Hi
I have a Maxtor OneTouch external hard drive which I used to use with my desktop PC and never had any problems. My desktop recently died so I now want to use the HDD with my NEC Versa E680 notebook (running XP Professional with SP2). However, whenever I plug it in to the USB, I get the error message 'power surge on USB hub port' and it tells me I have to unplug it. I have tried uninstalling all the USB controllers and root hubs from device manager but am still getting the same error. Other USB devices (mouse, flash drive etc) are working fine. I have also checked the NEC website for driver updates but couldn't find any. The HDD and notebook are both plugged into mains power so I am not sure what this 'power surge' means. Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

If memory serves me correct, the power surge message means that the USB port which the device is plugged into cannot handle the device. If your laptop is an older model, it may not have USB 2.0 ports on it. While devices like flash drives will still work, other devices such as external HDDs can cause issues with this.