[nofinga911]

Ok I just got a new HP Q6600 and for some reason my external hard drives will not work when plugged intothe usb ports on the front of my computer. They only work with the ports in the rear. It is a pain in the --- to get to the back of my computer and when i pull the computer it getsa banged around. I purchased a usb hub that enables you to plug 4 usb's into one port and it has extensions so i dont have to pull the comp out all the time. But when i plug my hard drives into the hub, they ndo not work. What is going on??? How can i get these things to work??

[Neil Jones]

Front USBs tend not to receive as much power as rear USBs so devices that draw a lot of power (such as external drives) may refuse to work. The same thing happens with some hubs as well.

[vally]

There are two simple solutions.
1. to buy a usb extention cord for only a usb port and connect it to the rear usb.
Here is a picture

2. get an active usb hub. This is a usb hub with its own power supply so that it does not drain power fron the usb ports in the computer. this can be connected fron or rear.
Here is a picture

[nofinga911]

wow thanks Neil and Valley....what the both of you said makes a lot of sense. Wow thanks so much guys this was driving me crazy. I will have to get one with a seperate power source. Thanks guys!

[nofinga911]

ok try to figure this one out....I got the usb extension...and I still have the same problem....why??????????????????????

[vally]

What usb hub did you purchase?