Please
click on the questions below that best fits your situation for the answers or
scroll down the page.
This page can be downloaded in PDF format here
Q: My hard drive and case gets hot
when left on for extended periods. Why is this?
Q: I have just purchased a new CASE-2S and installed a new hard drive
in it. When it is plugged in to the computer it is not shown in the “My
Computer” Window.
A: New
Hard drives are sold in an unformatted state. Before they can be used, they
need to be portioned and format in the correct file system for your computer.
Right click on the
“My Computer” Icon and select “manage” from the popup menu. The “Computer
Management” console will now open. On the left panel of the window select
“Storage” and then “Disk Management.” A view of all attached drives will be
shown in the right hand panel of the window.
The
New hard drive will be shown showing the size and the fact that the drive is
unallocated. Right Click on the word Unknown and choose initialise disk.
Check
the new disk and click OK.
Right
click on the unallocated partition and select “New Partition…” (XP) or “Create
Partition”
(W2K) from the popup menu.
The “Create Partition”
Wizard will appear. Please read each step carefully. The information displayed
will help you decide how to set the hard drive partition(s) up to best suit
your needs.
From
the Welcome window, click next.
Select
“Primary Partition” Default) and click next.
The
Partition size will default to actual size of the drive. Click next.
You can
change the partition size here and create a second or even more partitions on a
single drive. This is only for advanced computer users and should be used with
caution.
Assign a drive letter
the system will use when the drive is connected. This will default to the next
free drive letter not currently used by the system. You may use any unused
drive letter. Please confirm that this assigned drive letter does not conflict
with any network, logical or physical drives in the system.
Click
next.
Formatting
the partition: This window will default to the following…..
- File system: NTFS Leave as
default
- Allocation unit size: Default.
Leave as default.
- Volume label: new volume Change
as required.
Click next. A summary
page will open. Please check that all the settings are correct. You can go back
and make changes if required. If the settings are correct, click FINISH.
Formatting will now commence. This may take a while. The time will vary
depending on the size of the hard drive.
When
the formatting is complete, the drive will be shown in the “Computer
Management” window and should be shown as “healthy.”
Close the computer
management console and open the “My Computer” Window. The new hard drive should
now be ready to use.
For Windows 98 users
please refer to the following document for instructions of how to set up your
drive.
http://www.laserco.com.au/downloads/pdfs/Trouble%20shooting%20guide%20for%20external%20chassis.pdf
Q: I’m trying to install a CASE-2S under
Windows Vista and it is failing. Vista goes through the motions of trying to
find and driver but fails saying “Couldn’t find driver for you device.” It’s
looking for a USB to ATA/ATAPI Bridge driver. Are there Vista compatible
drivers available?
A: The problem may be with the Driver database
in the Vista PC. If during the instillation process of your computer the native
chipset drivers were installed and not updated with the manufactures drivers,
it is possible that the case is not being correctly detected. Please visit the
motherboard manufactures website and download and install the latest Vista
compatible chipset drivers. In most cases this resolves the problem.
Q: My hard drive and case gets hot when left on for extended periods.
Why is this?
A: There is no power management in external USB
cases and the hard drive is constantly spinning while it is connected to an
active USB port. The Hard drive does not
spin down the same way that hard drives inside your computer does. External
cases should only be left on as they are needed. This will help prolong the
life of the hard drive. Please refrain from moving the case after you have
disconnected it from the computer for a minute or so to allow the platters to
“spin down” and stop.
Q: I can use my external hard drive on a computer running windows
XP/2000 but when I connect it to a Windows 98 computer I cannot find the
external drive. Why not?
A: It is possible that the hard drive installed
in the case has been formatted in the NTFS files system. Operating systems
prior to Windows 2000 cannot read NTFS and will not be accessible. If you
require the drive to be used on systems prior to Windows 2000 it is recommended
that the drive be formatted in the FAT32 file system. Please see question 1 for
more information.
Q: I have just fitted a new 250GB hard drive in the case but it will
only format the drive to 130GB. What is going on?
A: Windows XP prior to service pack one was not
capable or formatting hard drives above 130GB capacity. Please install Service Pack
2 on your computer. This will resolve the problem.
Q: My external case will not work on my Laptop computer. The power
light comes on but nothing happens. I can use other USB devices without any
problems. What is wrong?
A: Power supplied through USB ports is rated at
500 milliamps@ 5volts. Some laptops may not supply this at the USB port. Most USB devices do not use nearly this
amount of current so they will not have a problem. External notebook hard
drives that fit in to the CASE-2S require the full current to be available. If
the USB port cannot deliver the full current the hard drive will not spin up
correctly and not be detected by your computer. The Laser CASE-2X external hard
drive cases are supplied with a double headed USB cable. The main head in most
cases is the only one that is required to be plugged in to a USB port. The 2nd
head is for power only and should also be connected if this problem occurs.
Another solution is to use a powered USB hub as they can supply more current
than standard USB ports.