Hello.I have this hard disk Samsung Spinpoint F1 HD103U,which doesn't work anymore.When i connect it to the pc,it makes a noise pretty much alike as the one in the first play here http://datacent.com/datarecovery/hdd/samsung which indicates i need to replace heads.
If i connect it before booting the pc up , i can't even get to the boot screen.Like it doesn't boot at all.Any ideas what to check/do?

How many F1 have you successfully recovered?

Its under warranty till 2011-05

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Buy your friends Toshiba\Hitachi and your enemies Seagate.

So the idea is that you go into a DR company so they can make a proper diagnosis.

If you want to DIY, the advice is to buy a whole lot of HD103UJ, because you'll kill all of them.

Yes i know that is a difficult process and i have zero experience.But i also have no other choise.I do want the data.And i can't give it to a recovery company for many reasons.Not just for the money.Any link you could provide me with details of what should i do to lessen the possibility of screwing up would be really appreciated!!!

If it's just not for the money, I really don't understand why can't you take it to DR company, that could make a proper diagnosis and give you a real idea of what's wrong.

It's impossible to make a step by step course on how to swap heads. You want to learn in 1h what some people took months and years to learn.

It's so simple : buy a clean room equipment, gloves, protective gear, all the tools needed for safely removing the heads without damaging the rest, then you need a safe HW imager tool to get the data out of the drive (2000 to 5000 EUR), buy know how from experts because of course you won't find it neither the manufacturer is going to help you. At this point you need to know what to do : sacrifice some other HD103 to see how it is assembled, then you are done.
Naturally, if the problem was not the heads, you need some other equipment like, let's say, PC3000 (10'000 EUR will be sufficient for tool and support fee).
Of course it is not guaranteed to work (IMO that precious data will be killed) but this is what you asked for.

P.S. a bad move and the drive + data are screwed. Then it multiplies the amout of EUR / $ needed for a pro recovery by a factor of 2-3 to 10x . You had enough info and warning.

http://hddguru.com/articles/2006.02.17- ... k-Q-and-A/


GL , although i am afraid the chances are close to 0 =(

I agree, chances are low. And the link above is outdated and does not apply to modern or high density cases...