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USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

X230-X280, X390 Series
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myxomop
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USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#1 Post by myxomop » Tue Jan 05, 2021 9:44 pm

I am the proud owner of an x230 (specs in sig) with version 2.73 BIOS. For the entire time I've owned my machine, it has never achieved file transfer speeds in keeping with reasonable USB 3.0 expectations when a USB 3.0 compatible device is connected to the blue USB 3.0 port. I think I did a driver update some time ago to try and fix it to no avail. I've attached a screenshot of my USB section of Device Manager, and can post back with any driver name/date/revision upon request.

Image

Many thanks in advance,

-Danny
ThinkPad X230 w/ IPS Display (LEN40E2)
Intel Core i7 3520M @ 2.90GHz Ivy Bridge
8GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 798MHz (11-11-11-28)
180GB Intel SSD Pro 1500
Win7Ultimate x64 SP1

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#2 Post by RealBlackStuff » Wed Jan 06, 2021 2:53 am

You are obviously missing the USB3.0 driver: https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/ie/en/prod ... s/ds034760
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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#3 Post by dr_st » Wed Jan 06, 2021 3:12 am

Edit: RBS was faster. :D

Windows 7 does not have built-in USB 3.0 drivers. You need this one: https://support.lenovo.com/us/en/downlo ... t-thinkpad

However I would expect the USB 3.0 controller to appear in the device manager with a yellow bang for missing driver. What's under "Other Devices"?
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#4 Post by myxomop » Wed Jan 13, 2021 6:03 pm

Here are the two "Other Devices" entries:

Image

I downloaded the linked driver, and in the process of installing, was prompted with a dialog box asking if I wanted to write over the existing default installation directory, which already exists. I think this is the driver update I mentioned, which did not get me anywhere near USB 3.0 speeds:

Image

Should I overwrite the contents of the folder? Should I remove and install the new driver rather than replace old with new?

Thanks for your continued help.

-myxomop
ThinkPad X230 w/ IPS Display (LEN40E2)
Intel Core i7 3520M @ 2.90GHz Ivy Bridge
8GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 798MHz (11-11-11-28)
180GB Intel SSD Pro 1500
Win7Ultimate x64 SP1

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#5 Post by RealBlackStuff » Wed Jan 13, 2021 11:56 pm

Install to that folder anyway.
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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#6 Post by dr_st » Thu Jan 14, 2021 3:30 am

1180:E823 is the Realtek Card Reader.

8086:1E31 is the USB 3.0 controller. Looks like you just need to extract the driver (to the same folder, as RBS suggested) and run Setup.exe.
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#7 Post by myxomop » Thu Jan 14, 2021 4:01 am

installed, restarted. it's gotten worse:

Image
ThinkPad X230 w/ IPS Display (LEN40E2)
Intel Core i7 3520M @ 2.90GHz Ivy Bridge
8GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 798MHz (11-11-11-28)
180GB Intel SSD Pro 1500
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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#8 Post by dr_st » Thu Jan 14, 2021 4:05 am

Does the USB 3.0 controller appear in Device Manager now?
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#9 Post by myxomop » Thu Jan 14, 2021 4:11 am

Image
ThinkPad X230 w/ IPS Display (LEN40E2)
Intel Core i7 3520M @ 2.90GHz Ivy Bridge
8GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 798MHz (11-11-11-28)
180GB Intel SSD Pro 1500
Win7Ultimate x64 SP1

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#10 Post by dr_st » Thu Jan 14, 2021 4:36 am

Looks fine to me.

To test that USB 3.0 works, connect a USB 3.0-capable drive, then use CrystalDiskMark to test the various read/write speeds.

Manually copying random files is a problematic experiment to deduce from.
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#11 Post by myxomop » Sat Sep 18, 2021 5:24 pm

Left this thread for a long time, finally coming back to it. I've installed and run CrystalDiskMark, using a PNY 32GB USB 3.1 flash drive. Prior to running the diagnostic, I initiated a file transfer from my desktop to the flash drive, averaging ~8MB/s speeds.

Image

EDIT: Just used the same drive to transfer files on my Win10 workstation with speeds 4-8 times that of the x230.
ThinkPad X230 w/ IPS Display (LEN40E2)
Intel Core i7 3520M @ 2.90GHz Ivy Bridge
8GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 798MHz (11-11-11-28)
180GB Intel SSD Pro 1500
Win7Ultimate x64 SP1

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#12 Post by dr_st » Sun Sep 19, 2021 12:18 am

What is the exact model of the flash drive?

I assume the benchmark is from the X230 with Win7. It does seem awfully low, especially in random writes. Could you run the same benchmark on your Win10 machine?
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#13 Post by axur-delmeria » Sun Sep 19, 2021 1:57 am

It's likely that the lack of UASP support in Intel's Windows 7 driver for its USB 3.0 controllers is what's causing the slowdown.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#14 Post by dr_st » Sun Sep 19, 2021 3:10 am

axur-delmeria wrote:
Sun Sep 19, 2021 1:57 am
It's likely that the lack of UASP support in Intel's Windows 7 driver for its USB 3.0 controllers is what's causing the slowdown.
That would explain the sequential speed cap, but random access at 0.01MB/s is not something I would expect. AFAIK, no pre-Win8 driver support UASP, and I don't recall things being so atrocious in my tests, when I tested USB 3.0 in Win7, Vista, even XP.
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#15 Post by axur-delmeria » Sun Sep 19, 2021 4:09 am

dr_st wrote:
Sun Sep 19, 2021 3:10 am
axur-delmeria wrote:
Sun Sep 19, 2021 1:57 am
It's likely that the lack of UASP support in Intel's Windows 7 driver for its USB 3.0 controllers is what's causing the slowdown.
That would explain the sequential speed cap, but random access at 0.01MB/s is not something I would expect. AFAIK, no pre-Win8 driver support UASP, and I don't recall things being so atrocious in my tests, when I tested USB 3.0 in Win7, Vista, even XP.
Some Asus desktop motherboards have Windows 7 UASP support due to Asus licensing a third-party UASP driver.

If it's not UASP, could it be some weird issue between a USB 3.1 device and what's essentially a 1st-gen USB 3.0 controller?
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#16 Post by myxomop » Wed Sep 22, 2021 12:14 am

same flash drive, different machine (win10 desktop, using USB3 port on the side of the case)

Image
ThinkPad X230 w/ IPS Display (LEN40E2)
Intel Core i7 3520M @ 2.90GHz Ivy Bridge
8GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 798MHz (11-11-11-28)
180GB Intel SSD Pro 1500
Win7Ultimate x64 SP1

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#17 Post by dr_st » Wed Sep 22, 2021 12:24 am

Interesting. There are no meaningful differences. Random 4K write speeds are at zero on both systems = flash drive is crap (maybe defective).
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#18 Post by axur-delmeria » Wed Sep 22, 2021 1:17 am

TBH flash drives in general are crap. If I wanted fast USB storage, I'd get a SATA SSD (preferably M.2 as it's physically smaller) and put it in an enclosure.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

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Re: USB 3.0 X230 Win7 Problems

#19 Post by dr_st » Wed Sep 22, 2021 6:17 am

axur-delmeria wrote:
Wed Sep 22, 2021 1:17 am
TBH flash drives in general are crap.
Not nearly as crap as these benchmark results show. Sure, they are not as fast as SSDs, but most of the time they are quite usable.
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

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