PC won't start with Seagate HDD connected

[Greaper68]

Hi all,

Friend connected her laptop power supply to her Maxtor External HDD, end result HDD no longer works. I removed it from it's case and put it in as a slave in my PC to try & retrieve the data, once the HDD is connected the PC won't start at all, as soon as it's disconnected PC starts fine. I have been doing some reading of these forums and thinking it may me just the TVS if it indeed has one. No idea what it looks like so am posting a pic to see if someone can point it out for me so I can remove it, not interested in keeping the drive just want the data off it if possible.

The HDD inside the enclosure was a Seagate Barracuda 7200.10, 500GB

S/N - 50G0Q4S0
ST3500630A
Firmware - 3.AAE

Thanks in advance...

Attachments

[N.C.]

Hi,

You need to remove the 2 big 2 pin component under the FOXCONN line, next to the screw of the top right corner.

If the drive does strange sound or does too much heat in the "smooth" labeled part, than shut down the power immediately, and seek for professional help.

This is all what you can do, but this is not 100% safe, because you can have damaged preamp as well wich can erase the magnetic domains from the surface, or damaged pcb wich can do the same thing or burn out the good preamp and so on....

If you want to be 100% sure, seek for pro now.

results-the-yourself-solutions-t11912.html

Best Regards,
Janos

[Greaper68]

Hi Janos,

Thanks for the quick reply. I will let her know the options, me thinks a pro can have a look at it...but I'm not the one paying the bill so we'll see how important the data is & what she decides

Cheers

Darren

[Greaper68]

Hi Janos,

Just a follow up "Thank You"

Removed the offending TVS (after testing them both with a multimeter) and voila once plugged in the PC started fine,copied all the data as required...I had one very happy friend thanks to you.

Cheers mate!

[N.C.]

[Greaper68]

OK....

Now if I wanted to replace the damaged TVS with a new one, where do I get one from and is it just a matter of unsoldering the leftovers of the old one & replacing it with the new one?

[PeteD]

Hi,

I have a very similar unit to this, the board looks identical in layout. It's suffering tha same issue, as soon as the power cable is connected to the disk, the PC refuses to power on (power LED flashes). I can't see any damage to the TVS, is it possible it's broken without visible evidence?

The unit is a 500GB Barracuda
ST3500630A
9BJ046-500
F/W 3.AAC
Date Code 06522
Site Code AMK

The disk is a neighbours, I have no history of what caused the disk to stop

thanks

[CK]

Yes, it can be damaged without appearing so visually.

If you have a multimeter, you can test the component.

[PeteD]

Yes, it can be damaged without appearing so visually.

If you have a multimeter, you can test the component.

Hi CK, thanks for the quick response.

I don't have one, but I'm sure I can find someone who does. What do they need to set their machine to in order to check it? and what should the readings be roughly ?

thanks again

Pete

[CK]

Can't remember the values off the top of my head. You can pick one up cheaply somewhere like Maplin. If you have a similar drive, you can check the values on it.

You can always just remove the TVS, it won't cause any short-term issues. If your drive then powers up, copy the data and replace the drive.

[PeteD]

Thanks for the help, removed both TVS units, it was the larger of the two at fault although neither appeared damaged. The drive now powers up and doesn't sound damaged, although it now has no voltage protection and needs replacing on that basis alone.

Thanks again.

[DrFaustus]

JUst want to say thanks for this info, i had the same problem with a Samsung external Terabyte Drive. pulled the 2 TVS bam the drive booted right up,... now would these chips be also the solution for other cases (HDD causes System not to power up) with other drives....?

oh yeah My Friend DR. CHUD (of The Misfits & Gorgeous Frankenstein will be very pleased)

[rameez]

Most of the times in this problem its usually the TVS .

[MadOCer]

JUst want to say thanks for this info, i had the same problem with a Samsung external Terabyte Drive. pulled the 2 TVS bam the drive booted right up,... now would these chips be also the solution for other cases (HDD causes System not to power up) with other drives....?

oh yeah My Friend DR. CHUD (of The Misfits & Gorgeous Frankenstein will be very pleased)

One can't say for sure if the TVS diodes always are the only problem. But, if one of them is shorted to ground, they are the reason for the computer not starting. That one is for sure.
If this wasn't the case, the power supply's short circuit protection wouldn't work. And that would be scary to say the least.

[DrFaustus]

If this wasn't the case, the power supply's short circuit protection wouldn't work. And that would be scary to say the least.

Very true, (scary in deed) i guess it doesn't hurt to check the diodes with the meter 1st

[puckman]

I measured the two TVS diodes on my hdd's PCB with a multimeter on Diode setting. Right TVS (closest to screw hole) is 627 mV and other is 481 mV. The second seemed a little low but it's close enough to the cross-over threshold and I would considered it a good TVS.

My Seagate ST3750330AS is bricked right now - not even spinning up. Unsuccessfully tried the solutions for BSY state and LBA 0 (bad firmware SD15???) B4 I came here. I was considering the solution in this thread: taking out the TVS's to get it going. But looks like i should hold off and check some other values around this PCB. Did a search for similiar PCB and so far turned up nada.

Anybody have suggestions for other measurements? My untrained eye can't spot any anomalies on the PCB to raise my suspicions. Only other possible cause outside a bad PCB component is a stuck spindle and tif this is the case I am in the water for a DIY.

[fzabkar]

If it doesn't spin up, then it isn't a firmware issue.

If the motor is seized, you should be able to hear or feel some slight vibration or buzzing.

Can you upload a detailed photo of the PCB?

[puckman]

Hey fzabkar! Thanks for your reply. I've been reading quite a few (hundreds) of your posts in the past week.
Yes you're right it's not a firmware issue...right now. Just no power. Spindle is quiet but doesn't mean it is not seized. Once I can power up the the hdd, I think I will be facing a firmware issue. It's what started all fo this for me.

I will upload photos in next 48 hours. Glad you looked in on my post - I've a good go-to person to help me out. Should I just start a new thread in case this becomes a seperate issue? Don't want a long twisted thread do we? Otherwise I will post and upload here.

BTW, I spent a few hours looking for a PCB for my drive with P/N 9XB156-303 just in case; turned up nothing. Will these be scarce as hen's teeth? In other words, snatched up in the last 14 months of Seagate's fiasco. Was willing to do some soldering after some practice to move EEPROM from patient to donor. We'll see.

[fzabkar]

I'm not a DR guy, just an interested observer. My DR days ended 20 years ago.

I'd search for PCBs using the model number of the drive rather than the part number. IIUC, an EEPROM swap should circumvent any firmware differences. No doubt there are other things to look for, but that's something for the specialists to tell you.

As for starting a new thread, I think that may be a good idea. Hijacking someone's thread is usually frowned upon, although I don't mind when it happens to me.

[puscas1983]

what happens if i don't replace the tvs on my hard-disk?
i had a similar problem with my 759 gb seagate hdd, i removed the tvs but i can't find new ones.
thanks in advance