Will I have trouble using those small external USB hard drives? Like the ones from Western Digital? I am running Debian Lenny. I have read other posts--- some say no trouble--- others have had a LOT of trouble. Any ideas? I DEFINITELY want ext3 on it. All my computers run Linux and I want nothing to do with microsoft !
Thanks for ANY ideas in advance !!!!!!

Hi there,

since I have no idea what drives you have in mind, all I can say is: Probably not.
Nearly all external hard disks, whether they are 3½", 2½" or even 1.8", announce themselves as "USB Mass Storage Device". That means, they offer a uniform, standardized interface that all contemporary OS's from Windows 98 on can use.

The trouble you mean may have to do with the power requirement of external hard disks. There are some 2½" USB drives that claim to be "USB powered" and allegedly don't need an external power supply, but in fact exceed the maximum current of 500mA during spin-up. Plus, there are some USB controllers that don't even supply 500mA even if they are supposed to.

I can understand that.
"Multiple exclamation marks", he went on, shaking his head, "are a sure sign of a diseased mind." (Terry Pratchett)

[X] Doc CPU

Yes, you will have trouble.


I just want to warn you in case it happens. We just can't tell from this far away. I have used them and once in a while it fails. Usually they work good for data but some odd deals cause it to be unstable with an OS on it.

It depends on the model number. Since you have not explained your trouble I assume it is due to the special firmware so that part of the drive looks like a CDROM. It is possible to disable the virtual CD although I do not have any real experience in doing so.

One thing which might help.

From what I've seen, the drives which have a simple controller and give standard access to the internal hard-disk tend to be less likely to cause trouble.

Try to avoid any drive which advertises built in encryption or security. In these cases, the controller tends to be modified and I couldn't get it to work with Linux. Linux can do itself software based encryption if necessary - no need to have encryption built into the drive.

Also (which is more difficult to test for before buying), as the others have pointed out, some of them have a built-in partition (normally working as a virtual cd-rom), containing (normally Windows) software from the manufacturer. Again, this build in feature can cause problems. If the box of the drive advertises included software - it is more likely this is bundled on the drive - so try and steer clear.

Avoid both the above features and you are likely to be ok.

I am using for example the Western Digital Elements SE 1TB (2.5" based) external hard-drive with Linux without problems.

I use an Seagate 250GB and have had no issues, as the other post said try not to use any built in encryption, for encryption i recommend Truecrypt. I have had ext3/ext4 and ntfs on my drive with no errors.