6th September 2002
Question: I recently installed, through USB, a smart disk reader on my Windows XP computer. I have an icon in my systray that when I hover over it says "Safely Remove Hardware." What is this icon for and if I don't need it then how can I get rid of it?
Answer: The "Safely Remove Hardware" icon has appeared in your systray because it detected a certain type of device connected to your computer. Most of the time, this is activated when a media drive (example: external hard drive) is connected via USB. This icon allows the machine to help spin down and power off the external media drive properly. In your case you don't need this icon and while it doesn't hurt your system to have it, you can still remove it, if you so choose. To remove the icon, you need to double-click it, then right-click in the Notification Area and choose Properties. In the Properties window you need to navigate to the Notification Area, tab, then choose Customize. Find the "Safely Remove Hardware" icon and select "Always hide" in the Behavior column. Now you just have to click OK to get back to your desktop. Look! No more annoying "Safely Remove Hardware" icon.