Windows 10: Beware of some cheap USB 3 (not USB 2) thumdrives

Yep, many cheap USB3.0 sticks are just marketing. In the end they have nothing to do with USB3.0 in any way. Speed is horrible, and compatibility even worse. *Smile

 

Hi there

I have 2 older HP servers which have USB 3 ports as well as USB 2 ports but can only boot from the USB 2 ports. After OS is loaded then USB 3 ports work fine (that's the way these older HP servers work).

However if I put the USB 3 drive into a USB 2 port the server fails to see it on boot -- I needed to fix a configuration file on the server so I had a live OS on the usb drive.

the drive itself wasn't defective -- after I'd repaired the OS and booted normally the USB 3 drive was accessible via a USB 3 port.

With a standard USB 2 drive no problems -- so warning some USB 3 drives aren't necessarily compatible or will work (especially at boot time) in USB 2 ports.

I haven't had problems though with SSD's via SATA -->USB2 adapters or USB3 HDD's plugged into USB 2 ports (apart from the obvious loss in speed !!!). Seems just some models of thumb drives are fussy.

Cheers
jimbo

:)

 

will usb 2.0 support usb hub

Yes most modern USB hubs support USB 2.0 or even 3.0.

Beware of really cheap USB hubs, as they normally only support 1.0 - there are a lot of really nasty USB hubs and flash drives available on dodgy sites

Ask the vendor or check the information on the packaging as to the USB versions supported by the hub you are purchasing

 

Keep the USB drive plugged in

2 possibilities: The connector or cable is not establishing a solid connection. Try another usb cable. The usb port is not supplying enough power. Buy a usb Y cable (they're cheap) and plug the extra usb plug into another usb port..

 

I have seen many USB2 drives pretending to be USB3, right number of connectors but either not having USB3 control chip or just not fast enough memory chip(s) to attain USB3 speeds. Those last ones can confuse the heck out of system by having too long time to respond.