External Hard Drive Woe's
#1
Posted 05 October 2008 - 10:36 PM
- It stops the clicking when the computer is off and starts up again when the computer is turned on again
- Booting up the computer with the external HD on will drastically slow down the boot up speed of the computer
- When it finally stops clicking and I see it listed in my computer and I click it, I get an error called "I/O Device Error" and it says the drive is not accessible
Please tell me I can get this drive up and running. I've got a lot of important stuff on it.
#2
Posted 06 October 2008 - 05:41 AM
#3
Posted 06 October 2008 - 07:27 AM
I have one that's like that...they call it the click of death. I think you are probably screwed. I couldn't get mine to work and I tried everything.
Shit, I have stuff on there that's really important to me. Is there any way to salvage the information on it?
I didn't physically damage it at all, I never touched the thing. All I did was have an interruption in that big file transfer, how the hell could that ruin a HD?
#4
Posted 06 October 2008 - 09:54 AM
With old IBM drives when they started dying you used to be able to get them really cold (e.g. put them in the freezer for a few hours) and that might get you a few minutes out of them. Dunno if that still works or not.
#5
Posted 06 October 2008 - 09:57 AM
#6
Posted 06 October 2008 - 11:04 AM
Here's the thing. I have some "stuff" on the HD that I wouldnt exactly want other people seeing (not porn!). There's no program or something I can run to try and recover some of the data? The stuff I was transferring I'm not concerned about, I can get that again if I have to. It's other stuff that I'd really like to get back.
What I don't understand is that my fathers computer, which is 10 years old, has been using the same little 10gb HD for all those yearrs and it hasent died. Maybe because I was always putting stuff on and off mine a lot, it did get used constantly over the last 2 years.
So how do these data recovery services work? Maybe my schools IT department can fix it, it's worth a shot I suppose.
#7
Posted 06 October 2008 - 11:43 AM
If the drive is working they can try and connect to it over a secure VPN connection and recover the data. I have seen them do magic with the drives in our Seagate Santa Clara facility.
#8
Posted 06 October 2008 - 01:29 PM
http://services.seag...om/contact.aspx
If the drive is working they can try and connect to it over a secure VPN connection and recover the data. I have seen them do magic with the drives in our Seagate Santa Clara facility.
Thanks Bluedog. Those services seem to be very expensive though.
I've been reading about various fixes you can do, like freezing it such as catfish mentioned as well as replacing the board on the HD. Even if I can squeeze out just a few minutes or a few files that would be great.
I'm also not above taking the hard drive apart and replacing a certain defective part if that's the case.
#9
Posted 07 October 2008 - 11:23 PM
If I would be able to squeeze a few minutes out of the HD after it is frozen, why not put it in the freezer for a few hours and then use it while it is in the freezer. This is so frustrating. I'm willing to sacrifice the HD if I can get all the things that are important to me off of it before it dies.
Any idea's?
#10
Posted 08 October 2008 - 10:14 AM
http://www.seagate.c...000dd04090aRCRD
#11
Posted 08 October 2008 - 10:54 AM
One of the things the guys in Diagnostics said was to try switching to a different computer or a different USB port. Drive clicking says it isn't getting enough power.
http://www.seagate.c...000dd04090aRCRD
Power, eh? It's external, so it's not running off my computers PSU. I will try using a different cable though as it's using firewire so I'll try USB. Then I'll move it to another computer if that doesn't work.If that doesnt work I can always take it out of the housing and then hook it up inside the computer, I just hope I have another SATA cable.
Thanks for the help Bluedog, I have a long weeked coming up so I'll definately have a chance to play around with this.
#12
Posted 08 October 2008 - 12:18 PM
http://www.seagate.c...000f5ee0a0aRCRD
That will test the hardware.
#13
Posted 08 October 2008 - 06:53 PM
One other thing to try is the diagnostic "SeaTools"
http://www.seagate.c...000f5ee0a0aRCRD
That will test the hardware.
good suggestion, if it is a SMART capable drive SeaTools will tell you if it is reporting any errors.
#14
Posted 12 October 2008 - 12:09 AM
I left it in the freezer for the night, I'll let you know if that works and I'm able to salvage some of the data.
EDIT: Nope, didn't work. However, It didn't start clicking for a few minutes after I turned it on, but the computer wouldnt regonize it anyway.
#15
Posted 12 October 2008 - 04:54 PM
#16
Posted 12 October 2008 - 08:13 PM
Does the external have a power cord you can plug it in with? I know a lot of the newer seagate models come with external power supplies. The drive inside that case is indeed a standard hard drive. It will void the warranty to take it apart, but if you are at wits end, that may be the best choice. Take it apart and toss it into your computer case. If it still works, you can always buy a external HD enclosure after market for a few bucks and build your own. I would make sure it works before dropping the cash on it. I agree is sounds like it isn't getting enough power. My western digital will do that when I run it on my car stereo. The USB header coming off the stereo isn't a high powered USB jack and it will start clicking occasionally.
Thank you spooky. I was actually waiting for you to chirp in, lol, your advice is always so on the mark.
I am pretty much at wits end. It's just starting to sink in how much I really lost in this little mishap. I frooze it overnight and not much happened. It does indeed have an external power cord, although I can't figure out why the thing would start having problems all of a sudden when transferring a 30gb file unless it was a dead HD. Two years of use too.
I did attempt to take the case apart after I wasn't able to get it back up and running. However, it needs a special screwdriver I don't have (I tried my whole Torx set). I found these instructions online, the external HD in the pictures looks to be of the same model as mine, although I can't tell it's size (gb)
http://www.instructa...rnal-Harddrive/
#17
Posted 12 October 2008 - 09:25 PM
#18
Posted 12 October 2008 - 09:29 PM
I put this question forward to some folks who are tech gurus. Maybe they will come up with something. Doing a little research found that controllers inside the case can go bad. Did it work when you plugged the USB in? Sometimes it is the Firewire controller that goes bad. With luck just putting it in your case will solve your problem.
I tried USB, that did no good. I fully intend on getting it out of the enclosing and putting it in the computer/ I'm desperate at this point : (
#19
Posted 13 October 2008 - 08:03 PM
EDIT: Hang on! I got the new hardware found wizard, I'm rebooting now to complete the setup. I saw the drive in "My Computer" too. God I hope this works.
EDIT2: Nope, didn't work Should I try freezing it again but instead wire it through my case? Any other options at this point? Maybe take the HD apart and replace something?
#20
Posted 13 October 2008 - 08:57 PM
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