My live hub network connection got zapped by a nearby lightning strike. Everything works fine except for the wired network. I got an Airlink wireless N150 adapter for $12, and it works fine, but as other have reported, the wireless is very slow, transfers are around 2 MB/s. I was wondering if anyone has tried a wired usb adapter. The WD compatible hardware page only lists wireless adapters, so not sure it one would even work. Also, would the transfer speed be any better, or is that limited by the usb connection?
I wouldn’t count on it working because as far as I know, WD has never even considered thinking about using a USB ethernet network adapter. The actual file-transfer speed of the Hub is known to be quite slow (though it streams perfectly at full speed) even when using Gigabit ethernet. It has not been established as to which component or combination of hardware pieces leads to this slow transfer speed, but it might just be the way the Hub handles direct drive-to-drive network traffic. Therefore, the USB port might not be the factor that limits your speed. But you can give it a shot, I’d suggest getting an affordable adapter from somewhere like Newegg that has a really good return policy. You can then check it out, see if it works, and if it doesn’t or is too slow, then you can return it. Also, if your Hub is still under warranty, see if you can’t get one of their technicians on the phone and tell them that the network port just died on you randomly (best not to mention the weather) and see if they’ll be willing to cover it as a defective unit.
