4TB external HD

I have a Seagate 4TB external HD, powered, like this;
https://goo.gl/q1z7RC

It works fine with Win7. No sign of trouble.
But when I plug it into Win10 the system dies. Strangely, when I boot
with it plugged in, everything goes fine.

There's nothing relative in the Windows Log, other than info that the
system didn't shut down properly before the reboot.

Has anybody seen this? Or, any hunches as to what's causing it?

Ed

On Mon, 25 Jun 2018 12:53:03 +0100, Ed Cryer
wrote:

I have a Seagate 4TB external HD, powered, like this;
https://goo.gl/q1z7RC

It works fine with Win7. No sign of trouble.
But when I plug it into Win10 the system dies. Strangely, when I boot
with it plugged in, everything goes fine.

There's nothing relative in the Windows Log, other than info that the
system didn't shut down properly before the reboot.

Has anybody seen this? Or, any hunches as to what's causing it?

Ed

I had a similar problem with a Verbatim drive. It was fixed by a new
driver that was applied by an automatic update. I assume Seagate have
some driver fixes.

Steve

--
http://www.npsnn.com

Ed Cryer wrote:

I have a Seagate 4TB external HD, powered, like this;
https://goo.gl/q1z7RC

That gives NO SPECIFICATIONS on the device. It is an ad pointing to an
Amazon auction - and not for $89 but for $165 and for an older version
that is $70 more than the newer version!

From that article following its link to Amazon and getting the model
number from there, it is model STDT4000100. When I go to:

https://www.seagate.com/support/exte...T4000100#specs

there is no online data specs or manual listed there. I found a manual
but not for that particular model and did a Google Image search. Looks
like it uses that goofy adapter cable: Micro-B to Type A.

It works fine with Win7. No sign of trouble.
But when I plug it into Win10 the system dies. Strangely, when I boot
with it plugged in, everything goes fine.

There's nothing relative in the Windows Log, other than info that the
system didn't shut down properly before the reboot.

Has anybody seen this? Or, any hunches as to what's causing it?

You don't say how you are connecting the external HDD. USB2 or USB3?
No info on what USB versions are supported by the computer to which you
are connecting the Seagate USB drive.

Are any other USB devices attached to the same USB controller as for the
USB port you're using for the Seagate USB drive? USB ports are in
pairs: 2 per controller.

Does the same problem arise when you plug a USB2 (not USB3) device into
that same USB port on your computer? USB3 devices, especially several
of them, will suck more power than USB2. If your PSU is weak, the surge
on spinning up USB3 devices could overload a weak PSU.

https://www.drivethelife.com/windows...indows-10.html
https://windows10skill.com/fix-usb-3...on-windows-10/

Don't get their USB driver as a fix. This is typical of a lot of fix-it
sites that really want to push their own wares. You could attempt to
update the USB3 driver through a Windows wizard (Device Manager,
uninstall driver, reinstall) or, if you have an Intel chipset (you don't
identify your mobo by brand and model) then you could get the driver
from Intel. For example:

https://www.intel.com/content/www/us...er-driver.html

When uninstalling the "Universal Serial Bus Controllers" driver, first
make sure to disconnect all USB devices.

https://www.easeus.com/partition-man...dows-10-7.html

That just has you uninstall the driver and reboot. On reboot, Windows
will do a hardware scan and reinstall the driver. That's just a
workaround for you doing the hardware scan yourself in Device Manager to
get Windows to install the driver for newly found hardware.

You can also try the troubleshooter:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y_78eDEQyY

On 6/25/2018 12:50 PM, VanguardLH wrote:
That gives NO SPECIFICATIONS on the device. It is an ad pointing to an
Amazon auction - and not for $89 but for $165 and for an older version
that is $70 more than the newer version!

From that article following its link to Amazon and getting the model
number from there, it is model STDT4000100. When I go to:

https://www.seagate.com/support/exte...T4000100#specs

There is a data sheet for the specification and a user manual for the
4TB model he

https://www.seagate.com/consumer/bac...d-drive/#specs


Does not say much but may be helpful.


--
2018: The year we learn to play the great game of Euchre

In article , VanguardLH
wrote:


I have a Seagate 4TB external HD, powered, like this;
https://goo.gl/q1z7RC

That gives NO SPECIFICATIONS on the device. It is an ad pointing to an
Amazon auction - and not for $89 but for $165 and for an older version
that is $70 more than the newer version!

what specs were you looking for?

it's an external usb 3 hard drive. there is nothing special about them.
they're all pretty much the same.

From that article following its link to Amazon and getting the model
number from there, it is model STDT4000100. When I go to:

https://www.seagate.com/support/exte...d-drives/backu
p-plus-desk/?sku=STDT4000100#specs

there is no online data specs or manual listed there. I found a manual
but not for that particular model and did a Google Image search. Looks
like it uses that goofy adapter cable: Micro-B to Type A.

micro-usb is an industry standard connector.

there is nothing goofy about it, unless you consider poorly designed to
be goofy, particularly micro-usb3.

It works fine with Win7. No sign of trouble.
But when I plug it into Win10 the system dies. Strangely, when I boot
with it plugged in, everything goes fine.

There's nothing relative in the Windows Log, other than info that the
system didn't shut down properly before the reboot.

Has anybody seen this? Or, any hunches as to what's causing it?

You don't say how you are connecting the external HDD. USB2 or USB3?
No info on what USB versions are supported by the computer to which you
are connecting the Seagate USB drive.

the year is 2018 so it's almost certainly usb 3, not that it matters,
since usb 3 drives will work with a usb 2 port, just not as fast.

Are any other USB devices attached to the same USB controller as for the
USB port you're using for the Seagate USB drive? USB ports are in
pairs: 2 per controller.

not necessarily, and also irrelevant.

*each* usb port is capable of sourcing at least 500ma (for usb2), but
that's typically higher because of external hard drives, smartphones
and other devices that require more power. 1a is common, but may be
even higher.

if the port is usb 3, then it can source at least 950 ma, and that too
could be higher.

in other words, the usb port is not the issue unless the computer is
very old and has old usb 2 ports that aren't over-spec'ed, which we
know it is not the case since the problem system is running win10.

Does the same problem arise when you plug a USB2 (not USB3) device into
that same USB port on your computer? USB3 devices, especially several
of them, will suck more power than USB2.

nonsense.

first of all, there can only be one device per usb port. unlike other
interfaces, usb cannot be chained.

second, an external usb drive would 'suck' the same amount of power
whether it's usb2 or usb3, assuming it uses the same hard drive
mechanism internally. the power for the bridge board is negligible.

if the hard drive mechanism is different, then the power draw could be
different, but that has nothing to do with the choice of interface and
the difference is not significant anyway.

If your PSU is weak, the surge
on spinning up USB3 devices could overload a weak PSU.

nonsense.

an external usb bus-powered hard drive is not going to overload a psu,
particularly since the usb port will deny a power request if it cannot
provide the power.

"nospam" wrote in message
...
In article , VanguardLH
wrote:
there is no online data specs or manual listed there. I found a manual
but not for that particular model and did a Google Image search. Looks
like it uses that goofy adapter cable: Micro-B to Type A.

micro-usb is an industry standard connector.

there is nothing goofy about it, unless you consider poorly designed to
be goofy, particularly micro-usb3.

My experience with mini- and micro-USB is that the plug itself is fine. The
problem has always been the integrity of the cable (intermittent contacts)
within the first inch of the mini/micro, if it gets bent or tugged. Anker
have replaced several cables free of charge because of this. With one they
confirmed that the contacts within the micro-USB were still perfect, and not
bent flat so as to make intermittent contact with the device socket.

The new USB C plug, on newer phones, is better because it is reversible.
Sadly there seems to be no industry-standard convention as to which side of
a mini/micro-USB has the symbol on it. That is a thing of the past with USB
C.

Apple's proprietary connector is fine but I'm always worried about damage to
the exposed contacts, or the PCB snapping off. The outer metal shielding of
A, B, Mini-B, Micro-B and USB C connectors provide a bit of rigidity and
protection that the Apple connector doesn't have.

In article , NY
wrote:

there is no online data specs or manual listed there. I found a manual
but not for that particular model and did a Google Image search. Looks
like it uses that goofy adapter cable: Micro-B to Type A.

micro-usb is an industry standard connector.

there is nothing goofy about it, unless you consider poorly designed to
be goofy, particularly micro-usb3.

My experience with mini- and micro-USB is that the plug itself is fine. The
problem has always been the integrity of the cable (intermittent contacts)
within the first inch of the mini/micro, if it gets bent or tugged. Anker
have replaced several cables free of charge because of this. With one they
confirmed that the contacts within the micro-USB were still perfect, and not
bent flat so as to make intermittent contact with the device socket.

anker is a reputable brand, but that still shouldn't happen.

The new USB C plug, on newer phones, is better because it is reversible.
Sadly there seems to be no industry-standard convention as to which side of
a mini/micro-USB has the symbol on it. That is a thing of the past with USB
C.

reversible is one of many benefits of usb-c.

unfortunately, there is a wide range of usb-c cable quality, some of
which may damage the devices.

https://bensonapproved.com
All USB Type-C (USB-C) Cables and Accessories are not created equal.
Some will charge most efficiently, others might just fry your
battery. Google Chromebook engineer and Caped Cable Crusader Benson
Leung has been testing USB Type-C (USB-C) cables off Amazon, and it¹s
not just the no-brand products that have been failing. Benson¹s
campaign mostly consists of ordering USB Type-C (USB-C) cables off
Amazon, testing them to see if they meet the minimum standards or if
they¹re just knock-offs, and then leaving Amazon reviews. Cables and
chargers fail in all sorts of different ways, although incorrect
resistors seem to be a common problem that Benson¹s been finding.
bensonapproved.com lists all USB Type-C (USB-C) Cables and
Accessories approved by Benson. For more info follow us on Twitter
@bensonapproved or contact us at

Apple's proprietary connector is fine but I'm always worried about damage to
the exposed contacts, or the PCB snapping off. The outer metal shielding of
A, B, Mini-B, Micro-B and USB C connectors provide a bit of rigidity and
protection that the Apple connector doesn't have.

that rigidity has its downsides.

apple's lightning connector is designed such that the plug will shear
thereby protecting the socket and the host device itself.

a more rigid connector could torque the socket resulting in an
expensive repair.

it's a *lot* cheaper to replace a cable.

On 25/06/2018 17:50, VanguardLH wrote:
Looks
like it uses that goofy adapter cable: Micro-B to Type A.

What else could it use???

--

Brian Gregory (in England).

On Mon, 25 Jun 2018 12:53:03 +0100, Ed Cryer
wrote:

I have a Seagate 4TB external HD, powered, like this;
https://goo.gl/q1z7RC

It works fine with Win7. No sign of trouble.
But when I plug it into Win10 the system dies. Strangely, when I boot
with it plugged in, everything goes fine.

There's nothing relative in the Windows Log, other than info that the
system didn't shut down properly before the reboot.

Has anybody seen this? Or, any hunches as to what's causing it?

Ed

I see a lot of interesting discussion, but I didn't see anyone ask
what "system dies" means. Blue screen? Power off? Hangs with
whatever is on the screen?

Maybe your system doesn't like the current surge on the 5V line
provided by USB. If the drive is already past that point, there is no
surge and Windows boots OK.

Stephen Wolstenholme wrote:
On Mon, 25 Jun 2018 12:53:03 +0100, Ed Cryer
wrote:

I have a Seagate 4TB external HD, powered, like this;
https://goo.gl/q1z7RC

It works fine with Win7. No sign of trouble.
But when I plug it into Win10 the system dies. Strangely, when I boot
with it plugged in, everything goes fine.

There's nothing relative in the Windows Log, other than info that the
system didn't shut down properly before the reboot.

Has anybody seen this? Or, any hunches as to what's causing it?

Ed

I had a similar problem with a Verbatim drive. It was fixed by a new
driver that was applied by an automatic update. I assume Seagate have
some driver fixes.

Steve


It should be using a regular USB Mass Storage driver.

The drive is 3.5" and has an external 12V @ 1.5A adapter.
The question would be, where does the +5V come from.

A lot of drive enclosures, convert some of the 12V to 5V to
run the logic board on the hard drive. So rather than the
wall adapter having four wires like a Molex, only +12V comes
from the adapter, and the +5V is produced on site.

(Wall +12V ------------ Adapter ---- +12V ------ Hard drive motor
Wart) GND ------------ Board ---- GND ------
---- GND ------
---- +5V ------ Hard drive logic board
(not all pins shown)
+5VSB ------------ USB to TX+ ------ Hard drive
D+ SATA TX- ------ data
D- Converter RX+ ------ connector
GND ------------- Chip RX- ------ 7 pin (3 GND)

The USB cable by comparison, has a source of +5VSB at
up to 900mA on USB3. If the ATX power supply doesn't
have sufficient +5VSB rating, and you actually
overload +5VSB, it can cause the motherboard to shut
off. Instead of doing a restart, it would appear to
spontaneously shut off.

Maybe they made it like this, but... unlikely.

+12V ------------ Adapter ---- +12V ------ Hard drive motor
GND ------------ Board ---- GND ------
---- GND ------
+-------------- +5V ------ Hard drive logic board
|
+5VSB ---------+-- USB TX+ ------ Hard drive
D+ SATA TX- ------ data
D- Converter RX+ ------ connector
GND ------------- Chip RX- ------ 7 pin (3 GND)


But even though that looks bad, it's not possible to
tell from the outside, exactly how the external storage
box was designed.

If it was a driver issue, you'd expect to see some
error info in the Reliability Monitor related to the
driver.

The drive might not be spinning when it is plugged
in during a session, but spinup current comes from
the 12V 1.5A adapter, rather than the USB bus cable.
The USB bus cable should only power the adapter
board inside the enclosure. Or in a more exotic
design, the bus power could also be used to run
the hard drive logic board.

For a driver issue, you'd expect to see a BSOD on the
screen for a short time. If you disabled automatic
restart, then the BSOD would stay on the screen longer.
If it really is a power issue (crushing of +5VSB) then
changing the automatic restart setting would not change
the symptoms.

If the computer shuts off and doesn't restart, that
sounds more like a +5VSB issue.

And while placing a USB3 powered hub between the
computer box and the external drive would sound
like fun, those aren't always designed properly
either. Sometimes there are undesired interactions
between the downstream +5V on the powered hub,
versus the +5VSB on the host side of the hub box
(the "backfeed" problem).

If an iPad was being charged off the PC, at the
same time the HDD enclosure had the USB data
cable plugged in, that would represent a pretty
heavy load on +5VSB (several amps).

Paul

Paul wrote:
Stephen Wolstenholme wrote:
On Mon, 25 Jun 2018 12:53:03 +0100, Ed Cryer
wrote:

I have a Seagate 4TB external HD, powered, like this;
https://goo.gl/q1z7RC

It works fine with Win7. No sign of trouble.
But when I plug it into Win10 the system dies. Strangely, when I boot
with it plugged in, everything goes fine.

There's nothing relative in the Windows Log, other than info that the
system didn't shut down properly before the reboot.

Has anybody seen this? Or, any hunches as to what's causing it?

Ed

I had a similar problem with a Verbatim drive. It was fixed by a new
driver that was applied by an automatic update. I assume Seagate have
some driver fixes.
Steve


It should be using a regular USB Mass Storage driver.

The drive is 3.5" and has an external 12V @ 1.5A adapter.
The question would be, where does the +5V come from.

A lot of drive enclosures, convert some of the 12V to 5V to
run the logic board on the hard drive. So rather than the
wall adapter having four wires like a Molex, only +12V comes
from the adapter, and the +5V is produced on site.

(Wall +12V ------------ Adapter ---- +12V ------ Hard drive motor
Â*Wart) GND ------------ BoardÂ*Â* ---- GNDÂ* ------
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ---- GNDÂ* ------
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ---- +5VÂ* ------ Hard drive logic board
(not all pins shown)
Â*Â*Â*Â* +5VSB ------------ USB toÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* TX+ ------ Hard drive
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* D+Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* SATAÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* TX- ------ data
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* D-Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ConverterÂ*Â*Â* RX+ ------ connector
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* GND ------------- ChipÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* RX- ------ 7 pin (3 GND)

The USB cable by comparison, has a source of +5VSB at
up to 900mA on USB3. If the ATX power supply doesn't
have sufficient +5VSB rating, and you actually
overload +5VSB, it can cause the motherboard to shut
off. Instead of doing a restart, it would appear to
spontaneously shut off.

Maybe they made it like this, but... unlikely.

Â*Â*Â*Â* +12V ------------ Adapter ---- +12V ------ Hard drive motor
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* GND ------------ BoardÂ*Â* ---- GNDÂ* ------
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ---- GNDÂ* ------
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* +-------------- +5VÂ* ------ Hard drive logic board
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* |
Â*Â*Â*Â* +5VSB ---------+-- USBÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* TX+ ------ Hard drive
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* D+Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* SATAÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* TX- ------ data
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* D-Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ConverterÂ*Â* RX+ ------ connector
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* GND ------------- ChipÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* RX- ------ 7 pin (3 GND)


But even though that looks bad, it's not possible to
tell from the outside, exactly how the external storage
box was designed.

If it was a driver issue, you'd expect to see some
error info in the Reliability Monitor related to the
driver.

The drive might not be spinning when it is plugged
in during a session, but spinup current comes from
the 12V 1.5A adapter, rather than the USB bus cable.
The USB bus cable should only power the adapter
board inside the enclosure. Or in a more exotic
design, the bus power could also be used to run
the hard drive logic board.

For a driver issue, you'd expect to see a BSOD on the
screen for a short time. If you disabled automatic
restart, then the BSOD would stay on the screen longer.
If it really is a power issue (crushing of +5VSB) then
changing the automatic restart setting would not change
the symptoms.

If the computer shuts off and doesn't restart, that
sounds more like a +5VSB issue.

And while placing a USB3 powered hub between the
computer box and the external drive would sound
like fun, those aren't always designed properly
either. Sometimes there are undesired interactions
between the downstream +5V on the powered hub,
versus the +5VSB on the host side of the hub box
(the "backfeed" problem).

If an iPad was being charged off the PC, at the
same time the HDD enclosure had the USB data
cable plugged in, that would represent a pretty
heavy load on +5VSB (several amps).

Â*Â* Paul

Hi Paul.

I've just tried it on another Win10 box and it works perfectly there.
I took it back to the faulting box, booted with it in, uninstalled it,
rebooted ...... problem still there.

I've not had any other USB problem with the box. I've plugged in other
HDs, memory sticks, external bluray writer. All fine.

Ed

Brian Gregory wrote:
On 25/06/2018 17:50, VanguardLH wrote:
Looks
like it uses that goofy adapter cable: Micro-B to Type A.

What else could it use???


The enclosure is big enough to use a regular Type B.
It's a 3.5" disk.

I suppose they might take advantage of the new shingled
drives in the 0.8" high HDA, and make the enclosure
with less vertical height. 4TB can be done with 2 platters
on shingled drives.

If you were doing a 2.5" disk enclosure, then the
Micro-B might make more sense.

Paul

Ed Cryer wrote:
Paul wrote:
Stephen Wolstenholme wrote:
On Mon, 25 Jun 2018 12:53:03 +0100, Ed Cryer
wrote:

I have a Seagate 4TB external HD, powered, like this;
https://goo.gl/q1z7RC

It works fine with Win7. No sign of trouble.
But when I plug it into Win10 the system dies. Strangely, when I
boot with it plugged in, everything goes fine.

There's nothing relative in the Windows Log, other than info that
the system didn't shut down properly before the reboot.

Has anybody seen this? Or, any hunches as to what's causing it?

Ed

I had a similar problem with a Verbatim drive. It was fixed by a new
driver that was applied by an automatic update. I assume Seagate have
some driver fixes.
Steve


It should be using a regular USB Mass Storage driver.

The drive is 3.5" and has an external 12V @ 1.5A adapter.
The question would be, where does the +5V come from.

A lot of drive enclosures, convert some of the 12V to 5V to
run the logic board on the hard drive. So rather than the
wall adapter having four wires like a Molex, only +12V comes
from the adapter, and the +5V is produced on site.

(Wall +12V ------------ Adapter ---- +12V ------ Hard drive motor
Â*Â*Wart) GND ------------ BoardÂ*Â* ---- GNDÂ* ------
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ---- GNDÂ* ------
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ---- +5VÂ* ------ Hard drive logic board
(not all pins shown)
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* +5VSB ------------ USB toÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* TX+ ------ Hard drive
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* D+Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* SATAÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* TX- ------ data
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* D-Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ConverterÂ*Â*Â* RX+ ------ connector
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* GND ------------- ChipÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* RX- ------ 7 pin (3 GND)

The USB cable by comparison, has a source of +5VSB at
up to 900mA on USB3. If the ATX power supply doesn't
have sufficient +5VSB rating, and you actually
overload +5VSB, it can cause the motherboard to shut
off. Instead of doing a restart, it would appear to
spontaneously shut off.

Maybe they made it like this, but... unlikely.

Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* +12V ------------ Adapter ---- +12V ------ Hard drive motor
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* GND ------------ BoardÂ*Â* ---- GNDÂ* ------
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ---- GNDÂ* ------
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* +-------------- +5VÂ* ------ Hard drive logic board
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* |
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* +5VSB ---------+-- USBÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* TX+ ------ Hard drive
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* D+Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* SATAÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* TX- ------ data
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* D-Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* ConverterÂ*Â* RX+ ------ connector
Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* GND ------------- ChipÂ*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â*Â* RX- ------ 7 pin (3 GND)


But even though that looks bad, it's not possible to
tell from the outside, exactly how the external storage
box was designed.

If it was a driver issue, you'd expect to see some
error info in the Reliability Monitor related to the
driver.

The drive might not be spinning when it is plugged
in during a session, but spinup current comes from
the 12V 1.5A adapter, rather than the USB bus cable.
The USB bus cable should only power the adapter
board inside the enclosure. Or in a more exotic
design, the bus power could also be used to run
the hard drive logic board.

For a driver issue, you'd expect to see a BSOD on the
screen for a short time. If you disabled automatic
restart, then the BSOD would stay on the screen longer.
If it really is a power issue (crushing of +5VSB) then
changing the automatic restart setting would not change
the symptoms.

If the computer shuts off and doesn't restart, that
sounds more like a +5VSB issue.

And while placing a USB3 powered hub between the
computer box and the external drive would sound
like fun, those aren't always designed properly
either. Sometimes there are undesired interactions
between the downstream +5V on the powered hub,
versus the +5VSB on the host side of the hub box
(the "backfeed" problem).

If an iPad was being charged off the PC, at the
same time the HDD enclosure had the USB data
cable plugged in, that would represent a pretty
heavy load on +5VSB (several amps).

Â*Â*Â* Paul

Hi Paul.

I've just tried it on another Win10 box and it works perfectly there.
I took it back to the faulting box, booted with it in, uninstalled it,
rebooted ...... problem still there.

I've not had any other USB problem with the box. I've plugged in other
HDs, memory sticks, external bluray writer. All fine.

Ed


The main difference that leaps out at me is that the 4TB drive has a
power adaptor; none of the other devices do.

Ed

In article , Ed Cryer
wrote:

The main difference that leaps out at me is that the 4TB drive has a
power adaptor; none of the other devices do.

are they 2.5" bus-powered drives?

In article , Paul
wrote:

like it uses that goofy adapter cable: Micro-B to Type A.

What else could it use???

The enclosure is big enough to use a regular Type B.
It's a 3.5" disk.

a 3.5" drive will have its own power adapter, thereby eliminating any
issues with bus-power.

I suppose they might take advantage of the new shingled
drives in the 0.8" high HDA, and make the enclosure
with less vertical height. 4TB can be done with 2 platters
on shingled drives.

that won't make the enclosure significantly smaller nor will it cause
the problems he's seeing.

If you were doing a 2.5" disk enclosure, then the
Micro-B might make more sense.

these days, it's usually a micro usb 3 connector for both 2.5" and 3.5"
enclosures, which despite being an awful connector, does simplify
cabling.