Member Avatar for cygnus2112

My new WD 320Gb works fine on my Win7 laptp and another XP desktop but will not work at all on my Win7 desktop.
Tried windows update.
Doesn't show up in My Computer or Disk Managament??

Any clues??
Thanks Cygnus2112

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Dani AI

Generated

As later confirmed, the WD 320GB was detected as soon as it was moved to a rear USB port. That behaviour points to a port/power/controller issue rather than a failed drive. Front‑panel sockets, cheap hubs or front‑header wiring can be on a different USB controller or supply less current; bus‑powered 2.5" externals are the most likely to fail to enumerate in those cases.

A compact troubleshooting checklist that covers the usual causes:

  • Prefer back‑panel (motherboard) USB ports over front‑panel ports or unpowered hubs; front ports are often weaker or wired differently.
  • Swap the USB cable and, for bus‑powered drives, consider a powered hub or a Y‑cable to ensure sufficient current.
  • Inspect Device Manager (Disk drives and Universal Serial Bus controllers) for Unknown Devices; uninstall and rescan if a problematic device appears.
  • Check Disk Management (Computer → Manage → Disk Management). If the disk appears without a drive letter, assign one; if it shows Offline, bring it online. If it shows “Not Initialized” and contains data, avoid initializing (that would erase the partition table) and attach the drive to a working PC or use recovery tools.
  • Confirm any external AC adapter is connected for 3.5" enclosures.

Additional context and prevention: update motherboard chipset/USB controller drivers from the PC/motherboard vendor, check BIOS/UEFI for disabled USB ports, and disable USB selective suspend in Power Options if power‑saving is causing drops. Running the vendor’s diagnostic utility and keeping a current backup are recommended if the disk behaves intermittently.

Credit to for the port suggestion and to for confirming the fix; when a drive works on other systems but not one PC, port power, cable, or controller differences are the most common root causes.

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Member Avatar for finito

Hello, and welcome to the forums.

Please introduce yourself at http://www.daniweb.com/forums/forum165.html, if you have some free time.

Can I ask you which form Factor your external Drive is.

If your drive is the 2.5 Form Factor I would bet on the USB port please try another Port.

Member Avatar for cygnus2112

Well don't I look daft :-)

Plugged into rear usb port, picked it right up.

Solved
Thanks

Member Avatar for finito

Well don't I look daft :-)

Plugged into rear usb port, picked it right up.

Solved
Thanks

Just Human Beings m8. Just Human Beings.

Member Avatar for cygnus2112

Hey thanks for that !
;-)

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