Best Portable External Hard Drives Reviews

Somebody  may find their external hard drive is connected to the USB port, but the computer does not recognize it, what’s the caused this? Here is the explanation and Solution.

Confirm the drive has power and that the power LED is glowing on the drive and power converter. If the light is not lit, press the push button on the front of the drive to power the drive on. Then check to ensure that all the connections are tight (power cable to wall, power cable to power supply, power supply to drive). If it still does not light up, temporarily remove any surge protectors and plug the drive into the wall outlet.

Confirm that the USB cable is plugged in to the computer and the drive. For dual-interface kits, the USB port and firewire (IEEE 1394a) port on the hard drive cannot be plugged in at the same time. Remove any hubs and plug the drive directly into the USB port on the computer.

Check Device Manager to confirm the USB host controller is properly configured. To open Device Manager (Windows XP/Windows 2000 Pro), rightclick My Computer, choose Manage, and then choose the Device Manager icon from the tree. If the host controller is in “Other Devices,” then additional drivers are required for the host. Check with the PCI card vendor or motherboard vendor for the appropriate drivers. USB 2.0 controllers usually require a service pack to operate properly.

Windows XP added support for USB 2.0 in Service Pack 1; Windows 2000 Pro added support for USB 2.0 in Service Pack 3 and improved the support in Service Pack 4. Windows Me does not include native support
for USB 2.0, so you should use the latest drivers provided by the USB host adapter manufacturer. If the USB port is on the motherboard, you should use the latest drivers provided by the motherboard manufacturer.

If the host controller is not seen in Device Manager, it is probably disabled in the computer BIOS. Check Device Manager to confirm the USB hard drive is detected and configured properly. If not, disconnect and reconnect the drive using a different USB port. Try another cable and host adapter. If, after following the steps above, you still have a problem, try another cable and another USB port.