Router doesn't see USB disk anymore

[Styno]

I'm experiencing some problems with the router where the router doesn't detect the USB disk reliably after a power off cycle. Usually the drive is being found after some resets and power off cycles of both the router and the drive again, but I can't reproduce this behaviour. Sometimes a firmware upgrade fixes the problem and sometimes the drive is found after is has been connected to my laptop. However tonight, after I had to power off the router because of serious bad weather conditions, the router refuses to detect the harddisk. No mather what i try... When I connect the drive to my Windows XP laptop everything seems to work OK.

Is anyone experiencing similar problems? And any ideas how to reliably connect the drive to the router?

System setup:
Firmware 1.7.5.9-2
Disk: Map-H31x Series case with SpinPoint V80 Series 160 Gb harddisk

System log

Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g syslog.notice klogd: klogd started: BusyBox v1.00-pre7 (2004.06.18-18:50+0000)
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: CPU revision is: 00024000
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Loading BCM4710 MMU routines.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Primary instruction cache 8kb, linesize 16 bytes (2 ways)
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Primary data cache 4kb, linesize 16 bytes (2 ways)
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Linux version 2.4.20 (root@omnibook) (gcc version 3.0 20010422 (prerelease) with bcm4710a0 modifications) #24 Mon May 3 20:52:46 MSD 2004
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Determined physical RAM map:
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd:  memory: 01000000 @ 00000000 (usable)
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: On node 0 totalpages: 4096
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: zone(0): 4096 pages.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: zone(1): 0 pages.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: zone(2): 0 pages.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Kernel command line: root=/dev/mtdblock2 noinitrd init=/linuxrc
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: CPU: BCM4710 rev 0 at 125 MHz
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Calibrating delay loop... 82.94 BogoMIPS
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Mount-cache hash table entries: 512 (order: 0, 4096 bytes)
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Buffer-cache hash table entries: 1024 (order: 0, 4096 bytes)
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Page-cache hash table entries: 4096 (order: 2, 16384 bytes)
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Checking for 'wait' instruction...  unavailable.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: POSIX conformance testing by UNIFIX
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: PCI: Fixing up bus 0
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: PCI: Fixing up bridge
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: PCI: Fixing up bus 1
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Initializing RT netlink socket
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Starting kswapd
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: NTFS driver v1.1.22 [Flags: R/O]
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: pty: 256 Unix98 ptys configured
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd:  Amd/Fujitsu Extended Query Table v1.1 at 0x0040
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Physically mapped flash: Swapping erase regions for broken CFI table.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: number of CFI chips: 1
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: Flash device: 0x400000 at 0x1fc00000
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: Physically mapped flash: squashfs filesystem found at block 949
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: Creating 5 MTD partitions on "Physically mapped flash":
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: 0x00000000-0x00040000 : "pmon"
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: 0x00040000-0x003e0000 : "linux"
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: 0x000ed760-0x003e0000 : "rootfs"
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: 0x003f0000-0x00400000 : "nvram"
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.notice klogd: 0x003e0000-0x003f0000 : "config"
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: ip_conntrack version 2.1 (128 buckets, 1024 max) - 344 bytes per conntrack
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: ip_conntrack_pptp version 1.9 loaded
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: ip_nat_pptp version 1.5 loaded
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: ip_tables: (C) 2000-2002 Netfilter core team
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: ipt_time loading
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: FAT: bogus logical sector size 51200
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: FAT: bogus logical sector size 51200
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.err klogd: NTFS: Unable to set blocksize 512.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: VFS: Mounted root (squashfs filesystem) readonly.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Warning: unable to open an initial console.
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: Algorithmics/MIPS FPU Emulator v1.5
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: eth0: Broadcom BCM47xx 10/100 Mbps Ethernet Controller 3.50.21.10
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: eth1: Broadcom BCM47xx 10/100 Mbps Ethernet Controller 3.50.21.10
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: PCI: Enabling device 01:02.0 (0004 -> 0006)
Jan  1 01:00:13 WL500g user.warn klogd: eth2: Broadcom BCM43XX 802.11 Wireless Controller  3.50.21.10 (Compiled in . at 20:53:00 on Jan 21 2004)
Jan  1 01:00:18 WL500g user.notice dhcp client: deconfig: lease is lost
Jan  1 01:00:20 WL500g user.notice dhcp client: bound IP address 82.161.0.30 from server 82.161.86.1
Jul 17 23:06:32 WL500g user.notice dhcp client: deconfig: lease is lost
Jul 17 23:06:32 WL500g user.warn klogd: lp driver: get device ID
Jul 17 23:06:32 WL500g user.warn klogd: neg fail
Jul 17 23:06:34 WL500g user.notice dhcp client: bound IP address 82.161.0.30 from server 82.161.86.1
Jul 17 23:06:37 WL500g user.warn klogd: Register User Space Key Handler : 769 0
Jul 17 23:06:37 WL500g user.emerg NTP client: time is synchronized to 131.107.1.10

[Antiloop]

this doesn't help you,

but i have never experienced such behaviour

have you tried reconnecting the usb cable too? (when wl500g was turned on already)

[Styno]

have you tried reconnecting the usb cable too? (when wl500g was turned on already)

Yes, I have tried that several times, but it didn't help.

It's weird though, I turned the USB disk off yesterday evening (since the disk wasn't working, it made no point leaving it on) and tried again this morning. I switched the USB disk on and the router found it immediately. FTP and Samba are working fine again. I haven't got a clue about this, but I'm happy everything is up and running again. Thanks for your support *thumbs-up smiley*

[Styno]

It's been a while, but the router had to be powered off because of a thunderstorm this afternoon. When the storm was over I turned the router and USB drive on and the same behaviour as described above occurred (After powerloss, no USB disk detection). This time however I found a straightforward solution:

1) While both boxes are still powerless, disconnect the USB drive from the router.
2) Powerup both boxes.
3) Wait a minute.
4) Reconnect the USB disk to the router.
5) The USB disk should be detected now.

Rebooting the router is now possible without losing the USB disk connection.

[WlanMan]

Hi

I wonder that this Drive works, i have the same case (33eur, btw) and his Chipset (GL811E) has made trouble with mounting problems on my linux box. sometime it works othertime not. Bridge is detectet but mount gives strange errors.I think the Chipset has some flaws because of its low price. Why else do they ship a Mac OS-X driver, X should detect usb mass storage by itself.

[Styno]

Hmm, apart from the above issue I have no problems with this USB case/chip. So I am pretty happy with it.

[SuperB]

Do you mount the drive in your post-boot file? Try mounting it in the post-mount file. You should have a more robust mount there. See here for some info on this (see under 'Mounting the partitions on the WL500gx').

[Styno]

SuperB thanks for helping out, but this thread is more the two years old! The problem has long been fixed.

Topic closed.