Random USB 3 External Drive Disconnects

The common factor may be the Mac's USB port. An SMC Reset has been known to fix that: Reset the System Management Controller (SMC) on your Mac - Apple Support. Try a different USB port also.

Flyboyron wrote:

Now that Time Machine appears to be broken for at least the time being, these backups are even more important, and I'm getting more nervous than just annoyed now.

Just curious, what makes you think Time Machine is broken? I've been using it with three different Macs since the first beta seed of Sierra up through the release of 10.12.1 (and beyond).

Start with A4 in the 1st linked article.

Time Machine Troubleshooting

Time Machine Troubleshooting Problems

Troubleshooting backup issues

Flyboyron wrote:

I'm glad you haven't had the issue, but there are certainly a lot of online complaints about it, both here and on other sites.

Ron

I've mentioned this here and there a few times but I guess it bears repeating. A modern OS is very complex and that along with a nearly infinite number of possible combinations of hardware and software, it's impossible to test all possible combinations for errors. It stands to reason that out of millions of users, there will be some users with the same or similar combinations that lead to problems. personally, I'm amazed things work as well as they do.

Flyboyron wrote:

Thanks, I'm sure you are right. But this particular problem is apparently widespread, and seems to involve a lot of different brands of drives, etc.

Welcome. "Widespread" is relative. Apple has sold approx. 109 million computers in the last 5 years. Let's say 10% of those have been updated to Sierra or 10 million to round down. Let's say 100, or even 1,000 have reported the problem. What would seem to be widespread is 9,999,000 are not having a problem. 😎

FYI, this poster (in another thread) states that he installs things without knowing what they are or what they do, and therefore does not know how to remove them. I would take care to use the pinch of salt liberally.

LOL I actually read that. My guesstimate is 90% of all OS problems, whether macOS, Windows 10 or the gazillion flavors of Linux are user errors and incompatible software/hardware, another 5% hardware failure and the last 5% due to software bugs. That's when I'm feeling nice. 😎

I totally agree, user error (aka consumer failure) is by far the most common problem reported on this site.

I totally blame Apple and Steve Jobs. The entire "computer for the rest of us" concept which basically means, for those with no computer knowledge/understanding.

Flyboyron, the Time Machine discussion you referenced has unfortunately but predictably degenerated into nothing more than a mess of disparate and irrelevant concerns and rants. When that happens, it's typical for its originator to bail on it, so no one will ever know if, when, or how his problems were ultimately addressed. Everyone tacking on "me too" replies will receive little if any attention, since their problems are almost always unique to their particular installation. Attempting to address each individual contributor to someone else's Discussion one always fails, leaving everyone frustrated and angry, while resolving nothing.

The relevant concern in your case was the following passage from that Discussion:

But if I start TM at any point, it all comes to a near-halt and stalls at some random point in the TM backup, whether full or update.

A few possibilities can be drawn from the information you provided, but there is not enough information to provide conclusive direction.

Let's try to figure that out, but in a separate Discussion. Not this one and not that one – a new one that you create, and in which you can control the dialog.

Needless to say you must absolutely resolve the apparently random USB device disconnections – the subject of this Discussion – before TM can be expected to work... and it will work, as long as it is "used as directed"... a phrase that came to mind after reading your "Amphetamine" reference 🙂 If the SMC Reset does not fix things, other possibilities can be explored.