firewire nightmare with snow leopard

The only thing of substance I can find in that thread is users trying to use a mishmash of extensions to work around what are almost certainly problems with Firewire peripherals with poorly implemented interface firmware or hardware. There are several known issues of that type, but they are not software issues per se or something Apple can do anything about.

Apple provides standards-compliant Firewire ports (it is after all the originator of the Firewire standard); it is up to peripheral makers to comply with them, although some do not. If this is your problem, check with the makers of your peripherals to see if they have any firmware updates or other suggestions.

If you want to try the mismatched extensions workaround, you are pretty much on your own. Apple definitely does not support this & most knowledgeable users I know would not risk their data with this.

Otherwise, the USB and FireWire Quick Assist page may be helpful.

Looks as though some 3rd-party hardware has a problem. Not surprising, or new; I had to dump an ancient FireWire expansion box made by a no-name Taiwanese company back when I updated to Leopard as their firmware didn't like Leopard and they wouldn't or couldn't supply an update. As I'd had that particular expansion box since 2001, it wasn't as though I hadn't got my money's worth out of it. Newer chipsets worked fine.

What some people are doing is something which is very dangerous: they're mixing and matching extensions inside the guts of OS X. That can lead to severe problems. It'd be better to dump the non-functioning equipment and replace it with working hardware. Amazon, for example, has this:

<http://www.amazon.com/Macally-G-S350SUA-Hi-Speed-FireWire-Enclosure/dp/B000P1NA MO/ref=dp cp_ob_e_title2>

for $40, which is known to work with modern versions of the OS. At least it does here. I don't have any FireWire problems with machines ranging from eMacs on 10.4.x and 10.5.x to iMacs and Mac Pros on 10.6.x.

Well I, too, have had endless FW issues since installing SL. Following advice that the Prolific chipset was responsible, I shelled out for new Lindy Oxford chipset enclosure and new Optiarc burner. Now, my drive disconnects regularly (requiring it to be turned off and on to re-register itself), I get about 50% coasters using Verbatim media - media errors, sense errors, unstable connections etc If I connect using the USB port it's fine. If I burn using the internal burner it's fine. As someone's already said, there are hundreds of similar complaints here with no permanent solutions...

I had absolutely no problems before upgrading to SL.

I gotta back up Douglas on this one. I just finished reading an archived thread about this exact problem with 10.6.1 from a year ago, and I am now experiencing this on 10.6.5


My LaCie Rugged 500GB drive stopped mounting on my MBP Unibody last month. It would mount via USB and FW400 but FW800 was a no-go. After testing cables and then testing the MBP port by using a 400~800 cable with the LaCie, I deduced that I had a bad 800 port on the LaCie. Well I just received a brand new (or refurbished?) unit via warranty, and nothing has changed, it will not mount FW800~FW800.

For the record, this Unibody is the MOST debilitating so-called PRO item I've ever used. This issue with Snow Leopard and Firewire is pretty much the 2nd-to-last straw.

I'm curious: how do you reconcile the fact that so many of us have had no Firewire problems whatsoever through all the different OS updates with the theory that one or another OS update is the cause of your Firewire problems?

There are several other possibilities to consider. One is that your Mac's FW800 port has failed. Another is that you have some third party extension installed that interferes with its operation. It is also possible that the LaCie's firmware is not fully compliant with FW800 standards, or that it has been updated in recent versions & you got a second one with the old version installed.

There is also the fact to consider that (apparently) you were not having problems when running an OS version similar to the one others were complaining about in the archived thread.

If you search the web, you will find fairly large groups of users convinced their problems are caused by one or another OS update or by some specific brand or model of peripheral. Some go so far as to say to stay away from one or another brand completely, or to never update the OS beyond the version that works for them (which is often a different one from what other users are just as convinced is the last "good" one).

They cannot all be right.

As tempting as it is, it is not a good idea to assume that every similar sounding symptom has the same cause. This is true for everything from car or health problems to computers.

I can reconcile the fact that this is one of many threads that have addressed this issue, and that my Mac's FW800 port is working fine with all my other devices, and that this so-called 'pro' laptop is used only for work, therefore extensions and all other playthings are not used. You raise a good point that the LaCie's firmware may not be fully compliant, but since this is the main externalHD sold at the apple store, I don't buy that either, especially since this was a warranty replacement tested by the factory and loaded with the most recent firmware.

As to the issue of my not having problems on 10.6.1, well I've never used that version, I went from 10.5.8 to 10.6.4 just a few months ago....and then >poof< no mounting via 800.

So...I'm going to go ahead and stick with my original diagnosis.

... and that my Mac's FW800 port is working fine with all my other devices …

So … are you saying that your diagnosis is that the update is causing problems just with the LaCie? Is this exactly the same issue discussed in the other threads? If not, how are they relevant?

I'm also not at all sure what you mean about "extensions and all other playthings." Whether used for work or play, OS X depends on dozens of extensions for proper operation. A problem with any of them can cause a variety of malfunctions, some not obviously connected to the services an extension supplies to the OS. What, if anything, have you done to make sure the necessary extensions are present & undamaged?

Even a "pro" machine is not immune to file damage.