Troubleshooting problems with external storage devices
This article helps you solving some questions regarding your external USB or Firewire storage device, before contacting your vendor or the manufacturer. The following procedure is made to help you and us narrowing down the problem and finding the source of the problem. This will not only help us but also you, to save time and solve the problems quicker.
We recommend you to read all questions but if any of those do not apply to your case or you do not have a problem at this point, feel free to skip it.
Disclaimer: Information in this document is subject to change without notice. Macpower does not make any representations or warranties (implied or otherwise) regarding the accuracy and completeness of this document and shall in no event be liable for any loss of profit or any other commercial damage, including but not limited to special, incidental, consequential, or other damages. All brand names and product names used in this document are trademarks, or registered trademarks of their respective holders.
This paper may be reproduced, but only in its entirety, and only if credit is given to Macpower Peripherals Ltd. and linkage provided to the Macpower website.
Download this article in PDF (Size 100KB)
|
|
| If you are using a Host Card or Card Bus, check if it is installed correctly. Download the latest driver and verify the installation. To double check, you can use the Device Manager (PC, explanation mark or question mark indicates a problem) or System Profiler (Mac) or simply use some other devices and test it on that certain port. |
| |
|
|
| If your Operating System (OS) requires drivers for the external device, make sure they are installed correctly. For the other Operating Systems, also double check using the Device Manager (PC) or Extension Manager (Mac) if the installation was successful (restart might be required) |
| |
|
|
After you have assured that the power adapter and cable is connected, the power is ON and working, use the Device Manager (PC, press refresh) or System Profiler (Mac) to check if you can see the external bridge board or device. For optical devices, insert a CD/DVD.
If Yes please continue, if No we recommend trying it on another Computer as well as on a different port or/and another Operating System. |
| |
|
|
| If you device is still not recognized, try to first turn on the device and then start up your computer or restart again. Another way of doing this would be turning on the device and then disconnect and re-connect the cable, as well as trying different ports. |
| |
|
|
|
The next step would be initializing and formatting the Hard Disk. Beware that formatting the Hard Disk will erase all the data, so please make a backup first or skip this step. For the PC it can be done in either DOS or for Win2000 and WinXP using “Disk Management”. For Mac OS 9.x and before, if a partition needs to be created, there is either additional software required or it has to be done on the internal IDE port. For Mac OS X, use the “Disk Utility”.
Note: The jumper settings should be set to “Master” or “Factory Default”, for both optical devices and hard drives.
Remark: For the best compatibility, we recommend using the format “FAT32”. The “NTFS” format can only be used on Win2000 and WinXP! For Mac only, we recommend “Mac OS extended”. |
| |
|
|
You’re still reading, so I assume you are either very curios or the problem is not solved yet. If you have tested the enclosure on different Computers and/or Operating Systems, it’s now time to try another device, such as different Hard Drives or optical devices, if available. If this doesn’t make any difference or the problem is that particular device, a possible solution could be updating or adjusting the setting of the firmware on the Peripheral side.
To get such an update or adjustment, please contact your dealer (where you bought the product) and ask them for help. |
| |
|
|
|
If none of the above tips solved your problem and as a reference, you might want to check following items and upgrade or replace if necessary.
Checklist for items to test/replace/upgrade:
Driver on Host side
Driver on Peripheral side
Firmware on Peripheral side
BIOS on Host side
Operating System
Power Supply on Peripheral side
Firewire/USB cable
Cable connection internal & external
Compatibility
Format type (HDD only) |
| |
|
For RMA and other questions, please contact your vendor. They will be able to issue you a RMA number and repair the device.
If your vendor can not answer your questions, feel free to have a look around in the Knowledge Base or contact us directly. Please include as many details as possible, including the part number and version of the bridge board used in your enclosure. |
| |
|
Copyright and Web Design © 2003 by Macpower Peripherals Ltd.
Last modified on January 2, 2004
| |
