For those of you who use the Mini USB drives

Mon Mar 15, 2004 9:08 am by Sir Spectre

For those of you who use the mini USB drives to share information between computers, I found this helpful little thing to aide in faster tranfers. However, I have a question at the bottom for any who might be able to help me.

This is a generic review of Windows XP's support of USB 2.0 mini-drives that are attached to USB 2.0 hardware ports.

I'll go right to the bottom line and tell you that I've found that these drives may perform VERY poorly in Windows XP SP1. They will appear to perform well, compared with similar USB 1.1 drives, only if you are copying a very small number of very large files. They will perform incredibly slowly compared to their USB 1.1 brethren, if you reverse the scenario and copy a directory of say 500 or more very small files.

I'll provide the solution now and then tell you about some tests I've run. THE SOLUTION: Format your mini-drives as "NTFS". (THEY DO NOT COME FORMATTED THAT WAY!) If you do, they will perform very well on USB 2.0 ports under WinXP SP1. It does mean, however, that you won't have portability to a WIN95, WIN98, WINME system (if you want high performance in WinXP).

If I've still got your attention, read on please.

I own an Iomega 1.1 Mini Drive and have purchased and returned two Lexar JumpDrive Pro 2.0 devices, a SanDisk Cruzer Mini, and almost returned my newest, a PNY Attache 2.0. I've also had a dialogue with someone in a forum who issued a similar complaint about his Sony MicroVault 2.0 device. I kept the PNY to have something to test with as I probed this issue, and have now just purchased another Lexar JumpDrive Pro because it prices well, and it also performs well if formatted as "NTFS".

After considerable experimentation and a frustrating 20 or so hours on the internet, I made my discovery!

After reading an Amazon reviewer boast that he copied a single 135MB file in under a minute, I decided to try that myself ... and it copied quickly, considerably beating the performance of my Iomega 1.1 device. Astounded at this, I became curious about whether WinXP had an issue with FAT and FAT32 on these devices.

I created a benchmark of a directory containing 508 icons totalling only 1MB of data, occupying 2MB of disk. Formatted at the default FAT or FAT32, the copy took an incredible 2 min. 56 secs., and I could read each file name as Windows revealed them during the copy. I decided that, before returning the PNY, I would format it as "NTFS" just "to see what would happen". It copied in 2 or 3 seconds!!!!!

To prove to myself this wasn't a freak event, I went back to my earlier benchmark which was a client's web site having a root folder weighing 44MB and containing 1800+ files. It had previous copied to my Iomega 1.1 Mini Drive in 1 min. 34 secs., but on my Lexar JumpDrive Pro 2.0 and the SanDisk Cruser Mini 2.0 the times ranged between 5+ mins. to just under 10 mins. On the PNY 2.0 device formatted "NTFS", it took around 52 secs. My newly purchased Lexar ran in about the same 52 secs. (compared to 8+ mins. when formatted FAT32)

My final benchmark was a folder containing 3 files, weighing 44.5MB. They copied in 46 secs. to the Iomega 1.1, in 23 secs. to the PNY 2.0, and in 19 secs. to the new Lexar.

To lend a bit of credibility to these tests, I should tell you that I had taken the Lexar 2.0, the SanDisk Cruzer 2.0 and my Iomega 1.1 to a demo computer at Best Buy and the results were consistent. That machine was a Compaq Presario with 6 "Certified" 2.0 ports with WinXP SP1. So it's unlikely that my personal environment was unique.

This has been surely an oddball "review", assuming Amazon publishes it, but it should dramatically benefit many of you buying these devices. Thanks for your time.

I cannot seem to format this drive to anything other than FAT32 or just FAT. I have a SanDisk Cruzer Mini USB 2.0 and WinXP on my laptop and WinXP Pro on my Desktop. Neither are able to format to NTFS as far as I can tell. I right click on the drive itself then choose format and it only gives me the option for the two FATs.

Is it that neither of my new computers are formatted to NTFS? And that is why I can't do this?

Thanks for you help and I hope I helped someone with passing allong this neat tip.

Sir Spectre

Edited by - Sir Spectre on 3/15/2004 9:08:48 AM

Mon Mar 15, 2004 9:28 am by H.Q. Victor

@Chips, do you need the mini to be formated to ntfs? The reason I ask, my backup hard drive is Fat32 and The main is ntfs and to reads off of it with no problems.

Michael "Finalday"
In Memory Of WLB

Mon Mar 15, 2004 10:27 am by Sir Spectre

@Finalday, It's me Spectre not Chips. The drive works fine and no, I don't need to have it NTFS, but it is extremely slow for what should be USB 2.0 speed. The copying works as fast as lightning, but deleting or moving is slow as molasses.

Sir S

Mon Mar 15, 2004 10:30 am by Indy11

@Sns:

Did you do this first?

In Windows 2000 not an issue just format it as NTFS. In Windows XP you can go into the Device Manager under Disk Drives and find the one for your USB Stick and double-click on it, choose the Policies tab and change it to be "Optimized for Performance", click OK and then you will be able to format it for NTFS

Mon Mar 15, 2004 10:59 am by Sir Spectre

@Indy, it worked. I had done that on the laptop, but it didn't show up. When I did it on the desktop it was revealed. Weird. Already I can see it is sooooo much faster!

But new question about the Optimization. Do I now need to stop the "attached hardware" before I remove it like the Optimization says I should, or is that just a precaution?

Sir S

Mon Mar 15, 2004 11:06 am by Indy11

Well. I know some cowboys that don't bother with it but I always follow it. It helps to keep the host system more stable by going through the numbers. Doing it the other way, I am guessing, may leave a false indication on your host OS that the USB is still in and will be searching for it and keeping resources allocated to it. Don't know for sure.

I yield the floor to any of the Uhber Techies in this crowd.

Also, that may be another difference between XP Home and XP Pro (laptop vs. desktop, that is).

Edited by - Indy11 on 3/15/2004 11:55:42 AM

Mon Mar 15, 2004 2:04 pm by Esquilax

Sounds like Indy's got all the answers lately

. Nice one, old chum. Indy's right; the only way to format in to use Disk Management, especially since there is no FDisk in XP. SS, it is always good practice to "Safely Remove" or "Stop" the devices when before removing them, as you can lose data by yanking them out.

I'm glad you brought this up actually, because I've been wanting to mention my new toy; my 30GB portable HDD! I picked it up a few weeks ago, and it is great. I was sick of burning files to CDs, so I thought about buying a USB KEy. They were expensive, so I looked into portable HDDs. They were good, but they were full-size drives, and would be cumbersome to carry around. I looked into other options, and I ended up buying an aluminium enclosure, with a USB2 interface. I then threw a 5400RPM laptop HDD in the case, formatted it, and I know have a 30GB HDD that fits in my pocket. I just plug the cable in, and I'm set. The only draw back is that it only works as Plug & Play with Windows 2000/XP. For anything older, I would need to install a driver. However, I use XP at home and at work so I'm happy. The whole package was less than half the price of a 512MB USB Stick. Now that's a bargain

.

Mon Mar 15, 2004 4:07 pm by H.Q. Victor

Sorry about that Ss, Did not have my glasses on.

Michael "Finalday"
In Memory Of WLB

Mon Mar 15, 2004 6:00 pm by mustang

Nice idea Esq! Im using a 128Mb 1.1 USB key at the moment, although it's satisfactory for the Doc's and smaller progs I carry around, I would dearly love to have portable driver library. Might be an option to consider.

BTW you need drivers for USB sticks in Win 9x too, so you didnt loose any functionality with your option.

Edited by - Mustang on 3/15/2004 6:02:36 PM

Mon Mar 15, 2004 10:27 pm by Esquilax

They are really good, Mustang. That is to say that I have had no problems with mine, but I should mention that they may not be quite as fast as a USB Key, but they are superior, especially in regard to shock, etc.

You're right; USB Keys DO need drivers on anything before Windows 2000. Well then, I guess that the only draw back is that you have to take a cable with you. Still, people do use cables with their USB Sticks, so I guess that it isn't much of one.

Tue Mar 16, 2004 4:09 pm by Arania

@esq: nice idea! how much did i const to build that thing? i think i might try that! those CD-Rs are really annoying and i think i might do that! but where did you get the USB-HDD interface casing from?

Tue Mar 16, 2004 4:37 pm by H.Q. Victor

Be careful with the sticks. A friend at work bought one and accidentally set it on one of those demanitzers at stores. He had it attached to his key ring. And never got it to work again and was out about $200 he said.

Edit - Ill stick to my USB zip drive. I can take it anywhere too but only cost $70 for 100 megs. The new 750 meg runs now around $199

Michael "Finalday"
In Memory Of WLB

Edited by - Finalday on 3/16/2004 4:38:44 PM

Tue Mar 16, 2004 5:17 pm by Esquilax

Arania - As I said, the enclosure was $50; I picked it up from a local computer shop, and the laptop HDD was $160 for a 30GB 5400RPM... or was it 4200RPM? I forget. Anyway, it is very robust and cost effective.

Final - Too true, a strong magnetic field can wipe them. That's one of the reasons I don't trust them as much. Still, EM can wipe HDDs too, but it would need to be a pretty strong field.

Wed Mar 17, 2004 7:22 am by Indy11

@All,

Very weird and curious. I came across a note in a PC mag that said that, officially, MS does not support NTFS for removable media and that XP is meant to not be able to format removable media in NTFS.

Obviously, SnS, you were able to get it done on your XP Pro Desktop and I've seen lots of mention of the how-to on the web. BUT maybe that's why you weren't able to work it

on your XP Home Laptop

Wed Mar 17, 2004 11:35 am by Tawakalna

I still don't trust these things, it's Zips and DAT tapes for me still. Or a nice VPN. Or ftp, if i know i'm gonna be out and about I upload some stuff so's I can pull it down when i want it. And of course CDs, I carry about a hundred or so around with me in me special Taw case of everything useful.

new fangled rubbish. it's all just fashion, you know, just cos they do em in pretty colours and girls think they're jewellery

my wife thinks they're a good idea so they must be rubbish.

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