Hi,
I was trying to use my USB HD in my redhat 9 with kernel 2.4.20-20.9 by typing:
mount /dev/sda1 /mnt/usbdisk
with no luck, it replies with:
mount: /dev/sda1 is not a valid block device

then i typed gmesg | less and found out something like:
hub.c: new USB device 00:07.2-2, assigned address 2
usb.c: USB device 2 (vend/prod 0x4ce/0x2) is not claimed by any active driver.
Initializing USB Mass Storage driver...
usb.c: registered new driver usb-storage
scsi1 : SCSI emulation for USB Mass Storage devices
usb.c: USB disconnect on device 00:07.2-2 address 2
hub.c: new USB device 00:07.2-2, assigned address 3
usb-uhci.c: interrupt, status 3, frame# 499
scsi: device set offline - not ready or command retry failed after bus reset: host 1 channel 0 id 0 lun 0
WARNING: USB Mass Storage data integrity not assured
USB Mass Storage device found at 2
USB Mass Storage support registered.
scsi2 : SCSI emulation for USB Mass Storage devices

usb-uhci, ide-scsi, scsi-mod and usb-storage are loaded when checking lsmod

no only my external USB hard disk, but also my USB Flash disk dosen't work neither... they are all USB 1.1.

it seems that i need a 'driver' for such a device, but i have heard of people got it working without 'drvier'... anybody can please give me a hand?
Thanks

csvke

Try

sbin/modprobe sd_mod

Then take another look at dmesg, works for my USB pen drive


Pete

It's probably the wrong device file. My usb zip drive is sda4 and my usb external HD is sda5. Your dmseg output indicates the devices are found and loaded. Finding the correct device file for usb mass storage devices is a pain. I'm sure there's an elegant way to do it by I usually wind up doing the trial and error method with mount /dev/sdax. In my system, doing:


[root@localhost patrick]# cat /proc/scsi/scsi
Attached devices:
Host: scsi0 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: PLEXTOR Model: CD-R PX-W1210A Rev: 1.10
Type: CD-ROM ANSI SCSI revision: 02
Host: scsi1 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: Maxtor Model: OneTouch Rev: 0200
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 02

Lists all recognized scsi devices so you might want to try that. Note, I didn't have my zip drive connected when I ran the above. If you have the external HD partitioned with an extended/logical partition, I believe the first partition will be designated sda5 instead of sda1.

Edit: Here's how to find the right device file. Run:

# [root@localhost patrick]# fdisk -l /dev/sda

Disk /dev/sda: 122.9 GB, 122941341696 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 14946 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda2 * 2 13090 105137392+ 5 Extended
/dev/sda5 2 13090 105137361 b Win95 FAT32

Just thought of that as I was writing this.

first of all,
# sbin/modprobe sd_mod
bash: sbin/modprobe: No such file or directory

forgot to tell u guys that:
When i typed cat /proc/scsi/scsi
in kernel 2.4.20-20.9
Attached devices:
Host: scsi0 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: LITEON Model: CD-ROM LTN526S Rev: YSZ3
Type: CD-ROM ANSI SCSI revision: 02
Host: scsi1 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: Model: Rev:
Type: <NULL> ANSI SCSI revision: ffffffff

in kernel 2.4.20.8
Attached devices:
Host: scsi0 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: LITEON Model: CD-ROM LTN526S Rev: YSZ3
Type: CD-ROM ANSI SCSI revision: 02
Host: scsi1 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: ESPIDI Model: WWW.ESPIDI.COM Rev: 032f

I think that should be /sbin/modprobe but you can check to see if the sd_mod is loaded with

# /sbin/lsmod

If you don't see sd_mod listed( the module for usb mass storage devices) do:

# /sbin/modprobe sd_mod

If that goes OK run the fdisk -l /dev/sda command listed above and see if you get a partition list for sda. Also check /proc/scsi and see if there is a subdirectory called "usb-storage-0" and if it's there look inside it. I have a file in mine simply named "1":

[patrick@localhost patrick]$ cat /proc/scsi/usb-storage-0/1
Host scsi1: usb-storage
Vendor: Maxtor
Product: OneTouch
Serial Number: Y3K0QP7E
Protocol: Transparent SCSI
Transport: Bulk
GUID: 0d49701000022ffffffffff9

thanks guys, it's now sort out, but only half of it.
my usb flash disk is now working, but not my usb external disk.
#cat /proc/scsi/scsi
gives the following
Attached devices:
Host: scsi1 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: LITEON Model: CD-ROM LTN526S Rev: YSZ3
Type: CD-ROM ANSI SCSI revision: 02
Host: scsi2 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: ESPIDI Model: WWW.ESPIDI.COM Rev: 032f
Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 02
Host: scsi3 Channel: 00 Id: 00 Lun: 00
Vendor: Model: Rev:
Type: <NULL> ANSI SCSI revision: ffffffff

as i can see, scsi3, which is the external hard disk i believe, cannot find a correct driver... can any one help me please....

AFAIK sd_mod is the driver for usb mass storage devices. One thing you can try is moving the hard drive to a different usb port, especially if you have it connected to an external hub. Some devices are not recognized properly in either linux or windows when connected to a hub and insist on being connected to the usb port on the box. My usb scanner isn't recognized if connected to a hub but works fine when connected to the box. What distro are you running and what is the make and model of the hard drive?

Thanks kilgoretrout, your tip was very helpful. I also found that I had to reformat the usb hard drive as my system kept identifying the filesystem as ntfs rather than vfat ! But reformatting was a snap (# mkdosfs -vF 32 -I /dev/sda1).