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Mikesr's avatar
Mikesr
Explorer
Jan 27, 2017

3.0 USB question

Our desktop PC (about 7 years old) which originally has WIN 7 has one 3.0 USB port and the rest are 2.0 ports.
We never really used the 3.0 port until we got a new external HDD that needed 3.0
Here's the problem. After upgrading the PC to WIN 10 were lost communication with the HDD. The HDD comes up in device manager when plugged in and when unplugged it goes away but is not visible in File Explorer.
I read about power management settings with 3.0 ports and tried turning off the auto power down feature but that made no difference.
I recently got a powered 3.0 USB hub (10 port) and planned to use on that single 3.0 port in hopes that the external HDD in question would work. Nope. The HUB works fine with 2.0 devices but not the 3.0 HDD
Thanks for ant suggestion

9 Replies

  • 1492's avatar
    1492
    Moderator
    Feb 07, 2017
    Our desktop support techs at my office sometime see USB3 compatibility speed issues mostly related to the chipset that's being used in the controller. We have a number of external Drobo USB3 raid boxes for media work. Mine works at USB3 transfer speeds on my workstation. I tend to customize my own stock DELL PC and Macs myself at work - stretching the hardware capability limits. But a few other desktop manufacturers we have don't seem to be able achieve faster than USB2 transfer speeds on a consistent basis.
  • mileshuff's avatar
    mileshuff
    Explorer
    Jan 28, 2017
    Go to Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Computer Management, Disk Management.

    Find your HDD listed there and see if it shows any problems. In some cases Windows might assign a drive letter thats already used such as in the case of networked mapped drives. Say you have a C hard drive and D DVD drive and E mapped to a network share. Windows might assign a USB HDD to drive E even though its already used. When that happens the HDD will not show in File Explorer. Disk Management allows you to change the drive letter to one thats not already used. Same issues happens frequently with USB flash drives.
  • OutdoorPhotogra's avatar
    OutdoorPhotogra
    Explorer
    Jan 28, 2017
    A USB 3.0 Device (and cable) will work on a USB 2.0 port, just at the 2.0 speed. Have you tried that port?
  • happycamper002's avatar
    happycamper002
    Explorer
    Jan 28, 2017
    Since you've tried it with the powered version, it seems like your system is not geared for faster data transfer that comes with USB 3.0. USB 2.0 is good for 480 Mbps while USB 3.0 is good for 4.8 Gbps, that is ten times higher data transfer.

    For a unit that is seven old years old, it may need an updated driver like others had suggested. But if you have it configured in systems devices it should hunt for drivers automatically on the web.

    Make sure though that your cable is designed for USB 3.0.
    USB 3.0 cable (in most instances) works on USB 2.0.

    All the best.
  • YC_1's avatar
    YC_1
    Nomad
    Jan 27, 2017
    Bottom left search box. Type "device drivers", look at the page of hardware on your open page. Scroll down to the USB device and right click. The pop up will show a couple of options to try. One is to search for new hardware but the first one should be to update your drivers. That alone may do the trick. Be sure to do a reboot after that.
  • Sam_Spade's avatar
    Sam_Spade
    Explorer
    Jan 27, 2017
    And in the mean time, try the external HDD in one of the 2.0 ports.
    They sometimes are backward compatible.
  • Tom_M1's avatar
    Tom_M1
    Explorer
    Jan 27, 2017
    You most likely will have to find a driver for the 3.0 port. Check with the manufacturer and see if one is available.

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