Usb Port Problem

[timbo1957]

My first post on this forum and I really hope that someone can help me.

At the beginning of last year I bought an external hard drive for storing
photo's and music. I plugged it into a vacant usb port and it allocated itself to the E:\ Drive when I plugged it in.

My wife recently gave me a Card Reader for using with the memory card from her digital camera.

I think that it stole the E:\ drive allocation.

I was unaware of this until the weekend when I had to dismantle the PC and move some furniture around.

I unplugged three devices all of which were working fine beforedhand.

A Laser printer.
A Colour Inkjet Printer/Scanner.
The External Hard Drive

When I plugged them back in I think I mixed the cables up regarding which usb port they came out of.

So I lost access to the E:\ External Hard Drive because it has was
replaced with a Removable Device.

The EHD works I have tried it on my wife's laptop.

Over the past few days I have tried all ways to get the pc to recognize it with limited and temporary success.

To date I have -

Unplugged everything that went into a USB Port and re-booted the PC.

Gone into My Computer, View System Information, Hardware, Device Manager, USB Serial Bus Controllers.

Plugged in the Laser Printer and USB Printer Device appeared. Good so far.

Then I plugged in the Inkjet Printer/Scanner (This does have a facility for taking the memory card from a digitial camera and printing direct from the printer).

A USB Composite Device, USB Printer Device, USB Mass Storage Device all appeared as well as in My Computer a Removable Device M:\ appeared in the section next to A:\.

The systems guys here told me to unplug all the printers etc and plug in the card reader the Disk Management System change the drives on from E F G H to W X Y Z. Which I did.

Switched the computer off switched it back on again and the External Hard Drive fired up and appeared as E:\.

Plugged in the Laser Printer everything okay.

Plugged in the Inkjet Printer/Scanner.

All working fine.

Although I still have this Removable Device appear when I plugged in the Ink Jet Printer.

That was Tuesday night.

Switched off went to bed.

Switched on yesterday evening and the current status is -

EHD isn't recognized - no E:\ showing

Laser Printer working fine

Ink Jet Printer Is showing as before.

In My Computer a Removable Device M:\ appeared in the section next to A:\ when I plugged in the Ink Jet Printer.

I get the feeling the Inkjet Printer is confusing things because it generates this Removable Device and shows as a Mass Storage Device as well as a Printer Device and Composite Device.

When I plug in the EHD I get the usual usb storage device detected and a windows screen asking if I want it to search for the drivers but the drivers are on the EHD which wont fire up because I think the systme things the Ink Jet Printer is the EHD.

I am totally confused now and concerned that messing around with it will do more harm than good.

My Knowledge of how all of this works and what to do is minimal to say the least, I just feel that if the USB ports were reset as though they had never had anything in them this might resolve the problem.

So any advice would be gratefully recieved.

Tim.

 

[Richard Schollar]

Hello Tim

I have no particular expertise with this kind of problem.

What OS are you running? If it's XP, have you tried clicking on My Computer and clicking "View System Information">Hardware tab>Device Manager button and locating the USB devices (make sure you have the EHD plugged into a USB socket when you do this)a and rightclick on it and select "Update Driver".

 

[timbo1957]

Hi Richard,

I am running XP 2003 I have tried doing what you suggested

"View System Information">Hardware tab>Device Manager button and locating the USB devices (make sure you have the EHD plugged into a USB socket when you do this)a and rightclick on it and select "Update Driver".

But I can't get it to update the drivers because they are on the EHD and because E:\ is missing I can't get the PC to fire the unit up.

Tim.

 

[Richard Schollar]

Try inputting the name of the unit (and product number) into Google and see if it turns up drivers you can use (commonly on the manufacturer's website). I am surprised that it needs drivers though - there's nothing particularly special about external hard drives and one I recently installed worked straight off the bat. Have you trie plugging in the device in different USB ports to check that it isn't because of a dysfunctional USB port?

 

[timbo1957]

Hi Richard,

I have tried it in every port on the machine all I get is a box saying there is a new usb device and the standard windows wizard that goes and looks for the the drivers. drivers it can't find because they are on the external hard drive which won't fire up so the drivers can be activated.

The usb ports are all fine I have plugged the laster printer into each one and it recognises it immediatley.

Like I said if I plug the EHD into my wifes laptop it fires up straight away.

Something womewhere is confused (That's apart from me)

Tim.

 

[joefrench]

Sounds to me like they are trying to share a drive letter and the Card Reader is trumping the EHD.

Try this:
Connect both type of media.
Go to your Control Panel --> Administrative Tools--> Computer Management and select Disk Managment.
Find the disk that seems to match your EHD.
Right click on it and select "Change Drive Letter and Paths...".
Click the "Change" button and select a different letter for your EHD.

Hope this works.