Help needed please - trying to use old laptop HDD as external HDD

jackieblack

I have a HDD from an old laptop, that I would like to format and use as an external HDD to backup stuff from new laptop so I have purchased a 2.5" SATA USB caddy and inserted and connected the old HDD.

I thought that when I plugged the caddy into a USB port on my new machine it would be recognised as an external drive and I would be able to format it, but I can't see it in either My Computer or Disk Management .

What am I doing wrong?

oneblondebrow

Does it require separate power?

Some external drives have enough power on the USB port to just use the USB and some require a an extra power adapter to the caddy

S0litaire

First thing that comes to mind is that the caddy might not be giving enough power to the drive for it to run properly.

Did the caddy come with an external power supply?

Or did it come with 2 USB cables or a "Y" shaped USB lead ?
Plug the 2 ends into the USB ports on your PC (1 is for data and power the other is just for extra power) and plug the tail end of the "Y" into the Caddy.

arrallas

Usually, you have to wait until Windows installs the drivers for it. I have several of these drives/caddies and they can be quite fussy about power from the USB sockets. If possible, try to connect directly to a socket at the back of the computer, rather than to a hub or one of the front sockets (if you have them). Some caddies have an extra power input, so you need to use 2 USB sockets (and these rarely have problems connecting). If possible, try your hdd on another computer first. Good luck!

jackieblack

S0litaire wrote: »

"Y" shaped USB lead ?
Plug the 2 ends into the USB ports on your PC (1 is for data and power the other is just for extra power) and plug the tail end of the "Y" into the Caddy.

How stupid do I feel?

I've never encountered a Y shaped USB lead before so it never occurred to me that I might have to plug both ends in

I can now see the drive and it appears to be formatting as I type :j

Thank you so much:T

jackieblack

arrallas wrote: »

Usually, you have to wait until Windows installs the drivers for it. I have several of these drives/caddies and they can be quite fussy about power from the USB sockets. If possible, try to connect directly to a socket at the back of the computer, rather than to a hub or one of the front sockets (if you have them). Some caddies have an extra power input, so you need to use 2 USB sockets (and these rarely have problems connecting). If possible, try your hdd on another computer first. Good luck!

Thank you - using 2 USB sockets (although I had to use the front as there aren't two free at the back) seems to have solved it :T

jackieblack

Thank you all for your help - so pleased it turned out to be something so simple (even though I do feel stupid ) and quick to sort out.

As usual the answer to any problem seems to be available from wonderful MSE peeps! :j :T :j :T

Once the format is finished I'm going to have a lovely new drive to back up to for only the cost of the caddy (less than £5!)! - very moneysaving!