External harddrive freezing my computer

[twixie]

As soon as even the tip of the external hdd plug touched the usb port, my computer will completly, instantly, freeze. If the plug just brushes against the back of the computer case my computer will freeze for a few seconds...
This external hdd works perfectly fine with my laptop though, and has previously worked with this computer..
(i'm not yet willing to try a system restore when it seems like a hardware issue)

Any ideas on what's happening? and how to fix it?

 

[twixie]

bump

 

[PreferLinux]

Probably a grounding issue. Does the HDD have its own power source? Does your computer have problems if you touch the case and get a shock from static?

 

[twixie]

yeh hdd has its own powersource, never had a static shock from the case, but it is on carpet...

 

[PreferLinux]

Is there any problem if you touch the USB port with your finger? What about if you don't have the external drive's power plugged in when you plug it into the computer?

 

[twixie]

no problem when i touch it with my finger, and no problem when the hdd's power is off

 

[Mousemonkey]

bump

Don't...
Bump posts
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/283384-33-read-first

 

[twixie]

Sorry! Read the link.



.. First.

 

[PreferLinux]

OK, can you try the HDD in a different desktop computer? Sounds like the drive has some kind of issue with grounding the shield on the USB cable – if it was the computer being that sensitive, it would probably (but not necessarily) have had issues when you touched the port.

 

[twixie]

Unfortunetly i can't try it on another desktop.. all of my friends and family use laptops x-x only just noticed that after thinking about it xD

anything else i can try to fix it?

 

[PreferLinux]

Try plugging the USB cable into the computer before plugging it into the drive – if that is possible. Also, try plugging the computer into a different power outlet, preferably in a different part of the house. But the most likely solution will be to replace the power adapter for the drive – try a different adapter if possible (make sure it has the same output ratings and polarity).