3. Installing Your LaCie Drive
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LaCie d2 Hard Drive
User’s Manual
3.4. Installing Multiple Devices
Both the FireWire and USB interfaces allow for multiple devices to be connected.
3.4.1. FireWire
FireWire 400 and FireWire 800 allow for the connection of up to 63 devices on the bus, with a maximum of 16 devices on
one branch. FireWire 400 and FireWire 800 devices can be connected on a chain and do not necessarily need a hub.
Simply connect the first peripheral to a FireWire 400 or FireWire 800 port on your computer. Connect the second peripheral
to the other FireWire 400 or FireWire 800 port on the first drive etc., using the cables provided with your drives.
FireWire 800 devices can be chained together with the original FireWire 400 standard (provided the correct cables are
used), but transfer rates will be limited to the original FireWire 400 speeds.
Tech Note:
To daisy-chain devices, you must be using the same interface, either FireWire or USB. Your computer
will not recognize the daisy-chained device if the interfaces are mixed, i.e. a FireWire device attached to a drive
that is connected to the computer via the Hi-Speed USB 2.0 interface.
Daisy-chain configurations:
• FireWire 400 device connected directly to the LaCie d2 Hard Drive, which is connected to the computer via
the FireWire 800 port.
• iLink/DV device connected directly to the LaCie d2 Hard Drive, which is connected to the computer via the
FireWire 800 port.
• FireWire 800 device connected directly to the LaCie d2 Hard Drive, which is connected to the computer via
the FireWire 800 port.
Tech Note:
For more information about FireWire and improving performance, please sections
5.3. Optimizing Data Transfers
and
6. FireWire Questions & Answers
.
3.4.2. USB
Technically, you can connect up to 127 individual USB peripherals at one time. However, you probably will not use more than
6 to 8 peripherals on your USB system. Most computers only have two USB ports, so you would need a hub to connect more
than two peripheral drives. The hub regenerates the signals, generally providing between 4 to 7 connections. To add even
more drives, connect a new hub to a connector of the original hub, creating a new series of peripherals, etc. But the hub
slows down the transfer rate by lengthening the path of the signal. To optimize performance, connect your drive directly to
one of the built-in ports in your computer.
Tech Note:
For more information about USB and improving performance, please sections
5.3. Optimizing Data Transfers
and
7. USB Questions & Answers
.