USB Network a HDD ?

[JerometheGiraff]

I'd like to know if something of this nature exist. A USB Network hub which I can plug in a external USB HDD and have multiple USB ports running to multiple computers, each computer seeing the External HDD as a drive ?

 

[Ztruker]

Sounds like NAS (Network Accessible Storage). See here: network storage - Google Search

 

[JerometheGiraff]

Oh, only those !

 

[Ztruker]

From you're description, you want to connect the drive to the input port of the USB hub then connect multiple computers to each of the output (usually 4) ports. Interesting idea but I don't think it will work. One thing for sure, the hub would have to be externally powered since it can't draw any juice from the hard drive.

Also, you can't have one hard drive being access by multiple computers unless it's NAS. You would very quickly trash the file system I would think. Has to some intelligence in the controller, sor tof like a router with multiple computers.

Try it, let us know what happens.

 

[JerometheGiraff]

I thought it would be possible but logically I see that it probably isn't.

 

[mickey megabyte]

one thing which i do, is i have an external drive attached to one computer, which i then share over the network.

the only problem is that the computer it is connected to has to be powered up if i want to access the files from another machine.

it's not the same as your original question, but it's the next best thing to a nas, in my opinion.

 

[JerometheGiraff]

thanks for the link.