WDC 1140 USB Drive Logs Event 11 "The driver detected a controller error"

WD External and Portable SSD External SSD for Windows
1

Every time I log into my circa 2015 Dell PowerEdge T20 server system running Windows 7 x64 Ultimate, the attached Western Digital MyBook 1140 causes a system error to be logged: “The driver detected a controller error on \Device\Harddisk2\DR2.”

634×440 11.5 KB

The drive is USB 3-capable, but I have plugged it into one of the system’s USB 2 ports as I detected data errors in large (multi-gigabyte) files after copying them at USB 3 speed. On the USB 2 port it copies data flawlessly. The drive serves purely as a backup device and remains connected to the system 24/7, taking nightly system image backups.

I don’t know if the USB 3 copy errors are related, but I did all the normal troubleshooting (changing cables, firmware and driver updates, etc.) and never reached a resolution of that. However, using the USB 2 port is a fine workaround for that issue.

Just to be clear, this logged error is not causing any problems (I have been ignoring it for a year), but I prefer a system that does not regularly log errors and figured I’d try to get to the bottom of it. An internet search does not turn up any direct resolutions.

Updating firmware and drivers and everything possibly related has made no difference; the errors are still logged upon an interactive login (on the console or via RDP). It can sit there and do backups for weeks on end and as long as no one logs in no errors are logged.

I suspect it has something to do with the drive being spun down in power-saving mode, though I don’t see why it should cause an error just because Explorer is starting up.

Anyone have any ideas for a workaround that will stop this error being logged?

Thanks.

-Noel

2

Hello,

I recommend you contact WD Support.

3

Thanks, but no thanks.

I’m not going to waste half a day futzing around as somebody being paid 50 cents a day in a call center reads from a script.

To be fair I’ve not had any experience with WD support, but I hold little hope it’s any better than anyone else’s. Let’s just say that somewhere in the past 40 years of computer software engineering experience a little bit of my optimism might have worn off. :wink:

If there’s not a canned solution that already fixes it (i.e., a settings tweak or a software update) I’m just going to live with it.

-Noel