Recovering data from a dead hard drive

[cuti7399]

My IBM hard drive died suddenly Can someone show me how to recover the data from there? Thanks in advance
Drive is not recognized in bios....

 

[Jeff7]

If it's the click of death, the main methods that I know of are:
- trash the drive
- send it in for data recovery
- keep it, in the hopes that some day, someone will discover a way of forcing a certain firmware flash, which might possibly have a chance of making the drive accessible

 

[cuti7399]

any other way. data recovery cost $700-$2300

 

[RKS]

put the drive in the freezer for a while (in a freezer bag)

use getdataback

 

[ssvegeta1010]

Try the freezer trick, then QUCIKLY use a data recovery program. Or copy the data to something else while booted in Knoppix, etc.

 

[cuti7399]

thanks for the tip guys
any other way

 

[nebula]

If it's not recognized in the BIOS, you're choices are few.

 

[birdpup]

I second the motion for runtime.org's GetDataBack. This utility has worked for me multiple times.

 

[cuti7399]

can someone let me borrow getdataback?

 

[nebula]

Originally posted by: cuti7399
can someone let me borrow getdataback?

I believe you can use the demo version to see if it can even see anything. You may have to do the bootable CD option, but since the bios can't see it, good luck.

 

[RBBRMADE]

As long as the drive still spins, Knoppix is usually the way to go.
The biggest problem is having to know a little Linux to actually get the data.
Download and burn a knoppix CD. After booting with it, see if the files can be seen thru the knoppix file viewer (I forget what it is called).
If you can see them, post back and I am sure someone can then tell you how to retrieve them.

 

[nweaver]

Restore from your backup

If you don't have one, I'll bet you will next time.

 

[birdpup]

Originally posted by: RBBRMADE
As long as the drive still spins, Knoppix is usually the way to go.

I have tried this in the past and more than once, when a drive is experiencing problems related to failure, Knoppix was unable to recognize the drive when GetDataBack was able to recognize the drive. I believe recovery programs may possess some advantage towards drive recognition that linux (at least that RedHat hardware detection process Knoppix relies on) does not have. However, a FreeBSD liveCd may help in this situation. I have not attempted recognizing a failing drive with a FreeBSD liveCD yet.

 

[cuti7399]

Where can I get/try the getdataback software?

 

[boomdawg]

GDB doesn't recognize a drive in the normal sense. It looks at bits and that's all it really cares about. It recognizes some patterns of bits like partition tables (even deleted ones) and can read file formats and where files start and stop but other than that GDB doesn't read data as most people think of it.

Sorry if I missed it but if you can't see your drive in the BIOS or Disk Management in Windows XP GDB won't be an option. If your drive is clicking then you're experiencing physical damage with each click and you better find a "sure fire" way of getting data, not just test if data can be read.

Computer repair shops are often set up to pull data from bad drives. Not the clean room environment thing wher eyou disassemble and pull the plates but if your drive spins and the BIOS sees it a decent shop should be able to pull data. My shop charges typically 100-200 for it. Reason being we only need it to work one time and that one time is sometimes the 17th try.

 

[RKS]

Originally posted by: cuti7399
Where can I get/try the getdataback software?

i have a link in my post a few message prior.

 

[engineereeyore]

There is an awesome little disc called mini-PE. It's almost the windows version of Knoppix, but not quite. It's kind of a windows-hacker tool, but is very useful and full of very good programs. It allows you to do everything from editing your registry, changing passwords, and even, recovering data (and yes, getdataback is included, among other things). You boot off the cd and it "emulates" the os found on the system, which allows you to make all the previously listed changes/actions when the operating system isn't even booted. However, the key, as stated previously, is for your computer to recognize the hard drive. If it doesn't see it, chances are you just lost the drive, which sucks royally. So if you're able to get the computer to see the drive, let us know and I'll let you know where you can get the wonderful mini-PE.

 

[cuti7399]

can I buy another same model and change all of the electronics components, keeping the discs? I work in a cleanroom enviroment

 

[Stonesoldier]

I got the click of death on a 30 gig WD drive a few months ago
didnt see it in bios
tried swaping out the boards to see if it would work
tried the freezer trick
didnt try the hammer or drop thing since it spun up

but no luck

what is the cause of the "click of death"???
i understand what the clicking is (heads banging back n forth across platters )
but what causes it ? electrical or mechanical?
and how do u retrieve the data , even if you had access to a clean room?

 

[cuti7399]

that's probably why it cost so much to retrieve data