USB3.0 PCI-e card in Device Manager but not in "My Computer"?!

[neavissa]

USB3.0 PCI-e card in Device Manager but not in "My Computer"?!

Hi,

I have a Dell PowerEdge T620 Server and since it does not come with USB 3.0, I decided to upgrade. I bought a USB 3.0 PCI-e card and installed it. The card showed up in the device manager. After I installed the driver, it was recognized and everything looked fine.

When I plug in my external USB hard drive, the light on the drive goes on, signalling that it gets power, but the drive will not show up under "my computer"?! I remember seeing something briefly, when the computer booted for the first time after I had the card installed, and It said something about the PCI configuration having been changed?! Does this mean I have to "enable" the card somewhere?! Maybe in the BIOS?!

Anyhow, I tried different slots in on the Motherboard, but the result is the same: I plug my external drive in, a message pops up that the hardware has been installed fine, but I cannot see the drive!

thanks,

G

p.s. this is the card I bought: Amazon.com : Anker® USB 3.0 PCI-E Card with 4 USB 3.0 Ports and 15-Pin Power Connector for Desktops (AI410) : Computer Usb Port Cards : Computers & Accessories

p.p.s. The external drive works fine with the "standard" USB connectors.

 

[whs]

Does the USB hard drive show in disk management.

 

[neavissa]

It doesn't.

Thanks,

G

 

[whs]

That looks like a driver issue.

 

[neavissa]

I installed the driver that came with it. Right after I did, The device manager recognized it... anyhow, I can see if I can get a newer driver!?

Thanks,

G

 

[whs]

I have noticed that USB3 is iffy. A PCI card is a special case anyhow. You will have to experiment a bit. Sorry I cannot be of more help.

 

[neavissa]

I have noticed that USB3 is iffy. A PCI card is a special case anyhow. You will have to experiment a bit. Sorry I cannot be of more help.

No problem.

Thanks,

G

 

[madcratebuilder]

Confirm you hooked up the 5V molex connection. This card uses a VIA USB driver, I've never had good luck with VIA drivers and avoid them. You want the card in the fastest pci slot you have available.

The best USB3 chip/drivers are from ASMedia and tend to be spendy.

 

[neavissa]

Confirm you hooked up the 5V molex connection. This card uses a VIA USB driver, I've never had good luck with VIA drivers and avoid them. You want the card in the fastest pci slot you have available.

The best USB3 chip/drivers are from ASMedia and tend to be spendy.

The card comes in two versions. Mine came with the SATA 15pin power connector, and YES, I hooked up the power. I also just installed the newest driver, nothing!

When you say that the card uses VIA USB driver, does that mean I could use ASMedia drivers, OR do I have to find a card that uses ASMedia drivers?!

thanks,

G

 

[neavissa]

p.s. I searched for ASMedia drivers and found this:

ASUSTeK Computer Inc. -Support- Drivers and Download USB3.0

Which driver am I supposed to use?!

thanks,

G

 

[neavissa]

Confirm you hooked up the 5V molex connection. This card uses a VIA USB driver, I've never had good luck with VIA drivers and avoid them. You want the card in the fastest pci slot you have available.

The best USB3 chip/drivers are from ASMedia and tend to be spendy.

Someone over at the Dell Server Hardware Forum said the same thing! VIA sucks and most likely not works in Dell. However, USB 3.0 cards with NEC chipset should work! I am going to return my card and get another one!

thanks again chief!

G

 

[dsperber]

I have installed TWO of these 2-port USB 3.0 PCIe adapters (TS-PDU3) from Transcend in TWO separate machines, and they worked perfectly in both. I'm still using one of them in the very machine I'm using right now (the other machine has since been upgraded and came with built-in USB 3.0 ports).

They use Renesas drivers (downloaded from the Transcend site).

I tried a separate 4-port version from Anker and although it also used Renesas drivers I never could get it to work properly. I think I may have damaged it when I initially forgot during its installation to connect the 4-pin Molex connector to provide power. When I connected my external USB 3.0 drive I got some error message about "insufficient power to run in USB 3.0 mode" or something like that. I quickly attached the power cable, but never could get the thing to work.

However I've ALWAYS had 100% success with that 2-port adapter from Transcend. It's inexpensive enough for you to try without much thought, unless you absolutely required 4-ports.

 

[neavissa]

I have installed TWO of these 2-port USB 3.0 PCIe adapters (TS-PDU3) from Transcend in TWO separate machines, and they worked perfectly in both. I'm still using one of them in the very machine I'm using right now (the other machine has since been upgraded and came with built-in USB 3.0 ports).

They use Renesas drivers (downloaded from the Transcend site).

I tried a separate 4-port version from Anker and although it also used Renesas drivers I never could get it to work properly. I think I may have damaged it when I initially forgot during its installation to connect the 4-pin Molex connector to provide power. When I connected my external USB 3.0 drive I got some error message about "insufficient power to run in USB 3.0 mode" or something like that. I quickly attached the power cable, but never could get the thing to work.

However I've ALWAYS had 100% success with that 2-port adapter from Transcend. It's inexpensive enough for you to try without much thought, unless you absolutely required 4-ports.

Hey,

Thanks for the input! Mine is from ANKER too. I might have done the same "mistake"! I plugged my card in and did not hook up the power... Anyhow, I am going to send it back and get another one! Not sure If I should get the one you suggested or one of these:

StarTech Model PEXUSB3S2 PCI Express to USB Card Add-On Card - Newegg.com

Newegg.com - StarTech 2 Port PCI Express PCIe SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Controller Card w/ SATA Power Model PEXUSB3S23

Both have the NEC chipset and from what I read, it should work in my PC. The only difference I can see with both cards is, that one uses a 4-pin Molex connector and the other one uses a 15-pin SATA connector!

Does it make any difference which connector I want to use?! I prefer the SATA as I already have one right there, going to my CD-ROM. I can hook up my PCI-e card to it as well... at least that's what I think I can do, ha ha.

thanks again,

G

 

[dsperber]

Thanks for the input! Mine is from ANKER too. I might have done the same "mistake"! I plugged my card in and did not hook up the power... Anyhow, I am going to send it back and get another one! Not sure If I should get the one you suggested or one of these:

StarTech Model PEXUSB3S2 PCI Express to USB Card Add-On Card - Newegg.com

Newegg.com - StarTech 2 Port PCI Express PCIe SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Controller Card w/ SATA Power Model PEXUSB3S23

Both have the NEC chipset and from what I read, it should work in my PC. The only difference I can see with both cards is, that one uses a 4-pin Molex connector and the other one uses a 15-pin SATA connector!

Does it make any difference which connector I want to use?! I prefer the SATA as I already have one right there, going to my CD-ROM. I can hook up my PCI-e card to it as well... at least that's what I think I can do, ha ha.

I had both MOLEX and SATA power cables available, but there was a MOLEX one right there.

I hadn't even thought to look for a PCIe card that had a SATA power connector, as this USB 3.0 Transcend card was purchased from B&H Photo along with the very first 2TB Verbatim Store 'n' Save USB 3.0 drive I also bought from them. It was simply shown to me as "other also bought this..." and I did need a USB 3.0 adapter anyway, and two USB 3.0 ports was fine for me, so for $15 I went for it. Very very satisfied as I said.

Otherwise, I'm sure these cards are pretty much the same (other than Anker cards, that is). The Renesas driver seems to be the key to its reliability. I think it's a Renesas chip at the heart of the card.

 

[madcratebuilder]

Either connecter is fine, in fact you can get adapters that convert molex to sata and sata to molex. The cable provedes the needed 5V power feed.

 

[neavissa]

I appreciate both replies! Going to order a card right now. I will keep you guys posted.

thanks again,

G