USB Storage device initializes FOUR TIMES!!!

I have a USB storage device that is a CompactFlash card. When I insert
it, it is initialized four times as though four different devices were
inserted. I am attaching relevant excerpts from /proc/version,
/var/log/messages, and usbtree. Any additional information will be
gratefully provided.

The system, attaches them as sda, sdb, sdc and sdd.

I have had this problem for a while and it bugs me and at some point
the system load average goes through the roof for no apparent reason,
which I suspect is related.

Thanks a lot!

i
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/proc/version:
Linux version 2.6.15-1.1833_FC4 (bhcompile@hs20-bc1-1.build.redhat.com) (gcc version 4.0.2 20051125 (Red Hat 4.0.2-8)) #1 Wed Mar 1 23:41:37 EST 2006

Mar 14 22:52:08 manifold kernel: usb 1-1: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 7
Mar 14 22:52:08 manifold kernel: hub 1-1:1.0: USB hub found
Mar 14 22:52:08 manifold kernel: hub 1-1:1.0: 4 ports detected
Mar 14 22:52:09 manifold kernel: usb 1-1.1: new high speed USB device using ehci_hcd and address 8
Mar 14 22:52:09 manifold kernel: scsi1 : SCSI emulation for USB Mass Storage devices
Mar 14 22:52:14 manifold kernel: Vendor: Generic Model: STORAGE DEVICE Rev: 9138
Mar 14 22:52:14 manifold kernel: Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: SCSI device sda: 2001888 512-byte hdwr sectors (1025 MB)
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: Write Protect is off
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: assuming drive cache: write through
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: SCSI device sda: 2001888 512-byte hdwr sectors (1025 MB)
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: Write Protect is off
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: assuming drive cache: write through
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: sda1
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sd 1:0:0:0: Attached scsi removable disk sda
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Vendor: Generic Model: STORAGE DEVICE Rev: 9138
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sd 1:0:0:1: Attached scsi removable disk sdb
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Vendor: Generic Model: STORAGE DEVICE Rev: 9138
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold scsi.agent[4256]: disk at /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1e.0/0000:02:0a.2/usb1/1-1/1-1.1/1-1.1:1.0/host1/target1:0:0/1:0:0:0
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sd 1:0:0:2: Attached scsi removable disk sdc
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Vendor: Generic Model: STORAGE DEVICE Rev: 9138
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sd 1:0:0:3: Attached scsi removable disk sdd
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold scsi.agent[4275]: disk at /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1e.0/0000:02:0a.2/usb1/1-1/1-1.1/1-1.1:1.0/host1/target1:0:0/1:0:0:2
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold scsi.agent[4270]: disk at /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1e.0/0000:02:0a.2/usb1/1-1/1-1.1/1-1.1:1.0/host1/target1:0:0/1:0:0:1
Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold scsi.agent[4338]: disk at /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1e.0/0000:02:0a.2/usb1/1-1/1-1.1/1-1.1:1.0/host1/target1:0:0/1:0:0:3

/: Bus 05.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=uhci_hcd/2p, 12M
/: Bus 04.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=uhci_hcd/2p, 12M
/: Bus 03.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=ohci_hcd/2p, 12M
/: Bus 02.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=ohci_hcd/3p, 12M
/: Bus 01.Port 1: Dev 1, Class=root_hub, Driver=ehci_hcd/5p, 480M
|__ Port 1: Dev 7, If 0, Class=hub, Driver=hub/4p, 480M
|__ Port 1: Dev 8, If 0, Class=stor., Driver=usb-storage, 480M
|__ Port 2: Dev 3, If 0, Class=hub, Driver=hub/4p, 480M
|__ Port 1: Dev 5, If 0, Class=hub, Driver=hub/4p, 480M
|__ Port 2: Dev 6, If 0, Class=print, Driver=usblp, 12M

Ignoramus4546 wrote:
> I have a USB storage device that is a CompactFlash card. When I insert
> it, it is initialized four times as though four different devices were
> inserted. I am attaching relevant excerpts from /proc/version,
> /var/log/messages, and usbtree. Any additional information will be
> gratefully provided.
>
> The system, attaches them as sda, sdb, sdc and sdd.
[snip]
> Mar 14 22:52:09 manifold kernel: scsi1 : SCSI emulation for USB Mass Storage devices
> Mar 14 22:52:14 manifold kernel: Vendor: Generic Model: STORAGE DEVICE Rev: 9138
> Mar 14 22:52:14 manifold kernel: Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: SCSI device sda: 2001888 512-byte hdwr sectors (1025 MB)
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: Write Protect is off
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: assuming drive cache: write through
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: SCSI device sda: 2001888 512-byte hdwr sectors (1025 MB)
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: Write Protect is off
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: assuming drive cache: write through
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sda: sda1
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sd 1:0:0:0: Attached scsi removable disk sda
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Vendor: Generic Model: STORAGE DEVICE Rev: 9138
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sd 1:0:0:1: Attached scsi removable disk sdb
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Vendor: Generic Model: STORAGE DEVICE Rev: 9138
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold scsi.agent[4256]: disk at /devices/pci0000:00/0000:00:1e.0/0000:02:0a.2/usb1/1-1/1-1.1/1-1.1:1.0/host1/target1:0:0/1:0:0:0
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sd 1:0:0:2: Attached scsi removable disk sdc
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Vendor: Generic Model: STORAGE DEVICE Rev: 9138
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: Type: Direct-Access ANSI SCSI revision: 00
> Mar 14 22:52:15 manifold kernel: sd 1:0:0:3: Attached scsi removable disk sdd

Is this by any chance a memory card reader with four slots (perhaps for
four different types of media)?

The CF card itself is being assigned /dev/sda and shows /dev/sda1 as the
only partition on it. The other three devices show no partition or
capacity information...leading me to suspect that they're empty media
slots for other types of memory cards. This is behaviour for all
multi-format card readers I'm aware of, and is quite normal.

["Followup-To:" header set to comp.os.linux.hardware.]
On Wed, 15 Mar 2006 05:03:25 GMT, Ignoramus4546
<ignoramus4546@NOSPAM.4546.invalid> wrote:
> I have a USB storage device that is a CompactFlash card. When I insert
> it, it is initialized four times as though four different devices were
> inserted. I am attaching relevant excerpts from /proc/version,
> /var/log/messages, and usbtree. Any additional information will be
> gratefully provided.
>
> The system, attaches them as sda, sdb, sdc and sdd.
>
Do you have a card reader with four slots? Each slot is a device.


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lest she should catch a cold on overexposure.
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