UPDATE: Hard Drive died (I think)

trytej

trytej

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UPDATE: My friend told me to put it in the freezer overnight and I tried that, and now my hard drives up and running again!!! :D

So my computer isn't recognizing my hard drive in the boot screen, and I think its dead. I have a bunch of things that I need to transfer on that hard drive to the other including my internet connection, sound software, and other things that I no longer have cds for.

Can I transfer my files from my dead hard drive or do I have to start over?
Or do you guys have any ideas on how to fix the hard drive.
 
Most hard drives die by not booting, but the contents are still accessible. Just hook it up to another computer as a secondary drive and transfer what you need.
 
If your HD is really dead (either not powering up, making clicking or grinding sound, or doesnt recognize by computer no matter what you do), then it's not possible to retrieve the data you have on the HD unless you take your HD to a data recovery place (some computer shops do it for a hefty price). If your data isn't important (such as the drivers you're talking about), you can always download again from the internet based on your components' brand and model number. I'm not sure what you mean by "internet connection", do you mean your broadband software/settings/logins or network settings?
 
Right now I'm using the computer in my class. Yesterday I tried to call the Verizon people to see if it was on they're end, and he said that I need to buy a new network thing or something, cuz right now I don't even get an IP address. So how would I download the drivers from the internet, just google it?
 
Why the fuck would your network connections involve your hard drive, because it doesn't.

If you have an Ethernet port on your computer and you don't use any proprietary software (NetZero or something) to use the Internet, just plug the cable into your network card and go.
 
It sounds like you just need to set up a PPPoE connection. You didn't mention what OS you are running, but XP can do this natively. Older versions of Windows will require extra software.

Even if the hard drive is not being detected by the BIOS on the POST screen, Windows (2000 and XP at least) will still detect the drive, assuming that it is actually working. If it isn't showing in My Computer, go into Disk Management to see if it is being detected. Again, I am assuming that you are running XP or 2000. Click Start, click Run, type compmgmt.msc, and then click OK. Then in the console tree, click Disk Management. All of your disks will be displayed here.
 
i know my hdd not being detected was a cause of the sata cable jiggling itself free... make sure its connected securely.
 
I've tried connecting it differently, running it off slave and everything else, but nothings working.

[quote name='Zing']It sounds like you just need to set up a PPPoE connection. You didn't mention what OS you are running, but XP can do this natively. Older versions of Windows will require extra software.

Even if the hard drive is not being detected by the BIOS on the POST screen, Windows (2000 and XP at least) will still detect the drive, assuming that it is actually working. If it isn't showing in My Computer, go into Disk Management to see if it is being detected. Again, I am assuming that you are running XP or 2000. Click Start, click Run, type compmgmt.msc, and then click OK. Then in the console tree, click Disk Management. All of your disks will be displayed here.[/QUOTE]

When I called the Verizon people, they said that I'm not supposed to have a PPPoE connection.
 
[quote name='trytej']UPDATE: My friend told me to put it in the freezer overnight and I tried that, and now my hard drives up and running again!!! :D

.[/QUOTE]

uhhh.... i really don't think thats a good idea. how many hours was it in the freezer?
 
[quote name='ITDEFX']uhhh.... i really don't think thats a good idea. how many hours was it in the freezer?[/QUOTE]

This is an old techie trick and works in many instances (don't ask me how), but IT DOES NOT FIX THE HD. It just gets it working temporarily, so that you can get the data you need off of it. It will go back to not working as it warms up.
 
[quote name='m6oo']This is an old techie trick and works in many instances (don't ask me how), but IT DOES NOT FIX THE HD. It just gets it working temporarily, so that you can get the data you need off of it. It will go back to not working as it warms up.[/QUOTE]

wouldn't condinsation cause the hard drive problems after it thaws out?
 
[quote name='2poor']that doesnt make much sense, but whatever works.[/QUOTE]


lol well check this out..my brother who is a micanic(sp?-those people who fix your cars) well his shop computer, which is covered with dirt, oil and other goo you find at the shop, well his hard drive was going and since his computer was out of date, they got a brand new one.

Anyways he had to transfer files from the old computer to the new one (customer stuff) and well guess what? the hard drive started clicking and wouldn't boot and so on. My experiance in the past just told me he is screwed unless he gets those files off. There were times it just wouldn't boot and guess what he did? Bang the hell out of the sides of the computer and guess what? it started up long enough for us to transfer all the files to the new computer. :O Now that is something I would have never done :|
 
[quote name='ITDEFX']lol well check this out..my brother who is a micanic(sp?-those people who fix your cars) well his shop computer, which is covered with dirt, oil and other goo you find at the shop, well his hard drive was going and since his computer was out of date, they got a brand new one.

Anyways he had to transfer files from the old computer to the new one (customer stuff) and well guess what? the hard drive started clicking and wouldn't boot and so on. My experiance in the past just told me he is screwed unless he gets those files off. There were times it just wouldn't boot and guess what he did? Bang the hell out of the sides of the computer and guess what? it started up long enough for us to transfer all the files to the new computer. :O Now that is something I would have never done :|[/QUOTE]

i usually try hitting whats not working too. its probably the first thought that goes through my head.
 
[quote name='2poor']i usually try hitting whats not working too. its probably the first thought that goes through my head.[/QUOTE]

still not a good idea...as someone who has built computers for 10 years, I would never bang the shit out the computer.
 
[quote name='ITDEFX']still not a good idea...as someone who has built computers for 10 years, I would never bang the shit out the computer.[/QUOTE]

So, would you call yourself a computer micanic?
 
RE: Freezing bad drives...

Upon further review, it seems to be the consensus that freezing causes contraction of metal parts. An old drive whos parts may have drifted out of alignment tolerance may be brought back into tolerance temporarily by cooling. Condensation is an issue and is why this should be considered a last ditch effort especially in humid climates. With the advent of USB enclosures, it is now possible to keep the drive cool while recovering data by keeping the enclosure in the freezer or packing the enclosure in blue ice.

Note that it has been my experience that drive recovery software does not work as well through USB interfaces compared to having the drive connected directly to the IDE interface.

RE: Hitting bad drives...

This can sometimes temporarily free mechanical parts that have become stuck. This is particularly true of the drive spindle itself, which can cause the drive to fail to spin up. In this case, rather than a random shock, I like to quickly rotate the drive along the same axis that the platters rotate.


Again, these should be considered last ditch efforts to be tried just before throwing the drive away. If you try these methods and they work, recover the data quickly and retire the drive.
 
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