using external cd/dvd/hd drive on surface pro

Thanks for your help guys, But apparently, I need to have the surface plugged in to power outlet and then plug in my external storage. Then it is recognized and it works. 

what i am thinking is that the surface wont use any of its power to run the storage device when its running on its battery. is this true for you guys as well?

Can I use an external cd drive to download software to my surface pro. I have a language program that I need to install and need to know if I should try to return it to get the downloadable version

I just tried it with an external DVD drive via USB and it works great. It's like any modern PC or laptop, just a little smaller.

Bye.

Actually I just solved it. What happens here is that there is probably not enough power via your USB 3.0 supplied. 

• Take a usb hub
• Plug it to the wall with the power adapter it came with (<- this is important otherwise it wont work)
• Hook up you USB HUB to the Surface's USB port
• Hook up your hard drive to the HUB

And it worked right after that

It is not an absolute rule but the USB A connector on the cable nearest the drive usually has the data contacts, the second one on the end of the lead only has power so it does not matter where the power comes from. On some you can see this because the lead connecting the 2 USB A plugs is thinner.

I did have a LG (forgot the model number) along with the Samsung and it worked as well.  Great that you listed the model numbers of what you have so that others can view what is compatible.

Some drives are just not well built and usually name brand models as well.  Like what wmtangk has, it is a power hog and he used the second dongle for the power but just still not enough.  Some of those drives are like that.

With the Pro and Pro 2, if you install the Cyberlink software suite that comes with them, you should be able to watch DVD movies from the drive "even" on battery.  There should be enough juice in the tablet to play at least one movie.  The Intel Core i5 processor definitely has the horsepower for that.

I am going to mark your post as "helpful" so that it should act as a flag for others to view and buy the right model if they have a question.

Greetings Link057,

Please contact Surface Technical Support as they can troubleshoot the issue and if your External HDD does not work with the Surface, put in an exchange for you.

You can find the Microsoft Compatibility Center at this web link: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/compatibility/win8/CompatCenter/Home?Language=en-US

I have an RT and not a Pro and have a MSI and an Asus external DVD burner drives and both work perfect with the RT.  It is best to check, though with the compatibility center because those drives I have cost $80 (I think you can find them cheaper now).

Just make sure your on the a/c adapter when you do it.

Hello SergioGrajeda,

You should be able use any DVD/CD writer/player that is compatible with Windows 8. Here's a link to the Compatibility center:

http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/compatibility/win8/CompatCenter/ProductViewerWithUpdatedFilters?TempOsid=win8&Type=Hardware&ProductCategory=Storage%20devices&ProductSubcategory=CD%2FRW%20DVD%2FRW&CurrentPage=0&TotalPages=694&SortCriteria=Relevance&ShowCriteria=0&Compatibility=All&LastRequested=10&Locale=en-us

Yes, just about any PC supported external drive will work.

The Apple, proprietary, external drive is known to work half the time on PCs and this issue is not exclusive to the Surface Pro. Others (and myself) have tried it on the Surface Pro and it does not work. There may be a hack to getting it to work but I would recommend you purchase a more PC supported external USB CD/DVD drive from Samsung, Panasonic, LG or anyone else that specifically states it supports a PC.

Likely it depends on the USB drive. A massive, WD USB 3, 4TB drive with an optional power adapter likely will not work. A small, 1TB, USB 3, 2.5" USB drive will no doubt work fine.

Most new CD/DVD drives that are powered by USB easily work off of USB 3 if the drive is USB 3 capable. If the device is not, you can bet it won't work as it will not draw enough power from the single port. If you have one and want to know if it will work but do not want to buy a Surface, take it to a MS retail store if there is one nearby and test it (if they have any in stock). That will tell you for sure.