Hard Drive Damaged

neo_

neo_

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So I'm more of a software-guy than a hardware guy, but have agreed to have a look at a friend's hard drive to find out why it isn't working.

It's a 3TB external (USB 3), and has about 1/3 space free (according to my friend). Yesterday, it was plugged into her laptop, and Windows said the device could not be opened, and that something is corrupt.

Plugged it into my laptop now, and attempted a scan, which didn't get anywhere after 30 mins or so. Had a listen inside the drive for activity (should sound random), but only heard the following sequence in constant repeat:

|----------------<2 seconds>----------------|
| <ht><ht>---------<lt>---------------------|

where ht is a higher tone 'click' and lt is a lower tone click. Again, I'm not a hardware fundi, and so don't know the actual terminology here... Simply trying my best to portray what I hear.

I'm guessing that this drive is pretty much dead... Windows cannot read any headers/meta data.

(I did attempt loading my laptop up in Ubuntu Live Disk to see if it could see the disk, but I don't have access to my BIOS code right now, and so could not turn of UEFI to enable booting from disk.)

Does anyone have any suggestions regarding what I could do next to try and, at the very least, diagnose the drive?

Any help here would be greatly appreciated.
 
Oh, and there are a few strange sounds it makes when it spins up. Almost as if Windows is trying to read it, cannot do so, wash rinse repeat, give up.
 
Mine makes a similar sound because its not getting enough power, only works if ive plugged both USB's into a (blue) USB port.
 
It's a 3.5" USB 3 drive with a USB 3 cable and a separate power bank. It's a Seagate Backup Plus.

Doesn't turn on without the power cable inserted.
 
bekdik said:
boot up your machine with linux and see if the drive can be read. If so, it will give you a chance to recover data before trying anything else.
Click to expand...

I'll have to wait until I can get my BIOS password - it's in a book that I left at the office, like a real smart-ass.
 
Rickster said:
Mine makes a similar sound because its not getting enough power, only works if ive plugged both USB's into a (blue) USB port.
Click to expand...

_neo said:
It's a 3.5" USB 3 drive with a USB 3 cable and a separate power bank. It's a Seagate Backup Plus.

Doesn't turn on without the power cable inserted.
Click to expand...

Ok then thats not the case,

If it has any important documents you need on it then the linux option should be your last resort, dont damage it any more by turning it on.

Check the warranty and if its expired chuck it away if you dont need to recover anything.
 
Rickster said:
Ok then thats not the case,

If it has any important documents you need on it then the linux option should be your last resort, dont damage it any more by turning it on.

Check the warranty and if its expired chuck it away if you dont need to recover anything.
Click to expand...

Apparently this thing has everything on it. And there's no backup. Think a data recovery specialist might be able to put together bits and pieces?
 
If warranty is not an issue remove it from the enclosure and connect it directly via the sata port and see if you can access it from linux. I'm assuming she want's her data back?
 
_neo said:
Apparently this thing has everything on it. And there's no backup. Think a data recovery specialist might be able to put together bits and pieces?
Click to expand...

They can without a doubt, but its going to cost you....a lot.

R3,950.00 – R4,450.00 from southbit, but you must still buy a new hard drive for them to transfer it.
 
Interesting thing is that it's only a 1.5 years old, and it doesn't get moved very often at all. What could cause this kind of thing to happen?
 
ponder said:
If warranty is not an issue remove it from the enclosure and connect it directly via the sata port and see if you can access it from linux. I'm assuming she want's her data back?
Click to expand...

Okay, I think I'll give that a shot using my desktop PC at the office.
She does indeed need her data back. Movies and series can be re-obtained from elsewhere, but I believe there is quite a lot of personal stuff on the drive, including photos.

Rickster said:
They can without a doubt, but its going to cost you....a lot.

R3,950.00 – R4,450.00 from southbit, but you must still buy a new hard drive for them to transfer it.
Click to expand...

Thanks, will pass that info along.
 
So how does this kind of thing happen? The drive is young, and wasn't moved around much at all. Fragmentation? Bad manufacturing?
 
Rickster said:
Was it used in a vertical or horizontal position?
Click to expand...

I've been using it vertically, as intended (the feet are at the bottom). Not sure if she used it horizontally. Will ask her now.
 
Last edited:
_neo said:
I've been using it vertically, as intended (the feet are at the bottom). Not sure is she used it horizontally.
Click to expand...

Oh ok, goto this website and enter your serial number and part number, it should be above were the power and usb plug in.


I think it has a 2 year warranty.
 
_neo said:
So I'm more of a software-guy than a hardware guy, but have agreed to have a look at a friend's hard drive to find out why it isn't working.

It's a 3TB external (USB 3), and has about 1/3 space free (according to my friend). Yesterday, it was plugged into her laptop, and Windows said the device could not be opened, and that something is corrupt.

Plugged it into my laptop now, and attempted a scan, which didn't get anywhere after 30 mins or so. Had a listen inside the drive for activity (should sound random), but only heard the following sequence in constant repeat:

|----------------<2 seconds>----------------|
| <ht><ht>---------<lt>---------------------|

where ht is a higher tone 'click' and lt is a lower tone click. Again, I'm not a hardware fundi, and so don't know the actual terminology here... Simply trying my best to portray what I hear.

I'm guessing that this drive is pretty much dead... Windows cannot read any headers/meta data.

(I did attempt loading my laptop up in Ubuntu Live Disk to see if it could see the disk, but I don't have access to my BIOS code right now, and so could not turn of UEFI to enable booting from disk.)

Does anyone have any suggestions regarding what I could do next to try and, at the very least, diagnose the drive?

Any help here would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...

Doesn't sound like the click of death (which could indicate platter/disc damage), but it's always best to not power on hard drives which make abnormal noises like clicks or beeps. If the data is important, one should take it to the pros.

Rickster said:
They can without a doubt, but its going to cost you....a lot.

R3,950.00 – R4,450.00 from southbit, but you must still buy a new hard drive for them to transfer it.
Click to expand...

+1

There is also a MyBb discount. :)
 
Rickster said:
Oh ok, goto this website and enter your serial number and part number, it should be above were the power and usb plug in.

I think it has a 2 year warranty.
Click to expand...

Thanks - it appears to be out of warranty.

That page also asks if I have tried SeaTools - anyone have any experience with that?
 
PostmanPot said:
Doesn't sound like the click of death (which could indicate platter/disc damage), but it's always best to not power on hard drives which make abnormal noises like clicks or beeps. If the data is important, one should take it to the pros.
Click to expand...

I've heard of this click of death before, but have never actually heard it. Could you describe it to me, please?
 
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