L502X - USB 3.0 device constantly mounting and unmounting

I have purchased a Sans Digital 4 Bay HDD enclosure (TR4UT-BP) to be able to migrate my computer life totally to my new laptop (L502X) and abandone my desktop pc. What it does is to hold four 3.5 inch HDDs that will be connected to my computer via USB 3.0 or eSata cable.

It turned out L502X does not support port multiplication (so only 1 of the hdds are seen by the laptop) even though I was led to believe it did by the sites linked below since the processor is sandy bridge i7 6230qm and the south bridge of the mainboard is HM67:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...ucts/notebook/chipsets...ec-hm67-overview.htm
Intel® Matrix Storage Technology

So I still wonder whether the laptop supports port multiplication, only I could not enable it?

...

So I tried to connect the device via USB 3.0 ports on the laptop (with USB 3.0 port multiplication is not an issue, it supports it by default) but the USB 3.0 ports acted wierdly.

No Hdds are visible in the disk management when the towerraid is connected to the laptop via either of the two USB 3.0 ports on my laptop. The green PC Link light on the towerraid (that should become stable when the connection between the device and the laptop is healthy) never becomes stable, it keeps blinking constantly, the laptop constantly mounts and unmounts the hdds, the device manager is refreshed every second, so the hdds never become visible on the disk management screen. All the while the fan starts and stops constantly indicating that the hdd(s) are recognized and then unmounted in the same second; when I shut the towerraid off, the fan goes back to normal.

This is a 1 month old laptop. The USB ports do not act wierdly with USB 2.0 devices such as a wireless mouse and usb sticks...

I know some XPS owners experienced some problems with USB 3.0 ports when USB 3.0 devices are connected, but the problem described by them as "USB 3.0 devices being unmounted once or twice a day due to USB port losing power". So I thought what I am experiencing is a different issue and that's why I opened a new thread to seek help.

Please tell me how I can solve this issue.

Thanks in advance.

 

Have you tried plugging the 3.0 device into the 2.0 port? It should still work, and that should tell you if its the device or the port. Though if the problem only occurs when it tries to run at 3.0 speeds, it wouldn't show up...

There is a more recent USB 3.0 driver available via Intel's download center apparently which you might try too.

 

My friend that is such a great advice! Or I must be dumb not to have thought of that! Or both!

Thanks so much!

Plugging the USB 3.0 cable to the USB 2.0/eSata port resulted in the HDDs inside the towerraid being seen by the laptop and the device is working like it should.

Don't be fooled by the happy tone in my words; I'm only happy that at least I can use the device, albeit at USB 2.0 speeds. I'm very disappointed that USB 3.0 ports are not functioning correctly.

I downloaded the newer USB 3.0 drivers from Intel's site and the only difference is the device is not mounted and unmounted every second, this time the PC Link light stays steady for 20 seconds and then dies off and comes back again. No hdds are seen by the laptop all the while.

Now what should I do?

 

call dell? What good is a warranty if you don't use it.

 

I have finally SOLVED the USB 3.0 issue on my laptop and I would like to share it for future reference for other users:

From the Start menu click

All Programs/Renesas Electronics/USB 3.0 Host Controller Driver/USB 3.0 Host Controller Utility

Approve if prompted for permission to open the utility

then check the "Disable USB 3.0 power management functions" option

The constant mounting and unmouting of the hdds inside the towerraid (external hdd enclosure) is gone now! All my hddds are stable and the transfer speed is around 100-120 mb/s between the laptop and the hdds inside the towerraid as opposed to the 10-20 mb/s transfer speed achieved via usb 2.0 port!

 

What do you lose by disabling that? IOW, what benefit does the default setting (USB 3.0 power management "on") provide?

 

im guessing it just gives the usb more voltage so the hdd will have the power to work without dropping out, turning the power management will slightly improve battery life?

 

This is very interesting. I have the 17", what I would think would be the same USB configuration, yet no Program for Renesas Electronics. I wonder if I could achieve the same effect going through the Power Management function for the computer?

 

This does not seem to be specifically a Dell issue. There are many discussions at many sites about disconnects when using USB 3.0 ports on various computer brands and various USB cards, to various brands of external drives. Many people are seeking solutions.

There's a discussion here involving a Dell rep: Re: Dell XPS 15 - USB 3.0 Problem - Laptop General Hardware Forum - Laptop - Dell Community

 

Has the renesas usb controller driver been installed on your computer? If not you can download it from dell's download site. It's under "chipset" category.

 

The controller driver installed is the same one that came installed by Dell, version 2.0.34.0, dated 2/10/2011. It's just that there is no program in the start menu that you described.

 

I just did a fresh windows 7 install and then the drivers from dell's site. Other than the drivers I installed "ST microelectronics driver" under system utilities category and "Quickset" under Applications category. Maybe they are related.

Maybe you may want to search for "Renesas USB 3.0 Host Controller Utility" on Google.

Another thing that comes to mind is to look for the application in the program folder... Mine is at this address:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Renesas Electronics\USB 3.0 Host Controller Driver\Application

Hope you can solve your problem.

 

Thanx much.

That folder doesn't exist. It wasn't so much as a problem as it was an annoyance with the USB drive and the dongle for the wireless. I do think you are on to something WRT the power issues, because my "troubles" would seem to revolve around "waking from sleep." A reboot seemed to solve the problem.

I've got a new 3.0 external drive in the box sitting on my desk waiting for Father's Day so just trying to keep up with any news/updates on the 3.0 issues. I want the data to flow at the 3.0 speeds to/from the drive.

 

I don't have the Renesas application either, but I've not tried to use USB3 yet. Should I download this application, or is there any chance it's the cause of the problem?

 

If it ain't broke, don't fix it. This appears to be something sporadic and in my estimation no definitive cause. Use your 3.0 ports and then if you have issues, you will have a point at which to start troubleshooting, etc...