The problem started when I was presenting files at work. Office software and even PDF readers were stating that they could not read the files (I had a presentation file saved in both PPTX and PDF format). I already switched USB drives so the drives were not a factor. I even tried copying DOCX and TXT files, but these too ended up corrupted when I was trying to read these files at work. I was already contemplating reformatting my hard drive and reinstalling my operating system.
The reason I did not immediately suspect my USB port was because
- The printer was working when plugged at that specific USB port
- There were some files that were being transferred properly (although looking back, the file sizes were relatively small compared to the sizes of the files ending up corrupt after transfer)
But I finally decided to test the USB port by using a known good USB device such as a mouse. Lo and behold, my mouse was not always working properly. It turned out that the connection between the mouse and the USB port was loose. I suspected that the USB drives were loosely connected too resulting in data loss / corruption while files were being copied from the PC to the USB drive.
I tried checking the internal USB cables for damage, and even swapped the USB connections on the mother board since there was a spare set of pins for another USB connection. The problem still existed. So I decided to buy a 4-port USB hub which I then connected to the working USB ports utilized by my mouse and keyboard. (The USB ports that failed were in the front panel, those that were working were located at the back of the computer).
Finally solved the issue after a week of humiliation for not being able to present well. Praise the Lord!!! He gives enlightenment to those who seek and ask for wisdom. And I’m glad I didn’t immediately reformat my hard drive. It would have been a pain to reinstall everything.
Nathan's Soliloquy 