
installed on a previous computer for a very short time until this new one
came. I removed it from the old computer and found it could not be
installed
as an another nternal HD on my new computer. So, I ordered a case for the
hd
and want to use it as an external hd for backup, etc.

I'm sorry if you may have misunderstood my confusing explanation.

Now, I'm supposed to be able to assign it a drive letter to this external
hd
but I'm unable to do it. The directions I receive when I click "help" just
dont jive with what I'm seeing on my screen. If I am finally able to
assign a
drive letter, I'm assuming it will show up when I go into Windows Explorer
and I'll be able to use of for backup. BTW, on the front of this case for
the
ext. hd, there is a light that is supposed to be either green or red.
Well,
it's neither. Help, please and thanks!!
Lois

Lois:
Please understand that the fact that the HD you now have installed in a USB
enclosure had previously been installed as an internal HD in a prior
computer is not relevant to the problem you're experiencing. What *is*
relevant is that
a. The HD is non-defective and properly installed in its USB enclosure, and,
b. The USB enclosure is non-defective, and,
c. The USB cable is non-defective and properly connected, and,
d. The USB external HD is properly powered-up when in use.

Assuming the above is so...

1. I do not understand your reference to a "light that is supposed to be
either green or red" on your USB enclosure. Are you referring to the power
indicator that tells whether the USB device is on or off? Have you checked
with the manufacturer of the USB enclosure about this?

2. It's not clear why you were unable to use the HD on your new computer as
an internal HD. I assume you wanted to install that HD as a secondary HD on
your new machine. Why weren't you able to do so? Does this indicate there
was some problem with that HD?

3. Did you go down the list of troubleshooting tips I provided in my
previous response?

4. You say the USB external HD is listed in Disk Management but without a
drive letter but that you're unable to assign a drive letter. Right-click on
the drive and on the sub-menu that opens click "Change Drive Letter and
Paths". Click "Add" and click "Assign the following drive letter" if it is
not already selected; then either accept the default drive letter or click
on the drive letter you wish to use. Click OK.
Anna

 

[Guest]

Hi Anna!

I replied to your last post but it wasn't posted. So, I'll reply again, only
a somewhat shorter explanation.

The "light" I referred to is the one on the front of the ext. hdd case.
It's supposed to be green when it is connected and the hd is idle, and red
when the hd is being accessed. It does neither. There is an on/off switch
which is on.

I've uninstalled the USB controllers and rebooted. All of them were
recognized again as well as the mass storage device which I'm assuming is my
Ext. hdd

I've gone into disk management and attempted to do as you suggested to
assign a drive letter to it. I am unable to do that. Of the 3 icons showing,
one is the C: drive and the other two are just icons. One shows FAT and the
other shows FAT32 under the file system. On FAT, under status, it shows
Healthy (EISA Config.) with a capacity of 55 mb; on FAT 32, under status, it
shows Healthy (Unknown Partition) with a capacity of 4.63 GB. Does this tell
you anything? BTW, just for the heck of it it went to the C: drive icon and
right clicked it. There was the option to assign a letter there. So,
obviously there is something wrong with the other two. I also just felt the
outside of the HD case and it's warm. So, it's "on" but . . . nothing.

I've gone under each of the unnamed icons, right clicked and the FAT icon
only comes up with "help." I right clicked on the icon for FAT32 and all that
comes up is "delete partition." So, obviously I can't name any of them and I
don't know which one I would name if I could.

My internal HD is functioning properly with no incidents and it functions
with no problems. re: jumper - it is already jumpered as Single.

If I can't figure this out now, I'm going to take it up to my computer
person (again) tomorrow and ask him to show me, on his computer, how this
operates.

Thanks for all of your help and patience with this little old lady.
Lois

 

[Anna]

Hi Anna!

I replied to your last post but it wasn't posted. So, I'll reply again,
only
a somewhat shorter explanation.

The "light" I referred to is the one on the front of the ext. hdd case.
It's supposed to be green when it is connected and the hd is idle, and red
when the hd is being accessed. It does neither. There is an on/off switch
which is on.

I've uninstalled the USB controllers and rebooted. All of them were
recognized again as well as the mass storage device which I'm assuming is
my
Ext. hdd

I've gone into disk management and attempted to do as you suggested to
assign a drive letter to it. I am unable to do that. Of the 3 icons
showing,
one is the C: drive and the other two are just icons. One shows FAT and
the
other shows FAT32 under the file system. On FAT, under status, it shows
Healthy (EISA Config.) with a capacity of 55 mb; on FAT 32, under status,
it
shows Healthy (Unknown Partition) with a capacity of 4.63 GB. Does this
tell
you anything? BTW, just for the heck of it it went to the C: drive icon
and
right clicked it. There was the option to assign a letter there. So,
obviously there is something wrong with the other two. I also just felt
the
outside of the HD case and it's warm. So, it's "on" but . . . nothing.

I've gone under each of the unnamed icons, right clicked and the FAT icon
only comes up with "help." I right clicked on the icon for FAT32 and all
that
comes up is "delete partition." So, obviously I can't name any of them and
I
don't know which one I would name if I could.

My internal HD is functioning properly with no incidents and it functions
with no problems. re: jumper - it is already jumpered as Single.

If I can't figure this out now, I'm going to take it up to my computer
person (again) tomorrow and ask him to show me, on his computer, how this
operates.

Thanks for all of your help and patience with this little old lady.
Lois

Lois:
Under the present circumstances, taking the computer to the repair shop is
probably the best course of action at this point. Please let us know if the
problem is later resolved, and if so, the source of the problem and its
solution.
Anna

 

[Guest]

Anna!

I contacted Dell support and they were able, after about an hour, give the
HD a drive letter but, it turns out, this has to be reformatted. It's not
recognizing all the partitiions (only 4.62 GB where there should be 80 gb).
So, I'm taking it back to my computer person and having him reformat it. Dell
says that should do it. I'm even thinking about reformatting it using another
computer I have here. They gave me a link to follow re: formatting. So, I'm
going to read it first and then decide.

Thanks again for all of your help and I will definitely let you know how
things work out. Lois

 

[JonathanLiebman]

Anna -

Your tips are good and I tried all of them and could not resolve my similar
problem with my desk top. My Computer would not recognize the new external
drive (WD 160 My Book attached directly via USB 2.0 port). I could assign a
drive letter in disk management
however My Computer would never recognize it. I then connected it to my
work laptop using XP pro and it recognized it and all was good. The WD tech
thought that the drive needed to be reformatted from fat32 to NFTS and the
computer would not let it perform the reformat. My desk top is a Dell Dim
XPS 700 bought in 2000 and runs XP Home. The WD tech told me to run the XP
repair tool from my XP CD; I could not since I have all the XP enhancements
loaded. I returned the WD drive to BB and am still stumped. Any other
ideas?

 

[Anna]

Anna -

Your tips are good and I tried all of them and could not resolve my
similar
problem with my desk top. My Computer would not recognize the new
external
drive (WD 160 My Book attached directly via USB 2.0 port). I could assign
a drive letter in disk management
however My Computer would never recognize it. I then connected it to my
work laptop using XP pro and it recognized it and all was good. The WD
tech
thought that the drive needed to be reformatted from fat32 to NFTS and the
computer would not let it perform the reformat. My desk top is a Dell Dim
XPS 700 bought in 2000 and runs XP Home. The WD tech told me to run the
XP
repair tool from my XP CD; I could not since I have all the XP
enhancements
loaded. I returned the WD drive to BB and am still stumped. Any other
ideas?

Jonathan...
While my tips may be "good" I guess they're not so good if they don't work
for you, huh?

Seriously, these USB device non-recognition problems (particularly as they
involve flash drive and USB external HDDs) in an XP environment have been
driving many of us up-the-wall. Time & time again we encounter this problem
for no discernable reason, i.e., the device is non-defective and properly
connected/configured - ditto with the XP operating system. It's been quite
frustrating to say the least.

I can't imagine that the type of file system, i.e., FAT32 or NTFS, is of any
consequence here. Hard to imagine that the manufacturer's rep would
recommend a change to solve this non-recognition problem.

What I find strange in your case is that you say you were able to assign a
drive letter to the device but the system still did not recognize it. That's
unusual in our experience since in nearly every problem of this kind that
we've come across (and we've come across plenty!) the user is unable to
assign a drive letter to the device through DM.

It's probably well that you returned the unit. I can't recall any problems
we've encountered during the times we've come across those WD My Book
external units. It's just possible that the one you purchased was simply
defective, no? It does happen to all makes & models. By & large these USB
external hard drives do work properly. Try another one, even the same make &
model if that capacity meets your needs.
Anna