WD Elements Se portable not recognized by Win XP

[pratjoehahn]

I wanted to move out my data from my old XP computer(which is soon going to be sold) to a external hard drive. I got a WD Elements SE Portable 1TB.In the shop,it looked wee small and very cute-but-means-business. In every way I liked it except the USB2.0.
And then I reached my home....
Plugged it into my XP SP2 computer, and got this message"USB Device not recognized. One of the USB devices attached to this computer has malfunctioned...bla..bla bla and bla...."
So to checked whether the device itself was at fault,I plugged it intoi my Win 7 computer....And it showed up!!

So folks my question is what's happening and how can I solve this??


Tanks of thanks in advance,

-Pratjoehahn

 

[AMD X6850]

If you have any other USB devices, try and unplug them first before plugging in the HDD.
My friend has two of these HDDs and they don't work when plugged in together.

Also try a different USB port on the XP computer.

 

[fzabkar]

If your drive is powered from the USB port, then try a Y-cable.

A standard USB port is current limited to 500mA. A Seagate ST9500325AS drive, for example, requires about 850mA during spinup, and about 400mA thereafter. A Y-cable is therefore sometimes necessary to pick up power from two USB ports.

 

[AMD X6850]

From what fzabkar said, I know the WD Elements SE can work with one USB port (I've used it on netbooks to full size computers) but since your computer is old it might be a problem.

Make sure to try using a USB port on the motherboard's I/O Panel (at the back of the computer, where monitors etc. are plugged in).

 

[pratjoehahn]

Best answer selected by pratjoehahn.

 

[pratjoehahn]

You guys are geniuses. I was using a USB extension cable of 1.5m from the I/O panel at the back so it never worked. So when I plugged it in the I/O panel Voila!!
It still is a bit tedious though putting it at the back!! So I think I should use the Y-Cable!!