Hardware Is there a way to test this?

[godreborn]

alright, I own this usb hub:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005NGQWL2/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I've been using it solely for hdds. I own 2 powered hdds and 1 unpowered hdd. I need to plug in a second unpowered drive. is this dangerous (i.e. killing both unpowered drives if plugged in together)? is there a way to test if the drives are getting enough power? thanks.

 

[MrCatFace]

Anker is generally a great brand, but I would be wary about plugging in too many powered drives. Your probably fine, but I dont think an unpowered drive will hurt you too bad.

 

[godreborn]

Anker is generally a great brand, but I would be wary about plugging in too many powered drives. Your probably fine, but I dont think an unpowered drive will hurt you too bad.

how come you think powered drives would be harmful?

 

[MrCatFace]

how come you think powered drives would be harmful?

There could be problems if the USB hub cant supply enough power for every drive. Every USB device needs power, so too much might cause problems.

 

[godreborn]

I'm confused. shouldn't a powered drive supply its own power? are you say two powered and two unpowered drives should be fine?

 

[MrCatFace]

I'm confused. shouldn't a powered drive supply its own power? are you say two powered and two unpowered drives should be fine?

USB ports normaly can only supply 500 ma at once. Thats why powered drives require 2 ports. You should be fine

 

[Sonic Angel Knight]

I'm confused. shouldn't a powered drive supply its own power? are you say two powered and two unpowered drives should be fine?

Since is using a power supplied by the PC usb drive, is possible that it cannot support all the power each device needs when plugged in. Therefore is possible the pc usb port doesn't power the hub fully enough for all devices that need all the power. HDD requires a lot of power, which is why it doesn't work on wii u without a Y-cable or is own AC adaptor, then is more than likely you can't use all 10 slots at the same time without first considering the full power consumption and then each device's required power source.

 

[godreborn]

will the two unpowered drives simply not work together if that's the case (i.e. not appear in device manager at all as if they're not connected)? my fear is that it burns out both drives. I'm thinking the usb port won't be an issue since the hub is powered.

 

[Sonic Angel Knight]

will the two unpowered drives simply not work together if that's the case (i.e. not appear in device manager at all as if they're not connected)? my fear is that it burns out both drives. I'm thinking the usb port won't be an issue since the hub is powered.

If your hub is powered then is fine, no problem. The only actual problem comes from not supplying enough power to the hub that when the more devices you plug in drains the power more than it is supplied, in that case is useless. You would be forced to remove the extra devices for it to function. In your case, you have nothing to worry about. Most cases if the power isn't enough the pc will tell you the usb cannot recognize the device.