External Hard Drive - Dead! - Need advice

[pooty13901]

Hi everyone,

So I have a WD 80G external drive not working. I plug it in and it whirs, pauses, whirs, pauses...does not boot up. I had this problem with another external and somehow got lucky with it finally booting after turning it on and off several times. This one will not work. I have heard some people recommend ways to get it to boot up at least long enough to get my files off there. I have some video files that cannot be replaced because I recorded over them on my camera....dumb. Anyone have an idea as to how to get the thing to 'click' one time so I can get the info onto storage DVDs?

-Mike H.

[Krispy Kritter]

Try removing the disc from the external case and installing it in your pc directly. It's possible, the failure is just the external case.

[redwudz]

3.5" hard drive? If so, I would take it out of the case and try it directly in a computer as a last chance. Data recovery or diagnostic programs may not work properly through a external interface.

But, assuming a USB drive, does it show in 'Control Panel>Administrative Tools>Computer Management>Storage>Disk Management'? Sometimes Windows loses track of a drive, but it should be listed there.

Also, if USB, try another port, check the power supply and check your 'Device Manager' for any yellow check marks that may relate to the drive. Also make sure the interface works properly with other devices to rule that out.

If you want to try reviving it, put it in a sealed plastic bag and in the freezer for a couple of hours or overnight. Plug it in and immediately try to access it. From there, there are data recovery programs, substitution of the controller board, or expensive commercial data recovery services.

[pooty13901]

I don't think I should attempt that. I'm pretty good with computers but I don't have the competency for that. Thanks for the suggestion though.

-Mike H.

[pooty13901]

My response of:

"I don't think I should attempt that. I'm pretty good with computers but I don't have the competency for that. Thanks for the suggestion though."

was meant for the first reply to my question. I think that's too far over my head.

"But, assuming a USB drive, does it show in 'Control Panel>Administrative Tools>Computer Management>Storage>Disk Management'? Sometimes Windows loses track of a drive, but it should be listed there."

I'm not sure and now the thing is in a plastic ziplock bag in the freezer. I really don't want to try firing it up again until it's "frozen" so as no to damage it further. Maybe an answer to the question is that when plugged in via USB cable, as soon as I plug it in it kicks on wheras if left unplugged from the computer when I plug it in it requires me to hit the on/off button. I don't think this necessarily means the computer is recognizing it.

[Wile_E]

Have a local computer repair shop in your area? How about taking it there to see if they can recover the data? The drive is just a regular 3.5" drive inside the case. They can take it out and try it in another enclosure, since you are not comfortable with doing this. Guess it all depends how much the data is worth to you.

[Krispy Kritter]

Just my opinion, but if you don't have the knowledge/skill to take the drive apart to continue troubleshooting, you shouldn't be doing anything else with the drive.

The "freezing" method sometimes works for HDD's that are having hardware issues (on bare drives only) and only as a last resort. Unfortunately, there is no way of knowing what the actual problem is that you are experiencing. It could be an actual HDD issue, the external case, a bad cable, the interface you are using to connect the drive, or another PC/OS issue. By not isolating the actual problem, you risk further damage. If for example, the actual problem is just a bad controller card in the enclosure, you risk damaging the HDD every time you turn it on/off, especially after freezing it when there is likely to be moisture as the drive warms up.

[pooty13901]

Hi,

Just in case someone else comes here seeking a post with this same problem, I'll mention that freezing the unit seems to have worked. I am in the middle of getting about 100G of video files onto DVD. Thanks for all the help on this one.

-Mike H.