ADN

I just want to make sure: Because it won't allow me to safely remove my external HD (telling me to try again later), is it safe for me to shut down my computer and then manually shutting down the HD afterwards, even though I'm not sure if it's still spinning?

Is there any other way to remove my external HD from my comp without having to shut down first?

If you shutdown the system and power off any buttons or switches to the external, it should be safe. Can you hear it spinnings/running? Any lights still on? Any sign of life from it after the system is shut down?

Yeah. After shutting down (even after safely removing my HD), the lights of the HD are still on and it still feels like it's running when I put my hand on it.

That's why I'm asking if it's safe to shut off the computer even when it says that the HD is still running when I try to safely remove it.

I would venture the guess that the lights are just for power. But, if you hear the fan or drive still going, that may be an issue. What is the exact HD you have?

320GB Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 16MB Cache.

The thing is though... I can't even hear it spinning/running much when I transfer files to/from it. Therefore I can't tell the difference whether it's doing something or not.

This solution is assuming windows XP (home or Pro doesnt matter) and that you have administrator access on the computer with the external HD hooked up. Make sure both are power on by confirming power led's are illuminated etc and you have your desktop available to start working.

Start by clicking start button then all programs and then administrative tools. This may also be available from the control panel or from the right side of the windows start panel depending on your configuration.

In adminstrative tools, select disk management. In the lower pane of this window you will see you hard drives listed. Scroll down until you can find your external hard drive (note scroll wheels do not work in these windows). On the left of the lower pane, you will see your hard drives enumerated starting with Drive 0, Drive 1, etc etc. This is where you want to RIGHT click with your mouse and then select properties. In the new window that appears, go to the policies tab, and then check the radio button for Optimize for Performance. You will likely need to reboot following these steps. After doing these steps, in order to safely remove the drive from the system you will have to use the new icon in the notification area that looks like a green checkmark.

There is no problem leaving it as Optimize for Quick removal, however the performance when transferring large files or large numbers of files (the reason I would assume you got a monster sized external HD) will be noticebley decreased.

hth
cheerio

a couple more thoughts:
QUOTEYeah. After shutting down (even after safely removing my HD), the lights of the HD are still on and it still feels like it's running when I put my hand on it.
That's why I'm asking if it's safe to shut off the computer even when it says that the HD is still running when I try to safely remove it.
If your computer is OFF (not stand-by or hibernate) there is no way any disk writes could still be in the cache waiting for execution, so it would be safe to turn off the external HD

QUOTEThe thing is though... I can't even hear it spinning/running much when I transfer files to/from it. Therefore I can't tell the difference whether it's doing something or not.

this is why I have a strong preference for Seagate Drives when I put together a system for myself or need to purchase more HD space (happens a lot being a member here!). I have found seagate drives to be the quietest during operation and take the longest to develop any high-pitched noises associated with platters spinning. Also your xternal HD case could be well constructed to help insulate the noise and dampen vibrations and shock.

cheerio!

Thats why emanon has the big nuts. He knows all.

I have never seen the study linking testicular mass with intelligence....I wonder if it is a 2 way association and if the reverse then is also true....if so, we could make some interesting conclusions about the "leader" of the free world

heh

just chiming in when there is topic I actually know something about. Everytime I read one of raum's posts in VU my brain starts to throb

I am trying now to find out what motherboard i have so I can see if my computer supports dual channel memory. Just yesterday I thought all this thing was good for was Porn. THANKS AYHJA!!!