A method and device for detecting and handling non-responsive devices in a computer system where the device non-responsiveness may be due to a powered-down status rather than a device failure, and more particularly to such computer systems when the devices are RAID disk drives. By scanning all devices connected in a configuration and maintaining a count of devices that time out without responding, a determination can be made as to whether the devices are powered off or are experiencing some other problem that requires attention of a system support technician.