Power Surge On Hub Port - Please Help

Hi,

Please could someone help?

I have an Acer TravelMate 800 laptop which has 4 USB ports.

I have a Western Digital Passport external hard disk (320GB) and
whenever I try to connect this device I see the following error:

"Power Surge on Hub Port. The USB Mass Storage device has exceeded the
power limits of its hub port."

The device never appears in 'My Computer'.

I am prompted to disconnect the device and then click on 'Reset'.

I can connect a USB mouse in to any one of the ports and it works
fine. I can also connect a Kingston Data Traveller pen drive (512MB)
in to any one of the drives and that also works fine. It is only this
Western Digital Passport external hard disk which causes this error.

Can anyone help? Can it be resolved?

Any ideas most gratefully accepted.

paristotle
Tue Apr 29 09:30:00 PDT 2008

Your HD draws more power than the laptop can supply from that one port. There
are a couple of solutions. 1) use a USB hub with a power supply. This will
give you the extra power needed. 2) some hd enclosures also have a DC power
in jack and there are cables that go from the dc connector on your enclosure
to a USB connector. It takes up 2 usb ports to run your device, but it works,

"Rafael" wrote:

> Hi,
>
> Please could someone help?
>
> I have an Acer TravelMate 800 laptop which has 4 USB ports.
>
> I have a Western Digital Passport external hard disk (320GB) and
> whenever I try to connect this device I see the following error:
>
> "Power Surge on Hub Port. The USB Mass Storage device has exceeded the
> power limits of its hub port."
>
> The device never appears in 'My Computer'.
>
> I am prompted to disconnect the device and then click on 'Reset'.
>
> I can connect a USB mouse in to any one of the ports and it works
> fine. I can also connect a Kingston Data Traveller pen drive (512MB)
> in to any one of the drives and that also works fine. It is only this
> Western Digital Passport external hard disk which causes this error.
>
> Can anyone help? Can it be resolved?
>
> Any ideas most gratefully accepted.
>

Paul
Tue Apr 29 11:17:25 PDT 2008

paristotle wrote:
> Your HD draws more power than the laptop can supply from that one port. There
> are a couple of solutions. 1) use a USB hub with a power supply. This will
> give you the extra power needed. 2) some hd enclosures also have a DC power
> in jack and there are cables that go from the dc connector on your enclosure
> to a USB connector. It takes up 2 usb ports to run your device, but it works,
>

This is an example of a cable, used to get enough power to run an
external 2.5" drive.

http://secure.serverlab.net/shop/graphics/00000001/yCable.jpg

WesternDigital sells the cable as well.

http://www.wdc.com/en/products/accessories.asp?ProdID=170

"This dual-connector cable is designed specifically for the WD Passport
portable USB drive. Normally, the USB port on the PC provides enough power
to operate the drive. However, there are some models of computers that do
not supply enough power for the drive to operate. In those rare cases,
this cable can be used to power the drive using power from two USB ports
on the system.

* Fully certified high-speed USB 2.0 cable
* Transfer rates up to 480 MB/s
* Double type-A to single mini-B connector"

(picture)
http://www.wdc.com/global/images/products/accessories/WDCA029RNN.jpg

Paul

> "Rafael" wrote:
>
>> Hi,
>>
>> Please could someone help?
>>
>> I have an Acer TravelMate 800 laptop which has 4 USB ports.
>>
>> I have a Western Digital Passport external hard disk (320GB) and
>> whenever I try to connect this device I see the following error:
>>
>> "Power Surge on Hub Port. The USB Mass Storage device has exceeded the
>> power limits of its hub port."
>>
>> The device never appears in 'My Computer'.
>>
>> I am prompted to disconnect the device and then click on 'Reset'.
>>
>> I can connect a USB mouse in to any one of the ports and it works
>> fine. I can also connect a Kingston Data Traveller pen drive (512MB)
>> in to any one of the drives and that also works fine. It is only this
>> Western Digital Passport external hard disk which causes this error.
>>
>> Can anyone help? Can it be resolved?
>>
>> Any ideas most gratefully accepted.
>>

Farad'n
Tue Apr 29 16:27:37 PDT 2008

On Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:44:50 -0700 (PDT), Rafael
<rafael_romano299@hotmail.com> wrote:

>Hi,
>
>Please could someone help?
>
>I have an Acer TravelMate 800 laptop which has 4 USB ports.
>
>I have a Western Digital Passport external hard disk (320GB) and
>whenever I try to connect this device I see the following error:
>
>"Power Surge on Hub Port. The USB Mass Storage device has exceeded the
>power limits of its hub port."
>
>The device never appears in 'My Computer'.
>
>I am prompted to disconnect the device and then click on 'Reset'.
>
>I can connect a USB mouse in to any one of the ports and it works
>fine. I can also connect a Kingston Data Traveller pen drive (512MB)
>in to any one of the drives and that also works fine. It is only this
>Western Digital Passport external hard disk which causes this error.
>
>Can anyone help? Can it be resolved?
>
>Any ideas most gratefully accepted.

Why ask HERE? This is a pure hardware question and is not related to
the XP OS. As such, it is out of place HERE.

Ask elsewhere

M
Wed Apr 30 01:45:06 PDT 2008


"Farad'n" <none@none.net> wrote in message
news:hibf149mke8kbk1pteq7pn0cirtb9v35jp@4ax.com...
> On Tue, 29 Apr 2008 08:44:50 -0700 (PDT), Rafael
> <rafael_romano299@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>>Hi,
>>
>>Please could someone help?
>>
>>I have an Acer TravelMate 800 laptop which has 4 USB ports.
>>
>>I have a Western Digital Passport external hard disk (320GB) and
>>whenever I try to connect this device I see the following error:
>>
>>"Power Surge on Hub Port. The USB Mass Storage device has exceeded the
>>power limits of its hub port."
>>
>>The device never appears in 'My Computer'.
>>
>>I am prompted to disconnect the device and then click on 'Reset'.
>>
>>I can connect a USB mouse in to any one of the ports and it works
>>fine. I can also connect a Kingston Data Traveller pen drive (512MB)
>>in to any one of the drives and that also works fine. It is only this
>>Western Digital Passport external hard disk which causes this error.
>>
>>Can anyone help? Can it be resolved?
>>
>>Any ideas most gratefully accepted.
>
> Why ask HERE? This is a pure hardware question and is not related to
> the XP OS. As such, it is out of place HERE.
>
> Ask elsewhere
>

Farad'n is our resident 13 year old mentally ill fuckwit. You can safely
ignore him - everyone else does.

He has a single obsession with people posting perfectly welcome questions
about hardware to a hardware newsgroup. He has contributed nothing himself.

Rafael
Wed Apr 30 06:32:17 PDT 2008

This look like just the job. I would never have guessed there was such
a thing without your help. Thank you. It is very much appreciated. And
I'm sorry if I've posted in the wrong place - I made an honest error.
Is that so bad Farad'n? Did you never make a mistake? Sheesh.

M
Wed Apr 30 07:44:24 PDT 2008


"Rafael" <rafael_romano299@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:a4541ebe-b586-45e3-832e-b168f186728c@24g2000hsh.googlegroups.com...
> This look like just the job. I would never have guessed there was such
> a thing without your help. Thank you. It is very much appreciated. And
> I'm sorry if I've posted in the wrong place - I made an honest error.
> Is that so bad Farad'n? Did you never make a mistake? Sheesh.

You haven't posted in the wrong place. As I said, your question is welcome.

Farad'n
Wed Apr 30 16:27:48 PDT 2008

On Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:44:24 +0100, "M.I.5¾"
<no.one@no.where.NO_SPAM.co.uk> wrote:

>
>"Rafael" <rafael_romano299@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>news:a4541ebe-b586-45e3-832e-b168f186728c@24g2000hsh.googlegroups.com...
>> This look like just the job. I would never have guessed there was such
>> a thing without your help. Thank you. It is very much appreciated. And
>> I'm sorry if I've posted in the wrong place - I made an honest error.
>> Is that so bad Farad'n? Did you never make a mistake? Sheesh.
>
>You haven't posted in the wrong place. As I said, your question is welcome.
>
>
Well, as long as it's OK with you...then you are still WRONG. Show me
where this problem involves the OS? Surely you noticed THAT part of
the group title, where it mentions WINDOWSXP? Or is it OK with you to
do whatever anybody wants here if it involves a computer? My fried
has problems with the electronic ignition in their car - should they
ask for help here? It's hardware related and involves a computer.

Where do you draw the line, Dip?

M
Wed Apr 30 23:41:55 PDT 2008


"Farad'n" <none@none.net> wrote in message
news:esvh14hsdrnacsr87nsoavq4avp01gal16@4ax.com...
> On Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:44:24 +0100, "M.I.5¾"
> <no.one@no.where.NO_SPAM.co.uk> wrote:
>
>>
>>"Rafael" <rafael_romano299@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>>news:a4541ebe-b586-45e3-832e-b168f186728c@24g2000hsh.googlegroups.com...
>>> This look like just the job. I would never have guessed there was such
>>> a thing without your help. Thank you. It is very much appreciated. And
>>> I'm sorry if I've posted in the wrong place - I made an honest error.
>>> Is that so bad Farad'n? Did you never make a mistake? Sheesh.
>>
>>You haven't posted in the wrong place. As I said, your question is
>>welcome.
>>
>>
> Well, as long as it's OK with you...then you are still WRONG. Show me
> where this problem involves the OS? Surely you noticed THAT part of
> the group title, where it mentions WINDOWSXP? Or is it OK with you to
> do whatever anybody wants here if it involves a computer? My fried
> has problems with the electronic ignition in their car - should they
> ask for help here? It's hardware related and involves a computer.
>

It seems to be OK with everyone else as well - but then you already know
that. The error message is produced by the operating system, Windows XP not
the hub. So why do you think the question doesn't belong here?

Oh yes: I forget - you're a mentally ill fuckwit.

Walter
Wed Apr 30 23:51:27 PDT 2008


"Farad'n" <none@none.net> wrote in message
news:esvh14hsdrnacsr87nsoavq4avp01gal16@4ax.com...
> On Wed, 30 Apr 2008 15:44:24 +0100, "M.I.5¾"
> <no.one@no.where.NO_SPAM.co.uk> wrote:
>
>>
>>"Rafael" <rafael_romano299@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>>news:a4541ebe-b586-45e3-832e-b168f186728c@24g2000hsh.googlegroups.com...
>>> This look like just the job. I would never have guessed there was such
>>> a thing without your help. Thank you. It is very much appreciated. And
>>> I'm sorry if I've posted in the wrong place - I made an honest error.
>>> Is that so bad Farad'n? Did you never make a mistake? Sheesh.
>>
>>You haven't posted in the wrong place. As I said, your question is
>>welcome.
>>
>>
> Well, as long as it's OK with you...then you are still WRONG. Show me
> where this problem involves the OS? Surely you noticed THAT part of
> the group title, where it mentions WINDOWSXP? Or is it OK with you to
> do whatever anybody wants here if it involves a computer? My fried
> has problems with the electronic ignition in their car - should they
> ask for help here? It's hardware related and involves a computer.
>

So what the hell do you think produces the error message? Fairies?

zzr
Sat Jun 07 02:17:01 PDT 2008

On 1 mai, 08:51, "Walter Wall" <m...@privacy.net> wrote:

> So what the hell do you think produces the error message? Fairies?

Walter's perfectly RIGHT. Seen (somewhere) on WD's site : this error
message comes ONLY in Windows XP SP2.

What's more (but this IS hardware) WD's site says, too, we can just
disregard the message.

DON'T BELIEVE THEM!!!

My Dell Latitude D800i just REFUSES to boot with a WD 120 GB Elements
connected to the original USB port.

The exact data are : the WD Elements, for instance, wants 650 mA
(milli amps) and a typical USB port cannot give more than 500. So you
either need a 2.0 powered hub or the famous WDCA029RNN cable. Almost
impossible to find in France :(