Windows 7: External HDD - Word Docs BLANK!!!

Okay, well I have noticed yet another problem, but first some background info.

I have my Cavalry CAUM 500GB External HDD connected to my WNDR37AV Netgear router, utilizing it's sole USB NAS port. It set up and ran perfectly... I had NO problems whatsoever with anything, until now.

I am having a major issue. Every single Word Document that I have stored on this drive is COMPLETELY blank, not even the "page" is displaying on them and all options are grayed out. This ONLY happens when I try to open/view them from this drive - the problem miraculously corrects itself when I drag and drop the file onto the Desktop and THEN open them (where they are perfectly fine, viewable and everything else).


What is going on here? I use Word Documents EXCLUSIVELY (can't stand WordPad/NotePad)... so it is very important to me that I be able to actually use them AND while they are stored on THIS drive (it is the only EHDD I have). It would be a real chore to have to keep dragging them out and putting them back in - not going there.

So... does this mean my drive is about to die? It isn't making any noise... doesn't have any other problems either! Please tell me there is a simple fix for this! Hell, I'll take a near-impossible fix if you've got one of those!


EDIT:

It tells me "This file could not be found" and lists it's directory path...

It is clearly there, the data has NOT been corrupted or otherwise destroyed...

When I drag these Word Documents off of the EHDD and onto my Desktop, they work fine.

Anyone have any ideas?

My questions before we continue farther is:

If you plugged the HDD into your computer directly, can you open the documents from the hard drive like you want to?

Have you tried power-cycling the router? (unplug from power source for >/= 30 seconds then plug back in)

Yes, the documents have absolutely no problems being 'found' or opened when the drive is directly plugged in to the computer itself.

Nope, will do that in a few minutes when I'm done deleting some RecyleBin crud ReadyShare (from the router's NAS) put on the drive, which could maybe be part of this problem (?)... post back in a bit if either does the "trick".

Tried cycling the router... problem still persists.

I don't understand this. It was working fine!

Since I don't have any direct experience with this type of setup I can only get you so far, but did it start causing you problems when you removed Ready Share?

I didn't remove ReadyShare. I only deleted the excess (duplicate) files it put onto the drive after this issue presented (it put a "recycle bin" on there).

I've tried just about everything I can think of to solve this problem... I even went so far as to delete this EHDD from the listings of "approved devices" in the router's Admin GUI and put it back... nothing.

Strange enough, PDF and all other file types are just fine... so, could this perhaps be a registry value problem of some kind? The files can be found OFF of the NAS... it has to be something in the registry that deals with this drive preventing the file paths from being detected and usable, right???

It sounds like it may be your router, honestly. If the router was doing it's job properly, Windows doesn't treat an internal, external, or mapped network drive any differently when it wants to read a file. If it's there, it's there. If it's not, it's not.

How old is this router?

That's just it though... before this all started happening, .DOC files were functioning properly over the NAS. I don't see how it could just all of a sudden up and stop working like this (without cause or provocation) and without anything else pertaining to the router itself going funky also.

The claim is that these files just can't be "found"... but they're right there. From my limited knowledge on these types of problems, it HAS to be related somehow to file extensions and how they are used... right?

What is getting me is how these files are perfectly functioning on this drive when it is connected directly to the PC, or else when the file is copied over to the PC - rather than through the NAS and network (when and only when it returns (cannot find etc)... that's just downright weird.


Not old at all, we just bought it little over a month ago.

Like I said, if it works ok directly connected, the registry would have nothing to do with it. Windows treats files on a network drive no differently. It has no way of managing how that drive is configured or handled by it's parent network components (like as a part of a file server or a NAS in this case). If you were having problems with it locally connected, then I'd put the blame on the drive itself, but you're not.

You're right. It is weird.

I would consider replacing it through whom you bought it from if you still can (exchange) or through the manufacturer.

One more question that just popped up... Do you have any other machines on this network? If so, can they access the files alright?

Yes, our old desktop PC is networked and able to open/view .DOC files off of the drive over the router's NAS. It seems to be JUST my Notebook that is unable to do this...

To me, that would indicate it isn't the router's fault... it would be affecting ALL of the systems on the network, not just one in particular. Correct?


Subsequently, I have just discovered that I am also unable to access this same computer (the Notebook) from the other computer (old Desktop) over the network, it tells me I "may not have permissions"... that is IMPOSSIBLE. I had the network set up and fully operational between ALL three of our systems, everything was working perfectly - even after I set up the new router and NAS. Now it's all just up and dying all on it's own???

Something very odd is happening here... I just can't figure this out!


The router, as far as I can tell, is working 100%... there is something else going on here. I'm positive it is not the router or else a 'off' setting on the router's Admin GUI. It HAS to be my computer...

What should I do now?