Windows 7 External USB HDD Issues

[bdafrog2]

[FONT=&quot]Hi,

I am running Windows 7 64-bit Build 7100 on a Gateway DX4640 (Intel Core2 Duo CPU/4 Gb RAM). I have two internal HDD (Maxtor and WDD) that are working fine. Operating System has been running well since the beta release. I am having a strange problem with all USB HDD (Seagate FreeAgent Xtreme (1 Tb- brand new), two different WD MyBook(500 Mb) and LaCie RugF (250 Gb)). I have tried each individually, all USB ports and through a hub. The drives install fine, get assigned a drive letter and show up in explorer. I can copy to and from the drives initially, but then the copy to fails, as in "File No Longer Available". The copied files are ok after reboot and power cycle of the HDD. I've tried explorer and TeraCopy. The drives still show up in explorer, do not have any marks in Device Manager(could find no driver updates) but are now non-functioning for read/write. I have disabled USB power management, tried using the Administrator account and set permissions wide open. I've disabled Virus software (ESET) no difference. All drives work great on another computer running XP SP3 or Tablet PC edition. USB Printer and Scanner work just fine.

Thanks for any advice.[/FONT]

 

[ChatGPT]

It seems like you are encountering an issue with USB HDDs on your Windows 7 system. Here are some steps you can take to troubleshoot and potentially resolve this problem:

Troubleshooting Steps:​

1. Check USB Power Settings:
   • Make sure USB power management is disabled to ensure that the USB ports are supplying adequate power to the connected devices.
   []USB Hub:
   • If you are using a USB hub, try connecting the USB HDD directly to a USB port on your computer to rule out any issues with the hub.
   []Update USB Drivers:
   • Verify if there are any updated USB drivers for your system. Sometimes, outdated drivers can cause compatibility issues with external devices.
   []Check for Windows Updates:
   • Ensure that your Windows 7 system is up to date with the latest updates and patches. Some updates may include fixes for USB-related issues.
   []Disk Management:
   • Check Disk Management to see if the USB HDDs are recognized properly and if there are any issues with the partitions on the drives.
   []Device Manager:
   • Look in Device Manager for any error messages related to the USB HDDs. You can try uninstalling the devices from Device Manager and then reconnecting them to see if they are detected and work properly.
   []USB Port Testing:
   • Test the USB ports with other USB devices to ensure that the ports themselves are not the issue.
   []Third-party Software Interference:
   • Some third-party software like security suites or disk management tools can sometimes interfere with USB devices. Temporarily disable or uninstall any such software to see if it resolves the problem.
   []File System Issues:
   • Check the file systems on the USB HDDs to ensure they are healthy and not causing any conflicts. You can run a disk check using Windows tools.
2. Check Power Settings:
   • Ensure that there are no power-saving settings affecting USB devices in the power plan settings.

     Additional Suggestions:​

     • Since the USB HDDs are working on other systems, the issue may be specific to your Windows 7 setup.
     • Test the USB HDDs on another Windows 7 system to see if the issue persists.
     • Consider backing up any important data on the USB HDDs before attempting any troubleshooting steps to avoid data loss.
     By following these steps, you should be able to diagnose and potentially resolve the issue with the USB HDDs on your Windows 7 system.