(Multiple) USB Hubs -- Is order important?

[ObiYawn]

I have a question related to USB Hubs. My PC (an HP Pavilion SlimLine s3100n) has four USB ports in the back and one in the front. I have so many peripherals (four external hard drives, webcam, USB speakers, keyboard/mouse, printer, memorystick etc.) that I am using two powered USB 2.0 hubs. One is a 4-port Belkin, the other one is a 7-port D-Link. Each one is connected to the back of my PC directly, so they are not chained.

My questions:

1) Is the order in which I connect the various devices of any importance with regard to performance?

2) Does it make any difference (performance, stability) if I connect all external hard drives to the same hub, or distribute them amongst both hubs? Keep in mind that each hub is directly connected to a different USB port in the back of the PC, they are not chained.

On a related note, my external Hitachi 1TB "EasyDrive", which is connected to the Belkin hub, is not recognized properly when it is turned on before booting up. I have to keep it turned off until XP is up and running, then turn it on. I haven't tried connecting it to the other hub (D-Link) or directly to the PC to see if this makes any difference. any opinions?

Thanks!
-J

 

[zoobaby]

I have a question related to USB Hubs. My PC (an HP Pavilion SlimLine s3100n) has four USB ports in the back and one in the front. I have so many peripherals (four external hard drives, webcam, USB speakers, keyboard/mouse, printer, memorystick etc.) that I am using two powered USB 2.0 hubs. One is a 4-port Belkin, the other one is a 7-port D-Link. Each one is connected to the back of my PC directly, so they are not chained.

My questions:

1) Is the order in which I connect the various devices of any importance with regard to performance?

2) Does it make any difference (performance, stability) if I connect all external hard drives to the same hub, or distribute them amongst both hubs? Keep in mind that each hub is directly connected to a different USB port in the back of the PC, they are not chained.

On a related note, my external Hitachi 1TB "EasyDrive", which is connected to the Belkin hub, is not recognized properly when it is turned on before booting up. I have to keep it turned off until XP is up and running, then turn it on. I haven't tried connecting it to the other hub (D-Link) or directly to the PC to see if this makes any difference. any opinions?

Thanks!
-J

1. No
2. Are you accessing all for drives at the same time? If only accessing one at a time, then no performance hit. If accessing multiple at a time, you should spread them out on different hubs, but there shouldn't really be a hit anyway depending on the hub architecture (the number of transaction translators).

I suggest ditching the Belkin hub, using it unpowered, or put non-power sensitive devices on it. I have seen some Belkin hubs putting 8 to 10 Volts out, when they should only be putting 5V. Seen 60 hertz on the data lines due to their crappy power management.

 

[ObiYawn]

"zoobaby", thanks for the response. I am usually not accessing all drives at the same time, except for backup purposes from one drive to another. But the latter isn't time sensitive, so any performance hit wouldn't bother me.

I guess I will stay away from Belkin hubs for the time being. Btw, I was mistaken, my other hub isn't a D-Link, it's a 7-port Targus hub. Any issues with that brand?