SimpleTech (SP-U25/120G) 120 GB USB Hard Drive - Answered Questions & Fixed issues

If you have a SimpleTech SimpleDrive connected to your computer and you're experiencing problems with the external hard drive, there may be several reasons why it's malfunctioning. Troubleshooting your computer can help rule out common problems and the possibility that the hard drive may be defective. If you recently purchased the device and suspect there is something wrong with it, return the defective drive to SimpleTech or the reseller for a replacement. Incompatible USB Port Problems W 7 First, please disconnect all USB devices and then perform the following steps: Click "Start" button, type "devmgmt.msc" (without quotation marks) in the "Search" bar and press "Enter". Click "Continue" if necessary. In Device Manager, double click to expand "Universal Serial Bus controllers", right click on the Host Controller, click "Uninstall" and click "OK". Repeat the step 2 to uninstall all items under "Universal Serial Bus controllers". Then, restart your computer and Windows 7 will reinstall all USB controllers automatically. for XP or earlier click start right click on computer select properties device manager scroll down universal serial bus controllers you could see a yellow question / exclamation mark? ! or a red X you will need to update/reinstall drivers right click to reinstall drivers if you can see your usb drive but its not working ports (com&lpt) right click update driver if this fails to fix the problem Check the USB leads that attach to the motherboard usually red white green black make sure they are securely seated and have no dust build up on them dust will cause static and a lot of unforeseen problems to a computer and its parts b> SimpleTech SimpleDrive plug and play options makes it easy for you to connect the device to your computer. But you may encounter problems if your computer's USB (Universal Serial Bus) ports are not compatible with the external hard drive. Make sure your ports are powerful enough to operate the drive. USB 2.0 ports are recommended, but if you're using an older computer with 1.0 ports, the hard drive will function much slower or you may receive an error message that the device is not compatible with your system. b> Missing External Drive Letter b> If you're unable to find the SimpleTech external hard drive's letter on your desktop after you have installed the drivers for the device, it's possible that the external drive may be assigned to another drive. Sometimes, the hard drive is assigned to a network drive and you may need to manually change the drive's letter in Disk Management. Enable Drive Letter View b> Click the "Start" button and choose "Control Panel" from the start menu. Click "Folder Options" and navigate to the "View" tab. Scroll down and place a mark next to "Show drive letters," then click "OK." b> Configuring Drive Manager b> Click the "Start" button to launch the start menu. Right-click "Computer" and choose "Manage" from the menu. Click "Storage" in the menu on the right side to extend the section. Click "Disk Management" under the "Storage" header. This will show you a list of drives and removable storage on your computer. It will also report the status of the drives, such as "Healthy." If the removable storage does not have a drive letter or has a drive letter in conflict with another drive, you can assign it a new letter. Right-click the icon of your removable storage drive and click "Change Drive Letter and Paths." Click the "Change" button, then choose a drive letter from the drop-down menu. Select a letter that is near to the end of the alphabet to prevent drive overlap issues. Click "OK" to allow the changes to take place. You should now see the removable storage listed with your other drives on the "My Computer" screen. SimpleTech SimpleDrive Incorrectly Formatted b> SimpleTech SimpleDrive is normally pre-formatted for Windows NTFS (New Technology File System), but Mac users may need to copy the backup software and reformat the external hard drive for FAT32 or Mac OS to be able to use the external drive. If the external hard drive is not formatted correctly for your system, it may not function or work properly. b> External Hard Drive Inaccessible b> If you receive an error message that says "Drive Inaccessible," the SimpleTech SimpleDrive may not be able to read the service area of the platter. If the external hard drive emits a loud or abnormal sound, this could mean the device is failing. Test the drive on another computer to see if it is working properly. Otherwise, the external hard drive's surface area may be damaged or corrupted. b> Replacing a Defective Hard Drive b> You can return a defective hard drive that is under warranty to SimpleTech. The manufacturer will exchange the device if the seal is not broken. But if you break or tear the seal on the case, any warranty claims will not be accepted and the device will be returned back to you. SimpleTech will only accept the device if you contracted a commercial data recovery company to retrieve critical data from the external hard drive and the seal needed to be broken. Before returning the defective drive, you will need to secure a RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) approval number from SimpleTech and furnish any invoices or documentation regarding the data recovery company's services.

make sure the lead/s that attach to your hard drive are securely seated if your computer came with a motherboard disc the drivers could be on it click start control panel administrive tools ,computer management ,device manager look through all of your devices if you see a yellow question mark?or exclamation mark ! or red x right click to reinstall drivers or if you can see your usb but its not working ports(com&lpt)right click update driver hope this helps

click start control panel administrive tools ,computer management ,device manager look through all of your devices if you see a yellow question mark?or exclamation mark ! or red xright click to reinstall drivers or

if you can see your usb but its not workingports(com&lpt)right click update driver

sometimes the wires inside the cable will be damaged due to bending or stretching or placing heavy equipment upon the cable,

just replace the cable of the hard disk, when you plugged the external disk drive you got that windows could recognize the USB device change the cable everything should work fine again,

check the USB leads that attach to the motherboard usually red-white-green-black make sure they are securely seated and have no dust build up on them dust will cause static and a lot of unforeseen problems

if this fails to fix the problem

you might have to install a usb 2 or 3 card they are cheap and easy to install you can buy these on Ebay very cheap hope this helps you

click start control panel administrive tools ,computer management ,device manager look through all of your devices if you see a yellow question mark?or exclamation mark ! or red x right click to reinstall drivers or if you can see your usb but its not working ports(com&lpt)right click update driver if your computer came with a motherboard disk the drivers could be on it sometimes the wires inside the cable will be damaged due to bending or stretching or placing heavy equipment upon the cable, just replace the cable of the hard disk, when you plugged the external disk drive you got that windows could recognize the USB device change the cable everything should work fine again, check the USB leads that attach to the motherboard usually red-white-green-black make sure they are securely seated and have no dust build up on them dust will cause static and a lot of unforeseen problems also make sure the computers Ram and Cmos battery are securely seated hope this helps

16 GB is the maximum USB storage the XBox will allow, but you may have up to two devices connected at the same time (which means nothing for your current situation, sorry). This is Microsoft's way of saying you should've opted for the larger internal hard drive.

Hi check the cable (change with new one) good luck

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Okay , so there are some steps to figure out what is wrong with your external.

Firstly , if your computer makes a sound when you plug in your external , go to Start-Control Panel-Administrative Tools-Computer Management-Disk Management , and see if your external drive is listed here with your local drives. If it is listed , right click on the drive and change the drive letter to make it appear in "my computer".

If your drive does not make a connection sound when connecting to your computer and also does not show up , please follow the next step.

Remove the hard drive from the casing if possible and install it in your computer case or another external case.If the drive works , the problem is with the casing and you can ignore the drive.

Now , if the problem is with the casing , there are still 3 possibilities.

1. The USB cable between the drive and the computer may be damaged.
2. The circuit board which connects your drive to the interface of the external may be blown.
3. The power supply (if applicable) may have a blown transformer.

The latter is the easiest to diagnose , does your external light up at all when you plug in the power? If not , then this is probably your problem. On the bottom of the adapter is a label which you will be able to use to have a new adapter made at your local electronics shop and this will cost about $30 max. They will also be able to test the adapter with a clamp meter to see if this is really the problem and this should be free.

The second component you want to test is the USB cable. If you have a printer , swop out the cables and see if your printer functions normally. Most externals use the same connector so you should be able to test it in this manner. If the cable works go on to the last step. If the cable is defective , replace it with a new one which you can find for about $10 at most electronics and chain stores.

The last component to test is the circuit board. This is a bit of a grey zone as you probably won't be able to spot the blown component unless it failed really badly. With the casing already opened , locate the external's circuit board and check to see if you have any blackened components or fluids leaking from some components. If all the other components of the external worked perfectly , then this is the faulty part. It is not really economical to replace the circuit as most of the time it is out of production by the time you need to replace it and it still costs a lot even if it is available so if your drive is working perfectly when connected via sata or IDE on your computer , the best is to buy a new casing and place your old drive in the new casing.

A casing costs about $50 and you could get it at most tech shops and big chain stores like Best Buy.

I hope this solves your problem and please reply if you need more help.

Kind Regards
Andrea

control panel admistrive tools,computer management,device manager scroll down universal serial bus controllers you should see a yellow question mark? right click to reinstall drivers or ports(com&lpt)right click updare driver hope this helps

Hello,

Sounds like you have a failing enclosure, are you still under warranty?

If you're under warranty and have other copies of all your files, simply visit the western digital website and file a warranty claim. They are very good about replacing any drives that fail.

If you do have files you'll need recovered then you do have a cheap solution to try before commiting to more expensive solutions. It will void your warranty but frankly the warranty is useless if you need your files.

Take your drive to a PC shop and ask the technicians to test the hard drive in a new enclosure. If you're lucky it's just a failure in the enclosure and you should be back in business for less than $50. If this fails to work and you're located in North or South America contact www.armor-it.com if you live outside the Americas, contact me by replying to this page and I will direct you to an apropriate facility nearer to you.

Crankstart

Lots of things could be wrong here, the drive could have gone bad, your computer USB port, the USB cable or the power supply. Before you toss it out, I would suggest you swap out the cable first or test it on something else, if you get any light that means the power supply is ok. You next step would be to swap out the Drive with a known good one, before you can do that you would need to open it up. Remember if it`s a my book you can only use Western Digital drives in there. Good luck.

You probably don't have the correct Vista drivers installed.. or the drivers are not available for Vista.

Hi,

When this happens, quite often the drive structure gets damaged. This type of logical damage is sometimes easy to resolve, if it's worse then you may need the help of a pro but you will have reasonably good chances of getting your data back.

For the simple fix, open My Computer and check if the drive letter is still there, if not you will need a pro, reply back with your Country, State and City and I'll put you in touch with a pro. If it is there, there is a good chance you can perform a simple repair. Assuming it is, Right-Click the drive letter, then select properties. When the properties sheet opens select the Tools tab, then click Error Checking, a small window will pop open, be sure both boxes are checked then run the checking utility.

If you got that far you have about an 80% chance of repairing the drive yourself. If it fails, as with above, reply back and I will get you in touch with a nearby pro.


Hope this helps FixYa,


Chris

You can always highlight the file or files and hit the right mouse button and select "send to"

I have a Simple Tech USB Drive that will not work. When you plug it in the lights blink, but you cannot access the drive. How do I fix the drive and get my information out of the drive?

Make sure both plugs are connected to USB ports, the closest plug is for data transfer and the send plug is for additional power to run the drive. The shorter the cabe the better.
LOL

This depends on how much data is on the hard drive.
The inteneded design of a USB portable hard drive was to act as a portable & removeable backup for a main system.
Unless you have another hard drive or an abundance of DVD+R's, you may have to re-evaluate your options.

you mean drivers? you'll need to try this link out

www.simpletech.com

Try pressing Ctrl+Shift+Esc to bring up task manager. Then on the top tabs, find the tab that says "Processes" and click it. Find the name of the program you are trying to delete under the Image Name. If you find it, click it and then click "End Process". Click Yes when the message comes up. If you don't find it, check the description (for Vista only).

The other way to do this is to log off and then log back on. If it still won't delete after that, try creating a new Limited User account, and then log onto the new account. Delete the file from that account. Log back on to your regular account and delete the Limited User account. Tada!

Good luck!

Question edited for clarity. These don't have a USB Charging cable. They have a USB Data Lead Same as Printer lead and a Power adapter and charging lead. Well mine does. https://www.google.com/search?q=Simpletech+96300-41001-160+external+drive ..

Question edited for clarity, full 'make model (what it is)'. Question moved from Misc to correct category. It is a known issue with Windows 10. https://www.tenforums.com/drivers-hardware/22886-old-simpletech-simpledrive-driver.html More here. check if it show in File Explorer or in Disc Management console? https://www.google.com/search?q=SimpleTech+96300-41001-160+driver ...

First, contact SimpleTech to find out whether an updated driver is available.