Can a clicking hard drive be save without a lot of $$$$

[hmunster123]

I have an external Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex hard drive, 1TB. It is recognized in the device manager, says "disk ok, 1600 bad sectors". It clicks and I have tried the following with no luck:

Hooked up via USB after removing from case
Hooked up internally via sata cables
Tried Imaging with EaseUs, wouldn't recognize drive

I refuse to freeze it or as someone mentioned in another forum, "stick it in the oven for a few minutes on low"

I have read about buying another controller board, around $50 I think, not sure if that would work.

I am willing to switch out the platters with another drive, my question is "Are platters in 2.5 drives identical if they are the same memory size"?, I know the other parts are not but wasn't sure about the actual platters.

Any advice much appreciated, I have three years worth of photographs on this drive. Thanks.

[HaQue]

Totally forget switching platters. This is only going to kill the drive. Also the oven or freezer as you said, you are right to not do that.

MUCH better to take to a DR place. The drive doesn't sound like a lost cause yet, and you will save money by taking it to them before you damage it.

I don't think there is a way for you to tell if it is PCB or internal damage, but I lean towards internal issues. Trouble is, if it is internal damage, and possibly if it is PCB, everything you try will take the drive closer to death, including simply powering it up.

Sorry, not what you wanted to hear, but don't lose everything just to save a little

[hmunster123]

Do you think it's worth a $50 gamble to buy a controller board, here's what I found

http://www.hdd-parts.com/

Thanks for help

[lcoughey]

If it is recoverable by you, it is going to be the low end price by most labs like mine who would charge you $350 for that recovery. If you aren't able to or willing to pay that, then I recommend trying to get a full clone of the drive with ddrescue. But, please understand that anything you do moving forward may be the last straw before your "possibly simple" recovery becomes a very complex recovery at a much higher cost.

[fzabkar]

@hmunster123, you would improve your chances for a DIY recovery immensely if you were to disable reallocation and retries, but you would need to do this at the firmware level.

See http://malthus.zapto.org/viewtopic.php?f=83&t=557

[ShaneWard]

To me it sounds like one of the heads on the drive have failed and the drive cannot start. This would be internal stuff and I'm sorry to say, but inside stuff needs to be taken to a data recovery company. Not a corner computer shop. If the drive did not start at all, then it would have been the PCB issue, but since it starts, and clicks then its more likey the heads inside the drive.

Opening the drive will expose the inside to the unfiltered air and make the drive unstale. I assume recovery should not be expensive at this stage.

Was the drive dropped, or knocked around when it was on?

Shane

[Jano952]

There might not be any internal damage, but there is only small chance. I was repairing my damaged PCB and because I used wrong voltage on MCU supply, disk was clicking and problem was fixed by using right voltage

If he wants to do DIY (big chance of loosing data !) terminal log at start would help a lot. And also as fzabkar said, disabling realocation

[hhddrec]

Hi hmunster123;

The only think you can to do is try to clone HDD, as said here sometimes.

No more in your hands, but maybe while you clone drive you will have more problems like bad heads, or other problems.

if more problems apears you can outsource it.

[hmunster123]

Tried cloning with EaseUs, it would not recognize disk

Jano952, can you tell me how to do what you mentioned above? Thanks.

If he wants to do DIY (big chance of loosing data !) terminal log at start would help a lot. And also as fzabkar said, disabling realocation