Question will USB Y cable help?

[mmp09]

Hi,
I have one USB 3.0 Enclosure for 2.5" HDD or SSD (SATA to USB). It works just fine on my desktop, but on my laptop (USB 3 port) during copy operations it sometimes gives I/O Error.

My guess is that the Laptop's USB 3.0 port is not able to deliver full current and hence the enclosure struggles??

Will a Y cable with aux cable for additional current help?? Has anyone tried it.
See the photo

Thanks

 

[hotaru.hino]

It might help. It never hurts to try.

 

[Paperdoc]

It depends a bit on what is inside this enclosure. IF it is a common SSD unit, those normally do not use huge power current. IF it is a "Laptop Hard Drive", such units are designed for reduced performance INCLUDING a requirement for no more power than a standard USB3 port can supply, but it would NOT work on a USB2 port.

IF it contains a more standard HDD, it almost certainly would NOT work because such desktop HDD units DO require more power. A standard USB3 port can supply power at 5 VDC up to 0.9 A. A USB2 port is more limited at 0.5 A. In your case you say the laptop has ONE USB3 port. So where would you plug in the second connector of that two-headed special cable? Do you have an open USB2 port also? If so, that MIGHT work. The total current available would become 1.4 A, and that just MIGHT be enough for the HDD inside the enclosure, but it might not.

Note this IF it works. I have never seen such a two-headed cable for a USB3 system, so I suspect what you have is an older one from a USB2 device. From a power perspective that can work. BUT such a cable does not have all the wires to make all of the 9 connections used in a USB3 system. So from a data transfer perspective, its performance will be limited to the older max data rate of 0.48 Gb/s, rather than the USB3 rate of 5 Gb/s, irrespective of which ports on the laptop you use. It will work if the power is sufficient, bit at lower speed.

So, what is inside that enclosure? That info may help us give you a better answer.

 

[mmp09]

Thanks @Paperdoc for a detailed answer. Unfortunately, it's a basic enclosure with USB 3 (Micro B) on one side and SATA interface on other. What's in between I have no idea nor vendor would reveal that. All it says is USB 3 support and support for 2.5" SSD & HDD.

One such example

https://www.amazon.in/Cablet-Portable-External-Enclosure-Tool-Free/dp/B0BG62HMDJ/

Moreover the cable in question seems to be Made in China and is being imported thru an online supplier.

https://www.uniquebud.com/products/...MI-fvlwpXjhgMV5G0PAh3TtAfgEAQYBSABEgLvm_D_BwE

The strange part is absolutely conflicting details. It says

• The current output of USB 3.0 is only 500mA, if your hard drive exceeds 500mA, it is recommended that you use a data cable with auxiliary power supply to protect the hard drive

 

[LinuxDevice]

Use an externally powered USB HUB.

 

[mmp09]

Thanks @LinuxDevice - The concern I have here is that there are not too many USB 3 powered hubs and whatever is available on my country specific amazon site, buyers are complaining that those are fake products. The ports are all USB 2.0 colored as blue.

 

[Paperdoc]

I was not clear, I guess. I was not interested in the hardware that is part of the enclosure. I was asking for what type of storage device you have mounted in it - an SSD, a common 2½" HDD, or a 2½" HDD specifically labelled for laptop use and USB3 connections. That would tell us the unit's power need. An actual model number would help.

I agree the description of that cable quoting the 0.5 A limit is suspicious. Either the maker does not understand (that weakens our confidence!) or the cable is designed very oddly and does NOT actually make the power connections in a USB3 port so you are limited to only what the second connector can get from a USB2 port - a LOUSY design!

You certainly would want a Hub that DOES claim at least the 5 Gb/s max data transfer rate of USB 3.2 Gen1. (I have see few Hubs that claim full Gen2 function up to 10 Gb/s, but you do not need that.) What DID amaze me, though is SOME USB3 Hubs with decent power brick modules included specify that their USB3 output ports can supply power up to 500 mA. That LOW spec is what USB2 does! A STANDARD USB3 port is supposed to provide power up to 0.9 A (900 mA).

 

[mmp09]

@Paperdoc. Thanks a lot. It seems even I did not interpret it correctly!

I have tried with 2.5" SSD as well as 2.5" HDD (Toshiba) that was OEM Laptop part.

Edit - I was in touch with the seller and brought this conflicting specs (500mA) to their notice. While they did not say anything on it, they just confirmed over an written email that it's USB 3.0. So I am just trying my luck. Have placed the order. At the max I waste about 4 USD.

 

[Paperdoc]

That still leaves open my question: where do you plug in the second connector? Do you have a second USB port on the laptop, whether it is USB2 or USB3?

Also note: IF your have a USB2 second port, look closely at the innards of the connectors on the two-headed end of that cable. They will be quite similar. The difference between the USB2 and USB3 Type A connectors is in the number of contacts inside. BOTH will have four contact strips along the surface of the plastic insert. A USB3 connector will have five ADDITIONAL contacts on the front edge of that support insert. If only ONE of the cable's connectors has those five front contacts, make sure that is the one you plug into the USB3 port of your laptop.

 

[LinuxDevice]

Thanks @LinuxDevice - The concern I have here is that there are not too many USB 3 powered hubs and whatever is available on my country specific amazon site, buyers are complaining that those are fake products. The ports are all USB 2.0 colored as blue.

Each USB has a "root HUB". That's the HUB on the motherboard which is wired to a memory controller or bus. USB standards define the current that can be delivered with a certain standard. That is the total amount for that root HUB. If you have more ports running from a single root HUB, then all ports combined are limited to that current limit. For a splitter cable like you see to work you would require both ports to be on a different root HUB (otherwise you're just adding two wires to the same power source).

The moment you put two cables on ports provided by the motherboard it is likely (not guaranteed) that the ports next to each other have shared power.

One possibility is if you have one of those charger devices for USB that you plug directly into a wall.

Incidentally, ruling out power as a cause is just the first step. It's also the easiest step. There is a lot going on with the RF signal in higher speed data cables, and even hardware which is perfectly designed can fail signal quality in certain cases, e.g., outside noise sources, a cable that is just the perfect length, so on. Noise is always big on the list, and power delivery is one of the common places to introduce noise. External power is more stable with a higher power delivery limit by standards, so it kills two birds with one stone: It makes sure power load is not making the device unstable, and it also can reduce noise introduced by power.

Even if finding an actual USB 3 HUB with external power is difficult I think it would be worth your time. Don't give up on finding one.