"This USB device can perform faster..."

I have a TEAC USB hard drive which I have had for a number of years, working perfectlt. This is connected to a Win XP SP2 desktop. Over the last few weeks it has intermittently suffered the message "This USB device can perform faster if you connect it to a Hi-Speed USB 2.0 port". In the past, I have been able to cure this by one or another or a combination of (a) power off and on the disk drive (b) unplug and replug the USB (C) re-boot Windows. At the moment, none of these solutions seem to work. Can anybody suggest the cause of this problem?

 

Its just a balloon tip as plodr said you can remove them via this if its bothering you.

http://www.ehow.com/how_2195574_pop-up-balloons-windows-xp.html

And I concur with plodr you need to install service pack 3 your computers security is compromised.

 

plodr & Rikky.

The question was not about compromised security. It was about the balloon message.

1) The drive is connected to a rear-mounted USB 2.0 port.
2) Yes, the balloon can be cancelled.
3) After the message appears the drive is running at the speed of an arthritic slug. i.e. it has switched to USB 1 speed.

So, does anyone have any idea why the switch to USB 1 speed occurs?

ps. By the way Rikky, your "ehow" link appears to be dead.

 

There's nothing wrong with that link:confused

Its obviously an error that can occur for a number of reasons but rather me guessing we can rule things out? Firstly you need to check that you have all the right drivers installed so go to device manager and check there are no exclamation marks anywhere especially under the USB section.

The second thing I'd do would be to test the drive to see if it is actually running in USB 1.0 mode so install this program,


http://majorgeeks.com/SiSoftware_Sandra_Lite_d92.html

Under the benchmarks section run the hard drive benchmark,this will also be useful because it can suggest solutions to problems such as this at the bottom of the results.

Run the benchmark once when you think its in USB 1.0 mode and once when you receive the pop up message,run it a number of times during both states.

You should have two distinct speeds of 'around' 1.5mbps and 60mbps which is the maximum transfer speed on USB 1.0 and 2.0 respectively.

http://majorgeeks.com/SiSoftware_Sandra_Lite_d92.html

Make sure no other USB devices connected if possible,use a PS2 keyboard and mouse if you have one unless its a notebook of course.

Also Service pack 3 address's many issues other than security,it includes a lot of hotfix's for problems like this,I would highly recommend you install it as many little errors like this are magically resolved when updating to the latest service pack.

Also could you post the make and model of your computer for reference

 

Well, I seem to have resolved the slow USB problem (until it happens again).
By shuffling USB plugs at the back of the main box I have established that the upper two sockets appear to run USB 2 nicely, the lower two sockets seem stuck in the world of USB 1. I didn't try the two front sockets. Another time.

I did download and run SiSoftSandra. I have attached two text files. One is the result from Benchmarking the USB drive before I re-plugged showing slow transfer, the other documents the Mainboard which shows that there appear to be three USB controllers, two at V1, one at V2. As to which controller is connected to which socket, only trial and error can tell.

 

If you download the manual to your motherboard or computer they usually have a diagram showing you.

 

I live on a Greek island which, out of season has only around 7500 inhabitants. The range of shops is limited and I ordered the machine from a stationer-cum-computer-accessory shop, to be built (in Athens) to a somewhat loose specification.

I've managed to find the box of bits and info which came with it. This included the manual for the motherboard, an ASUS P5S-MX SE. The picture of the rear panel shows that the USB sockets are in two pairs, upper and lower. According to the manual, both pairs should be USB 2. Experience suggests otherwise.

I've now put a memory stick in one of the front USB sockets and ran SiSoft's removable drive benchmark and this has indicated that the socket is USB2.

I suppose I now know where things are!

Sorry to have bothered you folks. Thanks for the pointer to "Sandra".

Well, it was mainly sunny and 13 Celsius here today. Considering that we had snow on the 1st of Feb, I can't complain.

 

Hello,

I like to know how exactly does Si Software Sandra work? I also have the same issue and it is transferring data at slow rate. If I have to move 1 gig or more, I have to start it before I go to bed and by morning file is complete.
So, if you say Sandra software works, I like to know how to use it.
Thank you

 

It won't make your USB ports work faster or fix them if they have issues. It will just run test to see how well they are performing.

tsipouro-sipper's solution was simply to not use his ports that were running slow. If you need help, you should start your own thread.

 

Hey thanks Just Playin for the info, I will just do that. Have a great day...