USB 3.0 faster with direct connection or over internet.?

[699]

I have a USB 3.0 external 1TB hard drive, I am wondering if my router has a USB 3.0 slot would it be faster directly plugged into the computer or faster over the internet.

I have a 50mbps connection and it's rather secure so I'm not too worried about someone "hacking" into it to steal stuff... not like there is anything there anyway.

[Tom]

The computer, just because your router has a USB 3 slot doesn't mean it can be used for the same things.

[MikaSch]

The main idea behind connecting a Drive (USB or otherwise) to the router is just to give more people access to the files on the Drive. So it is like setting up a NAS. Connecting this drive directly to USB 3.0 slot of the computer will provided the fastest access speed.

Will you be able to access the files on the drive (setup like this) faster via WiFi by connecting it to the USB 3.0 ( is this is there) port of the router ? NO.

Over the air access can mostly never be faster than a direct USB to USB connection. This (OTA idea) goes for Ethernet connections versus WiFi as well.

[efflandt]

USB 3.0 is capable of transferring up to 5 Gbps vs. a typical LAN of 100 Mbps or gigabit network at 1 Gbps. So it would likely be fastest directly USB 3.0 connected to a computer you are using it from, possibly limited by the speed of the drive itself (how fast it is able to read/write).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB_3.0