USB HDD not working!

A friend bought a new USB HDD, which works on his dads and brothers PCs, but not on his, any ideas?
He has an older PC, likely USB 1.0, where can i confirm this?
Should the new USB HDD work on USB 1.0?

 

If a USB 2.0 device is connected to a USB 1.0 connector on a PC, the device will usually work, albeit at slower speeds.
When you say it "doesn't work", do you mean that the computer can't read what is on it ... or that it doesn't see that it is there ... or what?

 

Does the HDD have an external power supply?

If not, it wont work with USB 1.0 as the port cannot deliver enough power to the device to run it and transfer data.

If this is the case i suppose he could buy a POWERED USB2 hub. It wouldnt run any quicker than USB1 but at least its got its own power supply

 

What operating system? Windows 2000 and newer include USB storage device drivers, but Win98/ME do not. The manufacturer should have the drivers for Win98/ME or at least information on where they might be found.

 

It doesn't work thru his unpowered USB 2.0 hub, but does directly thru his USB port.
Does he need a powered USB2 hub?
Where can i tell if he has USB 1.0 or 2.0?

 

USB 2.0 sockets are powered whereas 1.0's are not.
It is difficult to tell them apart as they look identical.
What is the make and model of the computer?
A little research will tell us if it has 1.0 or 2.0 (or both. I have a laptop that has 2 USB 1.0 and 1 USB 2.0 sockets)
If this is a desktop PC and has an unused PCI slot, a card can be purchased that will have one or more 2.0 sockets on it.
Michenko is correct in stating that a 2.0 HDD will not work without a seperate power supply in a 1.0 socket.

 

I missed it when you said

Are you certain that the hub is 2.0?

 

Te hub clearly states USB 2.0 on it, although it maybe working at USB 1.0 if that is what the computer has.
THIRD TIME OF ASKING: WHERE IN PC CAN I TELL IF IT HAS USB 1.0 OR 2.0?

 

I know it is frustrating for you, but bear with us please.

As I said earlier it is very difficult to tell the difference between the 2 USB types.
They look the same.
The only way I know to tell for certain, is to Google the make and model number of your computer and look for reviews or spec sheets. These may (or may not) state which type of USB your motherboard has.
You can go to your device manager
Start>Control Panel>System>Hardware>Device Manager
click on the "+" in front of "Universal Serial Bus Controllers" to see if you have a USB 2.0 controller installed
http://joelkilgore.com/usb2.jpg

As I said earlier some older computers may have both 1.0 and 2.0 USB ports and this won't show you which is which.
Perhaps there is another way to find out; I don't know for sure.