Laptop crashes when plug in external HD

[frenchie29]

I bought a WD 640gb HD with a Nextar 3 enclosure yesterday. It seems to work fine except on my Dell inpiron laptop I get a blue screen and then the laptop restart. The thing is it's too fast and can't see what the error is when the blue screen appears. I used the external drive for over 2 hours on my other laptop and everything seems fine. What could it be????

[stinger608]

Have you tried another USB port? Also check in the device manager to make sure that the USB ports are seen correctly, and/or latest system drivers.

[frenchie29]

I changed port so far so good. What am I supposed to look for in the device manager window?

Thanks

[stinger608]

Originally Posted by frenchie29

I changed port so far so good. What am I supposed to look for in the device manager window?

Thanks

Well good, it is probably a shorted out USB port! You might want to put a tiny piece of tape over it, so you don't plug something in there again

As far as the Device manager, just check under the USB controllers to make sure there isn't a warning sign there.

[frenchie29]

So how can I fix the dead port and how can I make sure that it is really bad?

[stinger608]

Originally Posted by frenchie29

So how can I fix the dead port and how can I make sure that it is really bad?

Well it is most likely integrated into the motherboard, so to fix it, you would most likely have to replace the motherboard
As far as knowing for sure if it is bad or not, I would be inclined to believe that, since you kept getting a BSOD every time you used it, but now using another port you are not, that it is indeed a faulty USB port.

If your laptop is still under warranty, you might want to think about RMAing the computer.

If you do want to check though, find something else that uses USB and plug it into the suspected bad port, and see if it BSOD's again.

[screwballl]

plug almost anything else into the bad USB port to see if it malfunctions or gives you a BSOD... if it does then it is a bad USB port for sure... if everything else works fine in that port then it must be the power draw needed by the external HD and that port does not give enough power