# two working front usb ports dont work at the same time



## Hashbrown (Apr 3, 2009)

2 front usb ports connected to the mobo through 1 cable
bottom port fails if i plug something into the top one as well as in the bottom
individually both work fine. top one -always- works
if i plug the bottom one in itll work. then stops working when i plug something in the top saying "delayed writing failed" 
if i plug in the top first then the bottom i hear a tripple usb plug in sound in quick succession (ie normal "der duh". This "der-der-der")
and in device manger under "universal serial bus controllers" one of the "usb mass storage device"
says "This device cannot start. (Code 10)"

if my usb modem is plugged in the bottom and then i plug a stick in the top the modem loses connection but the lights stay on

ive tried alternating the two memory sticks and even using different memory stickes
i know its not a power issue because if i plug a four usb adapter (with no external power) to one of the front ports i can have all of those running
nothing in bios seems relevant and unistalling/reinstalling the drivers didnt help (the driver version is 5.1.2600.0)
ive tried alternating the usb header on the motherboard the cord is connected to
and the cord is set one way, is impossible to plug in incorectly
both ports seem physically fine (as i said, both ports work fine -on there own-) but i cant see if there are loose cables in the circuitry on the front panel

any ideas? thx in advance

XP Pro sp3
Gigabyte GA-G31M-ES2L motherboard
front usb included with Thermaltake rs-100 case

P.s the image i tried to attach (***.jpg - mightve worked idk) is a crude drawing of what a friend said might be going on


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## connor-53 (Mar 15, 2009)

Have you ever flashed your bios form within windows? Because if you do that it can mess up configurations and force it to stop working.


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## Benson92 (Apr 3, 2009)

Hey im his friend.
He's never flashed his bios.
it's a brand new computer he assembled himself about a month ago.

All parts were new and bought from centrecom


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## connor-53 (Mar 15, 2009)

Hmm well, seems like it might be a mobo problem. I have never heard of anything like this. The only thing I can think of is the wires to the mobo might be crossed or something like that. If you can try and RMA the mobo.

Good luck.....


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Try using a USB bracket plugged in to those ports or a card reader it sounds more like a front panel problem to me.

USB brackets look like this you may have one laying around not doing anything to test with
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812191093


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## Benson92 (Apr 3, 2009)

Hey everyone, just an added piece of random information. 

The same problem occurs with SOME not all of the computers at our school. 
All the computers are identical hired DELL computers yet only some of them have this problem.

Thought it might be something more software based than the hardware setup


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## Hashbrown (Apr 3, 2009)

I already tried switching headers. I'm 100% sure its not the motherboard's nor power's fault. Because i put in another front usb panel (from an older computer) in the free header and both of its sockets work at the same time, even with another flash drive in the original ("broken") front panel. Im now -VERY- sure its the panel or its wiring to the mobo connector's problem. Im not 100% its the problem because i still dont know if its an incompatibility issue with my particular OS setup. That will be tested when i get round to dualbooting vista on it (Ie if the problem persists on vista aswell its the panel/wiring thats busted). But the problem is now obsolete, i mean, three working front usb's? Common, how many might one need? 

Thanks for your help


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

It's not an OS issue, if needed you can most likely get a replacement front panel from Thermaltake for the case.


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