[Cape Rick]

Hello:

A few months ago my Seagate FreeAgent USB hard drive did something that I thought peculiar. Late one night I noticed that the drive's "in use" light bar was shining brightly out of the darkness, supposedly indicating that it was working at something. But the computer had been shut down for a while and it wasn't supposed to be doing anything, so I pulled the drive's plug from the USB hub and the light went out. It caused me to think about what was really happening here. I asked several people who might know with no success.

It happened again two nights ago when I inadvertently left the drive plugged into the USB hub when I shut down the computer. Later that night when I went back to the computer desk there it was again, the drive's "in use" light lit. Nothing else showed any sign of life; the computer was off and as usual, the only sign of activity was the cable modem's pc/activity light blinking rapidly. It always does that, computer off or on, and everybody says it's OK.

I don't recall anyone mentioning it before, but the USB local network (the things plugged into my computer and USB Hub) seem to be powered up 100% of the time, computer on or computer off. The Seagate drive is powered by a wall-plugged transformer and it also feeds power into my USB local network, as does the cable modem, the computer, the 7 port GE USB Hub and whatever USB accessories that use a transformer. I used to think of USB as a data distribution method used primarily by my computer but it appears that there is much more to it than that.

USB is obviously more complicated than it seems to be. My USB devices are clearly not turned off and on with the computer, and even when I turn it off, it continues to have a power feed from the USB circuitry with unknown effect. All that seems clear at this point is that after I shut it down, USB continues to be connected with everything on my system, and continues to be connected to the internet as well via the cable modem which is also on 100% of the time. Since I'm not using them, what are all of these components doing with their spare time?

In normal use, data travels both ways through the cable modem when my computer calls upon it to do one or the other. But when it is off can a remote computer gain access to the Seagate USB hard drive by using the IP address of the cable modem? Since the cable modem is plugged into the computer and can feed power into its USB circuitry via this "back door," are any of the computer's resources accessible?

I hope that there's some simple answer. Despite the fact that everything is always on and always interconnected with everything else using USB, I really hate to think that some USB hacker can gain access to anything plugged into the system.


Rick....

[lawson_jl]

I read your post and 3 thoughts come to mind.

1. If your PC is powerd off then no one can be hacking your USB drive threw a PC that is turned off.

2. I get that the Freeagent drive is powered via an AC adapter but it appears you said that your other devices still have power when the PC is off? Is this correct? If so you have a problem with your mobo the USB should not be powered with the PC off.

3. The light comming on is likely a result of the USB coming from your PC still having power. Also the Freeagent drives are a bit more complicated then just throwing a extra drive in a case and the Freeagent drive may be doing something with the drive, error checking maybe?

I don't have a solid answear but that's what comes to mind.

[Elvandil]

If the machine is off, then the USB is not being accessed by anything. If the drive dioesn't shut down properly, then there is probably some defct in the drive's shutdown circuit and has nothing to do with the PC. If the drive is still under warranty, you may want to get it fixed or replaced.

If you have any USB-powered devices, plug them into the USB port with the machine off. You will see that there is no power there. No power is being supplied to the external drive from there. Unless you are using some form of standby and not powering off.

[SandyGunfox]

It sounds like a glitch in the USB drive itself.

For $5-10 you can buy a very cheap USB drive with an indoicator light. Try a different USB drive and see if this happens to others, too.

Either way, no, it isn't a hacker.

[Cape Rick]

Originally Posted by lawson_jl

I read your post and 3 thoughts come to mind.

1. If your PC is powerd off then no one can be hacking your USB drive threw a PC that is turned off.

2. I get that the Freeagent drive is powered via an AC adapter but it appears you said that your other devices still have power when the PC is off? Is this correct? If so you have a problem with your mobo the USB should not be powered with the PC off.

3. The light comming on is likely a result of the USB coming from your PC still having power. Also the Freeagent drives are a bit more complicated then just throwing a extra drive in a case and the Freeagent drive may be doing something with the drive, error checking maybe?

I don't have a solid answear but that's what comes to mind.

Hi All... Thanks for your responses. Computer was definitely off. No indicator light, no cooling fan, no nuthin. The FreeAgent drive also goes off but sometimes its pilot light goes on again for no reason I can see. I have several USB devices that operate with AC adapters and some - maybe all - feed voltage back into the USB circuitry. My GE USB 7 port hub also uses an AC adapter and stays on 24/7. I have a USB powered LED "trouble light" that works just fine plugged into USB with the computer off. The computer does not turn off the USB power unless maybe the computer's USB ports are the only source of operating voltage if the attached devices don't have AC adapters. It could well be that the FreeAgent drive is doing something on its own when the computer is off. I suppose that a phone call to the company might be in order. The cable modem stays on with its PC Activity light blinking all the time, never stopping, computer on or off. Comcast has been of little to no help. Mostly they know how to hook stuff up and that's as far as it goes. If some other ideas come to mind, let me know ASAP. Thanks again.... Rick

[Cape Rick]

Originally Posted by Elvandil

If the machine is off, then the USB is not being accessed by anything. If the drive dioesn't shut down properly, then there is probably some defct in the drive's shutdown circuit and has nothing to do with the PC. If the drive is still under warranty, you may want to get it fixed or replaced.

If you have any USB-powered devices, plug them into the USB port with the machine off. You will see that there is no power there. No power is being supplied to the external drive from there. Unless you are using some form of standby and not powering off.

Hi: That's my big puzzle: What gets shut down with the computer and what stays powered up? The 7 port USB hub stays on and the FreeAgent drive data cable is plugged into it; both have AC power from the wall plug. The cable modem is plugged into the computer and a USB cable runs from the computer to the USB hub. Can the cable modem have an effect on the USB hub independently of the computer?

If the computer is shut down its own USB ports are no longer powered (I don't think so, I'll have to try them.) but the other USB gadgets still have access to power from the cable modem, the USB hub and more than likely other devices powered by AC adapters. The FreeAgent drive is powered by an AC transformer and needs no USB power for normal operation. I'll follow up on your suggestions and see what happens.
Rick

[Cape Rick]

Originally Posted by SandyGunfox

It sounds like a glitch in the USB drive itself.

For $5-10 you can buy a very cheap USB drive with an indoicator light. Try a different USB drive and see if this happens to others, too.

Either way, no, it isn't a hacker.

Hi: I'm pretty sure that the FreeAgent drive isn't troubled by a glitch of some sort. It has shown no signs of misbehaving beyond the 'on' light appearing to be on when the computer is off. I should also mention that this is not a common occurrence; I don't sit and watch the thing all night; five or six weeks passed between the first time and the most recent one a few nights ago. I have found USB drives to be very useful, I have
four others for specific purposes but I don't know if they also have the 'midnight light' problem because I don't sit up at night watching. None has shown any sign of 'glitching'. I should also say that there is no evidence for hacking; my interest was attracted when I realized that the USB system is always on (as is the cable modem) and that there might be a way to access the internet by that means. How does the computer keep my USB system off the internet when it's turned on? And when it's off? Thanks.... Rick