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    Slow External HDD

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by simpson4, Nov 4, 2011.

  1. simpson4

    simpson4 Notebook Enthusiast

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    So I have a WD My Book 1110 2 TB external HDD hooked up to my desktop for media storage (videos, photos, music, document backups). After a few months of use I could not delete items from the external. Then my desktop was very slow at deleting files (would take forever to empty the recycle bin). Most recently it would be very slow to copy a file from the desktop to the external (USB 2.0 connection).

    I finally unplugged the external from the desktop and into my laptop to test it. Copying & deleting files is fine now and so is emptying the recycle bin on both computers.

    I'd like to keep the external hooked up to my desktop since that is my main computer, any ideas of why it is causing so many problems?

    HP Desktop
    Vista
    AMD Quad Core
    6 GB RAM
    750 GB internal

    Sony Laptop
    Win 7 (just upgraded from Vista)
    Intel Duo Core
    2 GB RAM
    120 GB internal
     
    simpson4, Nov 4, 2011
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  2. tilleroftheearth

    tilleroftheearth Wisdom listens quietly...

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    If the data on that external is the only copy you have: buy another and do a full backup of your existing external to it now (I would be actually buying two new drives to backup to).

    From what you're describing, your external is slowly but surely dying.

    If the data is valuable, I would not be relying on that external for too much longer (for me: until tomorrow - when I could buy two new drives and copy/move the data to them).

    Good luck.
     
    tilleroftheearth, Nov 4, 2011
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  3. Qing Dao

    Qing Dao Notebook Deity

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    That's a really weird problem, but from what you describe I'm pretty sure it is just related to your desktop and I wouldn't worry about the external drive at all. Do you have access to any other computers you could try it with? It sounds like there is something not right with your desktop since it is the thing that is acting weirdly. If the desktop starts behaving erratically when the external drive is connected, but the external drive works perfectly fine when connected to other computers, it kind of rules out the external drive as being at fault.

    I wouldn't be so sure.
     
    Qing Dao, Nov 5, 2011
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  4. tilleroftheearth

    tilleroftheearth Wisdom listens quietly...

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    Qing Dao,

    I agree: try it on another computer to see if the same symptoms occur - just that the current desktop is normal without the external connected - that kinda suggests it is the external drive at fault.

    Either way - I wouldn't be doing too many 'tests' before you have a working backup of the data on this external - (to two or more other locations/drives) - especially if it is important and/or the only copy of such data.

    I'm not sure. I just wouldn't want to be sorry.
     
    tilleroftheearth, Nov 5, 2011
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