MDL: WD400BB-53CAA0
DATE: 13 NOV 2001
DCM: HSEHNQ2AH
S/N: WMA8H1230258
ADDITIONAL PARAMETERS: LBA 78165360
PCB: 2060-001092-006 REV A

BIOS DETECT? YES

PROBLEM:

The HDD cannot be recognized/accessed/read by Windows XP.
I've tried reading the MBR with Norton Ghost 9.0's MBR READ utility throught NG 9.0's boot CD but NG does not even detect the drive.

What do you think the problem is? Are there other tools I could use to further diagnoze the problem?
I would replace the PCB, but before I do that, could you advise of which PCBs are compatible with my drive?

Thank you!

Hi,

What does MHDD scan show?

pepe

Hi, pepe

I apologize for not supplying this information earlier. Here's the output from MHDD (screenshot LOG):

[PRE]
50 ERR INDX CORR DREQ DRSC WRFT DRDY BUSY AMNF T0NF ABRT IDNF UNCR BBK 00
[WDC WD400BB-53CAA0 ] [ 78,165,360] [ ] [ ]


Primary channel enabled. To disable see MHDD.CFG
Autodetect disabled. To enable see MHDD.CFG

To get help press <F1> or type "HELP"

MHDD>cx
Init drive: Done
Seek&Read Test.
Press <ESC> to finish...
Start: 15:02:44
Average Access Time:

Read error

Maximum: 0.00
ERROR: Seek Test FAILED!
Stopping drive...
Done: 15:02:45


| To get new version visit http://mhdd.com | 15:02:50
[/PRE]

Hi,

I meant SCAN command.

pepe

I opened the drive's lid and could not see any visible damage (heads, platters, preamp, etc.). There's also no visible damage on the PCB's components, too.
While the drive is open, though, BIOS would not even detect it correctly. It would detect it as a 8GB HDD, instead of a 40GB (?!?!).
I closed the drive's lid and now BIOS detects it correctly as a 40GB HDD.

This is what I get while the drive is open (holding the head spindle screw with a screw-driver) in MHDD when I type "I":

50 ERR INDX CORR DREQ DRSC WRFT DRDY BUSY AMNF T0NF ABRT IDNF UNCR BBK 00
[WDC WD400BB-53CAA0 ] [ 0] [ ] [ ]
MHDD>i
WDC WD400BB-53CAA0 LBA:0
SN:WD-WMA8H1230258 FW:16.06V16 CACHE:2048KB Size = 0MB

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This device does not
support LBA mode. MHDD will NOT work with this device.

To see enhanced information, use command EID <SHIFT+F2>
Init drive: Done

I put the HDD's lid back on and now MHDD (and BIOS) detects it correctly and gives me the following after I do SCAN (I stopped it early):

[PRE]
51 ERR INDX CORR DREQ DRSC WRFT DRDY BUSY AMNF T0NF ABRT IDNF UNCR BBK 10
[WDC WD400BB-53CAA0 ] [ 78,165,360] [ 4,045,065] [ EST: 19:16 ]
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS ACT [ 38131 kb/s]
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS ° <3ms :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS ± <10ms :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS ² <50ms :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Û <150ms:
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Û <500ms:
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Û >500ms:
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS ? TIME :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS x UNC :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS ! ABRT :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS S IDNF : 15863
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS A AMNF :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS 0 T0NF :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS * BBK :
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS [ 5.2% ] [ 5.2% ]
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Error: 4043535
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Error: 4043790
SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS Error: 4044045
Error: 4044300
Last scanned LBA: 4045319 Error: 4044555


| MHDD 4.6 (c) Dmitry Postrigan | FREEWARE | 17:37:01
[/PRE]




I am thinking it is a failing PCB (firmware?).
Do you know which WD PCB's would work for this drive, and how to flash the firmware for this drive's specs?

Thanks for your reples!

Hello,

I think it is most probably a FW issue, more specifically a translator failure.
I'm afraid there is nothing to do with that with free software.
PCB swap will not solve it either.

regards,
pepe

Hi, pepe,

What software/hardware could I buy to fix that issue? I need to salvage the data on the HDD.

Thanks!

Sending drive to datarecovery company more cheap then buy good hardware/software for fix such problems.

Also, after having such equipment first drives you want to repair in big danger, because you don't have experience to use this equipment.

For example: before you open drive lid - your situation will be from easy to moderate case in 95% situation, now it can be from moderate to very bad. By your own hand you twice datarecovery cost, and maybe made data unrecoverable.

_________________
best regards, vi http://www.scspb.ru/pchdd/ http://pchdd.narod.ru

Hi dylgigt,

Long time ago some expert wrote about heart surgery for a head-ache.

Does that mean there there's an easy solution to my problem, that I can't figure out?
Please, any information would be helpful.

Thank you!

u need to chk the firmware strucrture of the drive . and why did u open the drive u lost it 90%

I opened it, because I did not hear it click or make any head noises initially. I wanted to make sure that the pre-amps on the heads are nor burnt up. The drive is fine. I opened it in a close to "clean-room" conditions. I've opened HDDs before, and they've worked fine afterwards.
The problem is that I can't figure out how to read/write to the firmware without having to buy some cosmically expensive equipment (ex: PC3000).
PC3000 must be sending some read/write ATA Western Digital proprietary commands to the FW modules, if it only interfaces via the 80-pin ATA cable (or the SATA cable), so I assume that if you know those commands, you can write your own program that sends read/write ATA commands to the WD's FW modules w/o any additional hardware equipment.
But it seems that either no one here knows how to do that, or perhaps it cannot be done for some magic reason.

Hello,

U are right in your thinking. And I am sure some of us know such commands, but U have to understand that nobody will want to disclose such things on an open forum.
People who develop utilities to make it possible to repair malfunctions like this work hard to figure out things and it would be too easy to get such info on a forum.
BTW with this info it is still not easy to write the prog and find the exact good solution for your problem.
If U want to solve it yourself, it will probably cost more time and efforts than paying a DR service, if even U could succeede.
DR is not a work U learn on one drive, there are too many kinds of defects.
Sorry, my only solution is still a professional service.

regards,
pepe

u can fix this hdd using a free software using internal formatting in hdd repair 1.1

Hi ,
Rameez ,You Always Say that Use HDD Repair Ver 1.1 ,I Would Say That Lets All So Called Wise People Get Together In This Forum And Share Firmware,Manuals And Other Literature For this Software ,BTW Pep And Others Who Wrote This Software In The First Place And What About More Info On this Too.

BTW dylgiqt This HAs To Be a Firmware Issue ,Can This Be Solved By Just Flashing Or Something More Has To Be Done On That Later On Any Idea's Pro's [ Till My New PCI-300- Does Not Arrieve ]

_________________
Regards
Amarbir S Dhillon , Chandigarh Data Recovery Labs [India]
Logical,Semi Physical And Physical Data Recovery
Website-> http://www.chandigarhdatarecovery.com

u will fux this data using a free software using internal formatting in hdd repair 1.1

the hdd will be fixed but the data will be gone
if u need the data use pc3k

Well, repair drives / datarecovery is my job, so i write software for WD, Maxtor, IBM and etc.

But we have only one little trouble - if i post such software for free - i lost my job and many users lost they data completely.

Who win in such situation?

_________________
best regards, vi http://www.scspb.ru/pchdd/ http://pchdd.narod.ru

Hi Vi,
You Write Software For HDD ,what Have You Made Till Now ? .Any Idea About the Author For HDD Repair Ver 1.1

_________________
Regards
Amarbir S Dhillon , Chandigarh Data Recovery Labs [India]
Logical,Semi Physical And Physical Data Recovery
Website-> http://www.chandigarhdatarecovery.com

no, the hdd will be fuxed as well.