[retrac1324]

I have a Dell Dimension 4500. It has 4 USB Ports in the back, and 2 in the Front.

Every device I tried plugging into the back have worked [Xbox 360 Controller, Microsoft Digital Media Keyboard, Iomega External Hard Drive, Cannon Digital Camera, Olympus Digital Camera, and an HP PSC 1300 All-in-One].

When I tried plugging devices into the front USB Ports, some of them didn't work. The Xbox 360 Controller was not detected, the Olympus Camera was detected as an Unknown Device, but didn't function. The Cannon Camera and the External Hard Drive worked fine though.

They are all PnP so they don't need drivers, and I have checked that the USB Ribbon Cable and Power Cable are connected correctly inside the PC.

What Should I Do?

Thanks,
-Retrac1324

[Advertisements]

Hi

Just because a device is PnP, doesnt mean it won't require drivers. All PnP means is that the system is able to automatically detect that a new device has been added.

I assume however, that if you have had all these devices working on the rear USB ports, then all the drivers are already installed, right? If so, then the problem may simply be that it's front USB & front USB ports are notoriously sketchy.

Assuming that the front ports are not being overloaded (ie power surge when connecting a device, that causes XP to temporarily disable them) & are not being turned off by power management, then there's probably not much you can do.
If you want to have easy access to the USB ports then I suggest that instead of using the front ports, buy a self-powered USB hub & connect it to one of the rear ports. Most of these hubs have long enough cables to allow you to place them near the front or side of the computer to allow for easy access.

[Samm]

Hi

Just because a device is PnP, doesnt mean it won't require drivers. All PnP means is that the system is able to automatically detect that a new device has been added.

I assume however, that if you have had all these devices working on the rear USB ports, then all the drivers are already installed, right? If so, then the problem may simply be that it's front USB & front USB ports are notoriously sketchy.

Assuming that the front ports are not being overloaded (ie power surge when connecting a device, that causes XP to temporarily disable them) & are not being turned off by power management, then there's probably not much you can do.
If you want to have easy access to the USB ports then I suggest that instead of using the front ports, buy a self-powered USB hub & connect it to one of the rear ports. Most of these hubs have long enough cables to allow you to place them near the front or side of the computer to allow for easy access.

[retrac1324]

Thanks,

By luck, I purchased a 5 Port [4 External, 1 Internal] PCI Card and a 4 Port Front Panel USB Hub. I'll hook that up soon.