USB3 drive speeds using a USB3 hub

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  1. Posts : 59
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2
       #1

    USB3 drive speeds using a USB3 hub


    UPDATE: Thanks everyone who commented. I plugged both hard drives into the hub and the speeds for copy/move between the two went from approx 30MB/s to approx 100MB/s. I am very pleased.

    Windows 10 Pro 21H2
    Acer Aspire E5-551G

    I have the following:
    1xUSB2 port
    1xUSB3 port
    2xUSB3 5TB portable drives

    Currently the setup is:
    drive1 in USB3
    drive2 in USB2

    I know that USB2 is slower than USB3 so, obviously, drive1 is faster than drive2. If I plug a (non-powered) USB3 hub into the USB3 port and connect both drives to that, how will that affect overall speed for both devices? Am I right in thinking the total speed will be split between the two, as in drive1 will be slower but drive2 will be faster? And if so, by how much?

    For example:
    If USB2 is approx 480MB and USB3 is approx 5GB, would both in a USB3 hub get approx half of the available speed each, making one drive half as slow but the other one approx 5 times faster? I hope that makes sense.
    Last edited by kiwichick; 20 Mar 2023 at 21:58.
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 6,392
    Windows 11 Pro - Windows 7 HP - Lubuntu
       #2

    Theoretically
    USB2.0 is 480Mb/s or 60MB/s
    USB3.0 is 5Gb/s or 600MB/s
    So the best is to install the two USB3 drives into the hub so they are able (Theoretically) to share the 600MB/s.

    If the USB drives are HDDs, you will never reach more than 150MB/s, limited by the HDD transfer speed.
    Last edited by Megahertz; 18 Feb 2023 at 07:50.
      My Computers


  3. Posts : 2,193
    Windows 11 Pro 64-bit v23H2
       #3

    No matter how many drives you connect to the hub the speed is still limited by the maximum speed of the USB port on the computer. Individual speeds will vary depending upon how many drives are read/writing simultaneous;y.
      My Computers


  4. Posts : 59
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2
    Thread Starter
       #4

    Megahertz said:
    Theoretically
    the best is to install the two USB3 drives into the hub so they are able (Theoretically) to share the 600B/s
    Thanks, that's what I thought might be the case but I just needed someone more knowledgeable than to me to confirm it.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 6,392
    Windows 11 Pro - Windows 7 HP - Lubuntu
       #5

    Make sure that the hub is a USB 3 hub.
    USB 3 has the USB 2.0 contacts (to be compatible) and the high speed wires.
      My Computers


  6. Posts : 15,497
    Windows10
       #6

    Megahertz said:
    USB2.0 is 480b/s or 60B/s
    USB3.0 is 5Kb/s or 600B/s
    I think you mean

    USB2.0 is 480Mb/s or 60MB/s
    USB3.0 is 5KMb/s or 600MB/s

    I could probably type faster than 60B/s LOL.
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 6,392
    Windows 11 Pro - Windows 7 HP - Lubuntu
       #7

    cereberus said:
    I think you mean

    USB2.0 is 480Mb/s or 60MB/s
    USB3.0 is 5KMb/s or 600MB/s

    I could probably type faster than 60B/s LOL.
    You're right. Only 6 zeros missing.
      My Computers


  8. Posts : 59
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2
    Thread Starter
       #8

    Megahertz said:
    Make sure that the hub is a USB 3 hub.
    USB 3 has the USB 2.0 contacts (to be compatible) and the high speed wires.
    Yes thanks, I realise that and the hub I have is USB3.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 14,045
    Win10 Pro and Home, Win11 Pro and Home, Win7, Linux Mint
       #9

    cereberus said:
    I think you mean

    USB2.0 is 480Mb/s or 60MB/s
    USB3.0 is 5KMb/s or 600MB/s

    I could probably type faster than 60B/s LOL.
    Also note that 8 bits equal 1 Byte. A lot of things posted on the Web fail in the designation of the b for bits and B for Bytes. Sometimes the way speeds are shown seem unrealistic. I'm not good at math and never got my head around Octals.
      My Computers


  10. Posts : 1,201
    11 Home
       #10

    USB3 hubs are not created equal, and some of them are so poor that they not only cripple the combined speed a lot, but also tend to drop connections for no apparent reason. The good ones are reliable, and they all have UASP as well as are fast enough to not slow down a pair of 7200rpm 3.5 inch SATA III harddrives in external USB3 enclosures by any significant margin, at least not when it comes to the sustained sequential data transfer rate when both drives are active. But not all of the ones that have UASP are good. (Just the good ones all have UASP.)
      My Computers


 

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