Replacing a Hard drive Controller

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trinislacker

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Jun 10, 2007
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i have two hard drives i bought together a while ago but i overloaded my power supply and damage the controller.( i am assuming thats the only thing damaged on the hard drive). is it possible to simply just swap controllers to get my information? i am fairly certain that both drives have identical firmware....both hard drives have different partition sizes....i don't think partition information is stored there though.

some help would be appreciated on past experiences before i attempt this...wouldn't want to lose both drives
 

Modelworks

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Feb 22, 2007
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Sorry will not work for new drive models. If the drives are 500GB or larger you can forget it. Also applies to some 320GB models.
They store critical information on the platters that are unique to the drive controller board. On boot the micro on the board will look for that information on the platters to see if it matches the CRC of the data it has in its nvram. If it doesn't the drive controller halts doing anything more. It is possible to desolder the nvram from the old controller onto a new controller board if they both match exactly. The problem is that some newer boards place the nvram inside the drive controller processor, that is usually a 128 pin + chip. Not something most diy people can do.



Pic showing what the chips usually look like.
http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/7238/drive.jpg

If there is no nvram , then it is inside the master controller.
 

Paperdoc

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Aug 17, 2006
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As a rule of thumb, maybe - what you describe sounds hopeful. I understand it usually is possible these days to remove the printed circuit controller board from a hard drive and replace it. The trick is the replacement MUST be virtually the same as the original. So how do you know? Check these:
1. Drive manufacturer and model the same? Examine the drive case and its PC board for a Version Number beyond the Model No. Serial Number will not match, of course.
2. If all those numbers match, compare the two PC boards (known good vs. suspected bad). Make sure components appear identical. Any printed markings on the boards should match, if at all possible.
3. Pay special attention to any labels that appear to specify a Firmware Version in the board's BIOS chip.
If it all matches, chances are good a board transplant can work, enabling you to copy the data off the "bad" drive, then switch the good PC board back to its original host drive. Replace the one with the bad PC board, unless you can find another identical board to replace it.
 

Russwinters

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Jul 31, 2009
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Modelworks is 95% correct in this topic.

I am a DR engineer; This is the type of thing I deal with on a daily basis.


Hitachi drives are the only drives that utilize NVRAM

All other drives use EEPROM (Electronically erasable programmable read only memory)

this critical information he speaks of are called "Adaptives"

basically (without going into the insane technical explanation) Every hard drive is like a "fingerprint". No one hard drive is alike. Even two hard drives that are created literally one after the other are 100% different. It is because of this that these boot adaptives exist. They are unique to that hard drive.

These adaptives are stored in two places (certain things can vary depending on manufacturer, family, model, etc)

1) In the EEPROM and/or NVRAM
2) On the platters in the "Service Area" also sometimes called "Negative tracks"




Now, to help you with your issue more directly. Does the drive not power on at all now? Does it make strange noises? IE Clicking, knocking?

 

Modelworks

Lifer
Feb 22, 2007
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Welcome to AT forums.
There are a lot of HD questions that get asked so someone in the business of DR could help users quite a bit. This isn't my area of expertise, I know more about embedded stuff than I do HD. I learned about the data stored in the memory when I went to swap a drive a year ago and it wouldn't work like before.
 

trinislacker

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Jun 10, 2007
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The drives are 500gb WD Blue . On the controller you could physically see a burnt out IC thats why i assume thats the problem, every time i power up the drive it "smokes"...probably due to the sponge beneath the pcb.
 

Russwinters

Senior member
Jul 31, 2009
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Ah yes, I am guessing that the burnt chip is probably the "Smooth" chip.

Correct me if I am wrong.


If so, this is the VCM/Spindle drive for the HDD. It fails a lot on WD drives. The problem is if this chip has failed then there could be a more serious issue with the drive. Sometimes this chip will fail when the spindle bearings become stiff (debris inside) or if it becomes stuck all togather, then this IC can cook very badly. Another case is an overvoltage, but this is less likely because there is power protection on the drives against that type of failure (Although the protection sometimes fails to do it's job correctly)


Could you post a picture? If not, just link a pic from imageshack or something so I can take a look at the board for you.
 

Shadow Conception

Golden Member
Mar 19, 2006
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Try the HDD freezer trick. Helped me recover around 100GB of important data off my failing 500GB HDD. Just make sure you keep the HDD cool during the backup as well (icepacks).
 

Russwinters

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Jul 31, 2009
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DO NOT, put your HDD in a freezer.


The fact that you go data off of your drive is likely attributed to a combination of luck and coincedence.


a freezer will create condensation on the disk surface for one (that isn't the serious problem)


the more serious problem is that you cannot regulate the temperature in an average freezer, so the temperature will go too low and cause the platters to sustain damage.



Having said that, cooling the drive does work to temporarily relieve certain failures.

A failed controller is not one of them. The only case where a freezer, or cooling the controller has helped was with a very specific series of fujitsu drive (MPG) a number of years ago had a problem with overheating MCU (controller) in which case this may help, but a much easier method was creating a make shift heatsink for the chip instead of risking damage in the freezer.



Some WD failures benefit from cooling as well, weak headstacks in WD can be remedied with cooling, but not in a "freezer" per say.


WD also have rare cases where the MCU can overheat (not on the levels that those fujitsu's did, but they do overheat) and this can be remedied by cooling the MCU.
 

lakedude

Platinum Member
Mar 14, 2009
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Yeah I know this is an old thread but it was the closest thing I could find without starting a new thread.

MODS if it is better to just start a new thread please let me know.

I've got a 2TB WD green drive with a burned SMOOTH controler. WD sent a completely different 2.5TB drive as a replacement (very fast, cross shipped).

I'm wanting the data from the old drive so I removed the entire circuit board and sent it to Canada to HDD-Parts. For $50 they say they will give me workng board with the "fingerprint" copied from the old board.

I recently added a 4 pin Molex to SATA power adapter to power the drive. Do you think the adapter has anything to do with the burned SMOOTH conroler? Does the fact that the drive is "green" make life harder for the SMOOTH controler? Why is the SMOOTH controler not heat sinked?

Russwinters I'd love to hear your opinions!
 

C1

Platinum Member
Feb 21, 2008
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Using the molex to sata adapter is of no consequence (assuming a decent quality part is used).

The issue appears to be that WD has a reliability issue with its smooth controller chip on certain HDD variants. If heat is the issue, then customizing a fan to help remove heat (along with even possibly adding a heat sink) in all likelihood should help. However, I would only trust such a drive after thoroughly stress testing the unit with the added heat dissipating kluge.
 

bryanl

Golden Member
Oct 15, 2006
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Motor/servo driver chips, such as the Smooth chip, are known to burn out, but green drives are easier on them due to the slower motor speed.

Russwinters: when you say not all NVRAM is EEPROM, do you mean magnetic NVRAM (or even dye polymer) is already being used for some HDD electronics?
 

lakedude

Platinum Member
Mar 14, 2009
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I sent the package to Canada a week ago Monday. So far the package has only managed to go south to Miami.

Is there something special in Miami (like customs) or is this a screw-up?
 
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