Ok, this is not weird. It works. I've got a variety of MicroSD cards from 8GB to 256GB. These plug into a small USB 3.0 "A" adapter that, in turn, plug into 1 (another to come) USB 3.0 7-port self-powered hub and I'm adding a second. These two hubs sit behind a Dell monitor with a USB 3.0 "A" hub built-in. I have another 7-port hub that plugs into the USB 3.1 "C" port on the computer. I currently have 15 drive slots available and I'm adding 7 more.
The drive "C" is an SSD inside the computer.
Pluses:
- The computer is absolutely silent. The CPU is a fanless BeeBox pushing USB 3.0 ports and there's no whine from the hard drives.
- the storage is infinitely expandable - I just keep swapping out MicroSD cards
- these things are tiny. I turn off the computer and put my entire storage in my pocket. I can store 10 chips in the space of one credit card in my wallet.
- information is instantly movable to a tablet, cellphone, laptop/notebook computer, camera, even a smart TV.
- these little things are robust. They are 'waterproof', impervious to magnetic damage, will endure some elevated temperatures and suffer no ill effects from x-rays.
Cons
- there is the distinct possibility that any chip could suffer some sort of failure so backup is mandatory. I also maintain a history trail. I also triage my chips --- absolutely critical --- static, backup once --- no big loss, easily reconstructable.
- these things are so tiny I can't label them. What is worse is that the hubs do not offer any sort of consistency in assigning drive letters. If I put one chip in port 0 of hub 1, it will be assigned drive "H". I put the same chip in port 4 of hub 2, it is still assigned drive "H", unless there's another chip with that same drive letter then it will get some random un-discernible drive letter.
- drive letters are assigned on a first-come first-served basis. there is no consistency or predictability.
the problem:
- I need some sort of method by which I can identify which chip goes with which port on the hub. Then, I need to identify which chip is which. The adapters conceal almost all of the body of the chip rendering labels useless. I've tried colour coding USB thumb drives but chips are too tiny. When you're dealing with one chip that's fine. Two is memory work and can get confusing. Try keeping track of 25 chips that you can't see and move around every time you swap them out.
Is there some sort of program that will identify which port is which on a USB hub and which hub is which? The computer's got to keep track of it on a table somewhere. Is there some software that will allow me to tap into this table?
Thanks for your help. I hope this is understandable.
The drive "C" is an SSD inside the computer.
Pluses:
- The computer is absolutely silent. The CPU is a fanless BeeBox pushing USB 3.0 ports and there's no whine from the hard drives.
- the storage is infinitely expandable - I just keep swapping out MicroSD cards
- these things are tiny. I turn off the computer and put my entire storage in my pocket. I can store 10 chips in the space of one credit card in my wallet.
- information is instantly movable to a tablet, cellphone, laptop/notebook computer, camera, even a smart TV.
- these little things are robust. They are 'waterproof', impervious to magnetic damage, will endure some elevated temperatures and suffer no ill effects from x-rays.
Cons
- there is the distinct possibility that any chip could suffer some sort of failure so backup is mandatory. I also maintain a history trail. I also triage my chips --- absolutely critical --- static, backup once --- no big loss, easily reconstructable.
- these things are so tiny I can't label them. What is worse is that the hubs do not offer any sort of consistency in assigning drive letters. If I put one chip in port 0 of hub 1, it will be assigned drive "H". I put the same chip in port 4 of hub 2, it is still assigned drive "H", unless there's another chip with that same drive letter then it will get some random un-discernible drive letter.
- drive letters are assigned on a first-come first-served basis. there is no consistency or predictability.
the problem:
- I need some sort of method by which I can identify which chip goes with which port on the hub. Then, I need to identify which chip is which. The adapters conceal almost all of the body of the chip rendering labels useless. I've tried colour coding USB thumb drives but chips are too tiny. When you're dealing with one chip that's fine. Two is memory work and can get confusing. Try keeping track of 25 chips that you can't see and move around every time you swap them out.
Is there some sort of program that will identify which port is which on a USB hub and which hub is which? The computer's got to keep track of it on a table somewhere. Is there some software that will allow me to tap into this table?
Thanks for your help. I hope this is understandable.
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram