Another WD5000AAKS drive that dies

[wally]

Hello everyone,

I'm here seek help from some and tell others that one backup isn't enough... two is the minimum to be safe. Now that we got that out of the way, we can talk without anyone troll posting ITYS,s about backups.

I have a WD5000AAKS that has suffered a very brief power surge. I had just installed it in a USB enclosure and pulled the power off within 2 seconds. I understand that the PSU on the PCB is fried and most probably the motor controller chip.

I have read that (my first idea) replacing the PCB myself with the closest match that I can find was not an option on those models.

My questions are:

1. Is there a specific method of getting the data out (specific machinery that the pros will use) since the data on the platters is intact.

2. If it's only that, how much should I expect to pay?

I am willing to ship my disk to someone who has rescued other WD HDDs of the same model rather than get screwed by some charlatan who's business model is The Mushroom Treatment.

Thanks in advance.


Cheers,
Olivier

[BlackST]

Depending on what happened a pro would charge you 500$/€ to more than 2000 (worst case). There are many pros without flashy websites and much more 'charlatans' . My advice : beware of 'no data no fee'.

[wally]

Good point, I was always weary of the "No Data, No Fee" scheme.

I made a career of being paranoid, that's why I'd like have so references before trusting someone with my personal data.

[harddrivespecialist]

I am near Canada and can assist you.

[cryoborgofthevenus]

1. there is (or there are, to be exact)
2. price range will differ based on the problem. I have to agree with BlackST, price range shall be $600 - $2,500

PS : harddrivespecialist is a recommended person among others who are also competent to do this kind of job.

Last edited by cryoborgofthevenus on March 28th, 2009, 12:23, edited 1 time in total.

[BlackST]

Well, someone has to come in contact with data in order to recover it, but confidentiality is a must for real pros.

[hddmania]

Question 1: YES, so far there are 2 major equipment. average $10,000 USD

Question2: Just like BlackST said, you are looking at $500 and up!!! However, here in the US, DR Business is getting into some competition and prices are going down. $249 and up but $249 one usually cost additional $30 - $50 depend on how much data you want on the DVDs.

More and more places (proper equipment and SW) in the US are offering No Data = No Charge. I've seen No Data = No Charge DR companies to popup and disapear a lot but the good ones remain in the business. And a few of the No Data = No Charge DR Companies are working with local computer shops to take crashed drives from the home users for lower price range than the commercial customers. Average price I see is the DR companies charges $250 - $300 to the local computer shops where charges customers $300 - $500 on the physical data recovery. The business models I see is the local computer shop will charge customer the diagnostic fee from $50 and up and the diagnostic fee is the profit for the local computer repair shop. The DR company offer No Data = No Charge offer to the local computer shop, so the shop get profit by accepting the damaged drive and send it to the DR companies without suffering any loss, while DR companies save money from not creating a website or continue to post commercial ad on the paper and some DR companies are picking a cheap industrial park office, rather than an easy access retail locations to save operational costs.

A few I know, have moved from the industrial park offices to their own remodeled basement with a small clean room to further increase their profit with a cellular phone and free e-mail account to run the B2B style business.

Also, I see DR Pro guys are taking side jobs with reduced price, including myself...

Most of the DR companies who actually have the real tools should be able to help recover your data, but if you want the track records and reference, you might want to go with the big-name-brand DR companies who charges $1000 to start.
Other small DR companies in the US that can do the same job for about $299 - $499, but you are buying a peace-of-mind for added cost with the big name companies!!!

If you are going to use the cheap guys, just ask them what tools they use!!!! If they could give you the brand name tools, chances are you'll get your data back without paying $1000. One thing to remember is that DR is not a 100% exact recovery. There are failed recoveries due to some factors. This apply to small and big companies.

If you are looking to protect your data from others to see, you might want to ask your DR guy, if the company/he/she has a professional NDA form, instead of a short note stating they don't disclose your info. The real pro has a lawyer drafted NDAs on their premisses or even on the PDF.

I do hear good things about Harddrivespecialist, too. He does make a few funny comments here and there but he seems to be a confident DR Pro!!!

Seems like lots of AAKS are failing one way or the other.

[BlackST]

The model of 'competition' you're talking about means also open the drive and reject the most difficult case , concentrating on easier recoveries. Eventually, the damage done with unsafe approach lead to impossible or extremely expensive and difficult recovery. Sad but true.

[hddmania]

Yep! I got a few drives that were opened by the cheap B2B DR guys and they were rejected as unrecoverable. Clients got their data but ended up paying a stiff extra premium for bringing in the opened drives.

B2B model seems to be working on the retired pros (planning to work on reduced number of cases and a bit of slow turn around) and some side job guys. Specially with the B2B model with a decent size computer shops under the contract since they have lots of old used drives for the donor free of charge to the DR guys.

So far I'm watching that B2B model to see if it will last. When it seems to be functional, I may go into that on my own more aggressively rather than just to help out old buddies on their request.

[BlackST]

It depends on your expectations, how big you are, expenses vs. income ratio etc. etc. If your target is QUALITY SERVICE you'll never loose. I prefer to reject a job having no probability of income but certaincy of NO EXPENSES AND TROUBLES instead of accepting and blaming myself later ...