USB 3.0 -is simultanious use of USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 I/O via a single USB 3.0 port possible?

To my knowledge USB 3.0 controller/hubs have a 2nd USB 2.0 controller/hub just for the connection to USB 2.0 devices. What I could not find so far is, if I don't exceed the power consumption of the port, e,g, a USB drive with ext. PS, can I connect a USB 3.0 and a USB 2.0 device simultaniously?

For eSATA on my 8560p it's a similar since eSATA consists of a seperate USB 2.0 and a SATA controller.

 

I'm pretty sure you can't do this... how would you even connect two devices simultaneously with only one physical port?

 

You are connecting to one port, meaning that all data will go through the same wires. Your USB 3.0 and 2.0 device wil be competing for bandwidth. Can you use a USB 3.0 device and a USB 2.0 device through a hub connected to one port, yeah. However, you will not get ful USB3.0 and USB2.0 bandwidth for each devices simultaneously, they'll have to share the port and hence the bandwidth available.

 

For USB 3.0 A connector you have the original 4 USB 2.0 pins/wires (2 for DAT 2 for + and Ground) from USB 2.0 A, plus the additional 4 pins/wires (2 each for data only) needed to provide the faster USB 3.0 data transfer. Power uses the USB 2 lines. Refer to USB 3.0 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Since data runs trough seperate wired for USB 2 and USB 3 it's a question, can these be used independently for an USB 3.0 port?
If you mix on e.g. 2 USB 3.0 ports USB a USB 2.0 and a 3.0 devicethe should notbe a speed penalty since USB 3.0 runs via different pins and controller.
Since USB 2.0 and 3.0 have their own pins/wiresfor data it should be possible to use them simultaniously,but so far I could not find any mentioning in documentation,saying it can nor it can' be done. The documentation from NEC/Renesas is only basic and does not provide
http://documentation.renesas.com/doc/products/soc/r19pf0043ej0200_usb.pdf

 

Even if they run on separate wires they are still limited to the total bandwidth of the single port. They are seen as a single USB channel.

 

How do you define single port?

The main limitation I see is the bandwith available to the USB controller, which should always be >> then the bandwidth of a single USB2 or 3 -port.

The only exception are USB Hubs, where the total available bandwidth for all ports, is limited by the the USB 2.0 or 3.0 cable used to connect a Hub to a controller.
For a Thunderbolt Hub the limit for all porst should be the available bandwidth provided by the TB Hub.

The USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 function are seperate Hub controller from each other, otherwise using mouse/keyboard via a USB connection on a USB 3.0 Hub would not work to well while copying between several HDD simultaniously.

 

One plug? What do you mean in the title of the thread...?


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My question is about about a single USB 3.0 connector/plug/port,
A single USB 3.0 A has the 4 old pins for USB 2.0 (2 data, ground and voltage) and 4 additional pins for USB 3.0 data transfer (µUSB 3.0 5 USB 2.0 because it has a fith USB 2.0 pin for identification for e.g. OTG function).
A simultanious use of e.g. ext. HDD with ext. power via the 4 USB 3.0 pins and the connection of e.g. a mouse dongle/keyboard via the remaining 4 USB 2.0 pins is supported? When I connect an USB 3.0 port with ext. power with a mix of USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 devices it works. I have ordered USB 3.0 female double connectors to built me the necessary USB 3.0 male to USB2.0/USB 3.0 female to test it, but I wondered if someone knew something about it.

 

It should work. But I think the point others were trying to make is that the total bandwidth for the single port connection will be the overall bottleneck.


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