Question on USB settings

[ECLiPSE 2002]

I have a PC with WIn xp home ed. and USB 2 with 512 mb of ram. I
installed a 160 gb external hard drive which connects to one of my USB
2 connections. Recently when adding some family photos to the external
hard drive I got a fleeting pop up that said something about the drive
was not using the high speed USB2 feature - I lack the exact wording
because it appeared and disappered too quickly and hasn't returned
since.

Can someone shed some light on what this pop up could mean. Is there a
location where the settings and configuration for USBs can be found
and tweaked?

 

[Maincat]

I have a PC with WIn xp home ed. and USB 2 with 512 mb of ram. I
installed a 160 gb external hard drive which connects to one of my USB
2 connections. Recently when adding some family photos to the external
hard drive I got a fleeting pop up that said something about the drive
was not using the high speed USB2 feature - I lack the exact wording
because it appeared and disappered too quickly and hasn't returned
since.

Can someone shed some light on what this pop up could mean. Is there a
location where the settings and configuration for USBs can be found
and tweaked?

You will have connected the drive to a USB 1.1 port. Your drive will be a
USB2 device.
Connect the drive to a USB2 port and you will see a great increase in speed.
If you are not sure you have a USB2 port, look in your Motherboard manual.
If you only have USB1.1 ports, then you can buy a USB2 PCI card from your
local computer store and fit it.
Hope that helps.

 

[tinybot2k]

I have a PC with WIn xp home ed. and USB 2 with 512 mb of ram. I
installed a 160 gb external hard drive which connects to one of my USB
2 connections. Recently when adding some family photos to the external
hard drive I got a fleeting pop up that said something about the drive
was not using the high speed USB2 feature - I lack the exact wording
because it appeared and disappered too quickly and hasn't returned
since.

Can someone shed some light on what this pop up could mean. Is there a
location where the settings and configuration for USBs can be found
and tweaked?

It sounds more like a hardware limitation. The Windows XP OS
automatically detects the version of the USB hardware that is
connected to your system. If you're sure that your PC is USB 2.0
compliant, then it's your external hard drive that is not.

I encountered a similar problem with an older PC, but it was because
the motherboard only supported USB 1.1 - so I got the message you
described frequently whenever I connected a new USB device to my PC. I
fixed the problem with a PCI card that had 2.0 compliant USB ports.

In your situation, check out the packaging or the documentation for
your external hard drive. Most likely it is not USB 2.0 compliant.

 

[ECLiPSE 2002]

Thanks to the responders for their input - the specs for my Compaq PC
state that I have USB 2.0 ports and the Maxtor (Seagate) external 160
GB is advertised as a 2.0 USB. I have a 4 port USB adaptor that the
external drive cable is connected to - could that be the problem?

 

[ded]

Thanks to the responders for their input - the specs for my Compaq PC
state that I have USB 2.0 ports and the Maxtor (Seagate) external 160
GB is advertised as a 2.0 USB. I have a 4 port USB adaptor that the
external drive cable is connected to - could that be the problem?

Adaptor? Well four pin is unpowered - the two additional pins on a six pin
would draw the power supply from the PC.
So assumed the "adaptor" has it's own power supply and that you are
using the external HD's dedicated power supply - or it wouldn't work.
What other devices and how many are connected to the adaptor?
Try connecting the external HD directly to the PC's USB

 

[Swifty]

I have a 4 port USB adaptor that the external drive cable is

connected to - could that be the problem?

It almost certainly is the problem. See, you didn't need us!
I have an old USB 1.1 powered 7-port hub (the more usual word) but the
ports on my system are all 2.0

However, anything plugged into my hub will obviously work only at USB
1.1 speeds. I have quite a few devices that are happy with this.

 

[ECLiPSE 2002]

All the responses were helpful - my use of the term adaptor was
incorrect, it should have been 4 port hub. I am unsure whether the hub
is 1.1 or 2.0 because there is no USB certified high speed or 2.0
logo. It merely Micro 204N what ever that means - made in China (isn't
everything nowadays!).

I guess I will open the wallet and buy a hub that is USB certified.

Many thanks,

Frank

 

[Dave B.]

From what I have found by doing a Google search of the model number you
provided, that is a 1.1 hub, so you'll need to replace it with a 2.0 hub.

--

 

[Swifty]

I guess I will open the wallet and buy a hub that is USB certified.

If you have any spare PCI slots in your system you may find a 4-port
USB2 card cheaper than a hub; it's certainly neater.

 

[ECLiPSE 2002]

Thanks once again for the help, responders. Wallet will be opened.


Frank