Tom's Hardware > Forum > Windows XP > Device Driver > Firewire Drive wont Hotswap, no Yellow "!" in Device Manager

Firewire Drive wont Hotswap, no Yellow "!" in Device Manager

Forum Windows XP : Device Driver - Firewire Drive wont Hotswap, no Yellow "!" in Device Manager

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AARRGGHHH   08-04-2007 at 08:21:06 AM


Not entirely sure this is a device driver issue, but I really wasnt sure where to put the post.

I recently (and reluctantly - I love Windows 2000) installed XP SP 2 on a partition. Everything is working okay, except:

I cant get my Firewire drive to show up in Device Manager or Explorer unless it's turned on when I boot up. I normally keep it turned off, since it's a backup drive, and only turn it on when I need it. If I turn it on after booting, it will only show up if I disconnect the data cable (not the power cable) and then reconnect it. In Windows 2000 SP 4, it worked perfectly.

Disconnecting and reconnecting several times a day is becoming a real issue. I've tried updating the driver, Windows says the most up to date driver is already installed. There are absolutely no yellow "!"'s in device manager that could even give me a hint as to where to look for trouble. Also, hotswap for my USB flash drive is working perfectly, I can turn it on and off as needed. There are some Firewire / XP articles on Microsoft's site, but they deal with slow transfer speed, hard drives that don't work at all, and non hard drive devices such as video cameras.

I'd appreciate any help. Thanks

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dunklegend   08-08-2007 at 06:26:44 PM
- 0 +

Do you have the driver from the hard drive manufacturer?
Because you may have the most up to date MICROSOFT driver, but sometimes the manufacturer's drivers work better, even if they're not digitally signed to be used in XP

Reply to dunklegend
AARRGGHHH   08-09-2007 at 11:03:50 AM
- 0 +

Unfortunately, Maxtor/Seagate never issued a driver for the hard drive, it's always used the Microsoft driver.

 

One other odd behavior: if I keep the "1394 Net Adapter" disabled in device manager, then enable it after turning the drive on, the drive is detected as soon as the "1394 Net Adapter" is enabled. I then have to disable the "1394 Net Adapter" again (the drive continues working), so that I can repeat the enable procedure the next time I want to hot swap the drive.

 

This "1394 Net Adapter" may be part of the problem, I dont even have a 1394 / Firewire network, XP just put it there without asking me. I can disable it, as described above, but if I remove it, XP simply sticks it back in Device Manager (without asking) when I reboot.

 

I'd appreciate any help. Thanks


Message edited by AARRGGHHH on 08-09-2007 at 11:06:13 AM
Reply to AARRGGHHH
dunklegend   08-10-2007 at 06:24:30 AM
- 0 +

Have you tried downloading the latest drivers for your motherboard.
For example my mobo is an Epox MF570 SLI, I would go to the Epox website and look for updated drivers maybe one of them is for the firewire adapter and solves your problem.

If you don't know what brand and model your motherboard is download CPU Z and run it to see your system information

------------------------------ Never argue with a fool, people might not know the difference
 Reply to dunklegend
AARRGGHHH   08-10-2007 at 10:56:25 AM
- 0 +

Unfortunately, I already thought of that one. The motherboard does not have a firewire adapter, but the drive came with a free firewire PCI adapter. The adapter is also a Maxtor, and again, they just use the Windows drivers.

I've gone to the dreaded Windows Update site, hoping there'd be a new 1394 driver, but no luck. Is there any way I can re-download and reinstall the current 1394 driver from MS? Maybe it's just corrupted. I have tried letting Device Manager connect to Windows Update when searching for a driver but I just get the 'latest driver is already installed' message.

Also, that "1394 Net Adapter" issue continues to puzzle me, as in why does it temporarily resolve the problem?

Thanks


Message edited by AARRGGHHH on 08-10-2007 at 10:57:58 AM
Reply to AARRGGHHH
Zoron   08-12-2007 at 03:25:22 AM
- 0 +

I haven't worked with Firewire devices all that much, but it sounds very similar to USB. Once the device is in a "stopped" state, the only way to start it again is to unplug the device and plug it back in... or restart Windows with the device still attached and powered on. When you remove the "1394 Net Adapter", you are in reality removing your Firewire adapter and reinstalling it... which is why the drive will start working again.

If you have a Firewire port in Windows XP, you will have a 1394 Net Adapter. I'm assuming MS did this because it's possible to network two computers using their firewire ports.

I know from experience that when I power on an external hard drive that is connected to a USB port, Windows will automatically find the drive with no issue. I'm betting that for some reason, the same doesn't apply to firewire... though I'm not sure why. Perhaps there is a setting somewhere that can be changed.

Reply to Zoron
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