Hard Disk Recovery

[otacustes]

Hi all,
      I have a WDC600 60Gb hard drive which has recently become corrupted.  Whilst using windows, the computer ground to a halt and died.  Upon the enevitable reboot, just after BIOS screen, I get a message saying that there is no operating system or it is corrupt.

      The problem is that every piece of recovery software I have tried, all 5 of them, indicate a read error and cannot proceed.  I find this strange since the BIOS recognises it as does windows, within the device manager at least, but not as drive within My Computer when the drive is installed as a slave.  As far as I can tell the motor still functions, as it gets rather toasty after a few mins - it could be the electronics but the case around the motor is disproportionawly hot compared to the PCB - nothing unusual for a hard drive to create this amount of heat.

      If anyone could indicate the problem or anything to try to get the data off, either a hardware of software solution, I would be very greatful.  If anyone knows the cause of the problem or whether I would ever be able to use the hard disk again that would also be helpful.

Kind regards

[dl65]

otacustes  ......perhaps you could elaborate just a wee bit .........
you say ,

The problem is that every piece of recovery software I have tried, all 5 of them

   Question ....... if windows won't load ? How are you running this software ?
What O/S are you using ?
How old is the Western Dig drive that has quit ?

There is a trick I will offer once I see your reply .

dl65  

[whaddupdogg23]

which recovery software have u used??

[otacustes]

Hi dl65, whaddupdogg23

if windows won't load ? How are you running this software ?

I am trying to recover the software with the disk installed as a slave.  I am running the software from the master.  All of the software will recognise the slave, just like windows, but cannot read it - that's a far as it gets

What O/S are you using ?

I am running Windows2000

How old is the Western Dig drive that has quit ?

It is approx 18 months old.

which recovery software have u used??

I have tried using:
RecoverMyFiles
GetDataBack
HDD Regenerator
AdvancedRecovery
Norton

thanks for your help guys.

Kind regards

[GX1_Man]

Download and run the free diagnostics from the Western Digital site. If there is a mechanical problem, I don't think any kind of recovery software you can find will be beneficial.

[dl65]

otacustes.......  Check the warantee on that drive , if its only that old , it may still be covered ........ but , heres the little trick to try.
Carefully put the hard drive in a bag, and put it in your freezer for several hours........ then put it into another machine as a slave and maybe ..... just maybe  , you will be able to save your data .  This doesnt work 100% of the time ....but more often than not ......... Give it a try , you have nothing to loose.
That trick or tip has saved quite a few people. ( including several members here .)

dl65  

[otacustes]

Thanks dl65,
I shall try that tip and see if it works.  I assume you put it in when it is still chilled or let it thaw to room temperature?

Out of curiousity any idea why freezing works?

Thanks for the help.

Kind regards

[Rob Pomeroy]

Many years ago I was having a problem with a hard drive that was failing to start up.  A grizzled old sysadm told me to "hit it with a hammer"!  (His exact words.)  Sure enough, banging the case when starting up got the hard drive running...

Anyway, have you checked out the software FAQ?  Lots of diagnostic software listed there.  Follow the link in my signature.

[otacustes]

Thanks Rob.

Unfortuanately nothing seems to have worked.  I tried hitting it, all be it not with a hammer, but the head just re-positions itself so that seems OK.  I can also feel the motor running.

As for the software, that has drawn a blank too.  One possible piece of information is that it appears there is a problem reading the partition so I guess that is damaged.

Thanks for your help.

Kind regards

[GX1_Man]

You can try deleting the partition, then recreating it and formatting to see what will happen. It may be that the drive is DOA. I suspect the data is long gone unless you pay for an expen$ive data recovery service.

This points out again why hard drives are NOT the place for precious data. They all die eventually, usually right after you should have backed up to CD's!