2 comps + Transcend ext hdd = problems

The description is a bit long, so I apologize for it in advance.
My desktop is Win 7 Home Prm upgrade from Vista. Intel quad, 4gb RAM. My laptop is Win 7 Home Prm OEM. Intel Duo, 4 gb RAM. My new external HDD is Transcend 500gb25M. I try desktop install first. Won't recognize it. I finally find that it has no drive number, so use Disk Mgmt and assign one. All fine at that point EXCEPT that it will not install a built-in software package. I send it back and get another. Then I start with install on my laptop. Instant recognition and drive letter assignment. Also immediate install of the software package, which has things that I want to use. OK at that point. Part of the package is an Autorun feature that brings up the special menu whenever you plug the drive into a USB port and it starts up. All looks good on the laptop now and all works as it should.

Next, plug the ext hdd into the desktop. The hdd starts, and the small Windows autorun notice appears (not the one from the software package as on the laptop) asking if I want to see its files. OK, and it just shows me a series of the empty default folders defined in the special software package that I had just installed on the ext. hdd. However the Menu from that package does not open and there is no way to get it to open, so essentially the ext hdd won't function on the Desktop using its internal software pack.

From the Desktop I found that I can write to the ext hdd using my file manager and Backup Image, but the facilities of Sync and easy methods of transferring email and favorites and docs files and such cannot be accessed. The two computers are virtually side-by-side so that I can compare settings, but I have no idea where to start and what to look for other than using device manager and some basic things where all seem to be the same and OK.

Does anyone have suggestions that might help me find why Win 7 and my computers treat this ext hdd so differently? Thanks for any assistance.

roving said:

The description is a bit long, so I apologize for it in advance.
My desktop is Win 7 Home Prm upgrade from Vista. Intel quad, 4gb RAM. My laptop is Win 7 Home Prm OEM. Intel Duo, 4 gb RAM. My new external HDD is Transcend 500gb25M. I try desktop install first. Won't recognize it. I finally find that it has no drive number, so use Disk Mgmt and assign one. All fine at that point EXCEPT that it will not install a built-in software package. I send it back and get another. Then I start with install on my laptop. Instant recognition and drive letter assignment. Also immediate install of the software package, which has things that I want to use. OK at that point. Part of the package is an Autorun feature that brings up the special menu whenever you plug the drive into a USB port and it starts up. All looks good on the laptop now and all works as it should.

Next, plug the ext hdd into the desktop. The hdd starts, and the small Windows autorun notice appears (not the one from the software package as on the laptop) asking if I want to see its files. OK, and it just shows me a series of the empty default folders defined in the special software package that I had just installed on the ext. hdd. However the Menu from that package does not open and there is no way to get it to open, so essentially the ext hdd won't function on the Desktop using its internal software pack.

From the Desktop I found that I can write to the ext hdd using my file manager and Backup Image, but the facilities of Sync and easy methods of transferring email and favorites and docs files and such cannot be accessed. The two computers are virtually side-by-side so that I can compare settings, but I have no idea where to start and what to look for other than using device manager and some basic things where all seem to be the same and OK.

Does anyone have suggestions that might help me find why Win 7 and my computers treat this ext hdd so differently? Thanks for any assistance.

Several things

1-its an upgrade often flakiness is inherited which is why MS recommends clean install.

2-what is it formatted in (ntfs, fat32, etc)

3-what does device say for the usb hub and root? any unknown devices?

Please go to start>search>type device manager.
Are there any "unknown devices" with yellow triangles on them?
Is you driver there , listed, and working?

If y our driver is missing, or there is a yellow triangle on it, you will need to update it.


Let us know

Ken J

The ext hdd is FAT 32. The ext hdd is not shown in the USB controllers list, and there are no unknowns. Nor are there any yellow triangles. The ext hdd appears under Disk drives as 'Storejet Transcend USB Device', 'is working properly' and the driver is correct and 'update driver' returns '..............the driver software for your device is up to date'.

Thanks to zigzag for suggesting that the upgrade install can cause problems. I did a clean reinstall and now the Transcend ext. hdd works as it should and just like it does on the laptop.