response from Fields Data Recovery

[negul vaser]

here's a response i got from Fields Data Recovery it seems to me they are making the story worse than it is, and it simply doesn't make sense:

It has been determined that access was lost to the data on the drive when the read/write heads was damaged to the point it could no longer read or write any data. The failure of the read/write heads looks to have been a gradual one, and was actually caused by corruption to the firmware modules on the PCB (electronics board). As these firmware modules became corrupted improper commands were being relayed to the read/write heads which over time caused them to read and write bad data, ultimately causing “physical” damage to where they could no longer function properly.

Initial diagnostics using our Data Extractor failed, and we then took the drive into our clean room to introduce new read/write heads. This was successful, but because of the firmware compatibility issues with this specific family of drives we were initially unable to extract any usable data. During the extraction process the engineering staff has had to constantly re-flash the firmware modules that control the movements of the read/write heads and only imaged using one head at a time until each platter surface was scanned. From these individual images we will form a single, composite image from which to extract the data.

This is a pioneering procedure that Fields has developed within the last several months and it is still very difficult and labor intensive, but extremely effective when standard scans may take months to complete. Because of this, the final price for this if you’d like to proceed and have the recovery completed will be $819.00 and the data returned on a set of DVDs. Please note that this is still a no-obligation quotation.

Please let me know if you have any questions, at all.
Regards,

Todd Taylor
Fields Data Recovery
Account Manager

1001 Craig Road
Suite 260
St. Louis, MO 63146

i suspect its BS whats your opinions?
thanx

[CK]

The bit I'm most concerned about is that they are still returning data on DVD!!

Not sure if it's BS or not as we really don't know what the problem is. I guess you must consider that a lot of DR companies will "dumb" down the problems so that the regular customer can grasp some sort of understanding of the problem. However, there's a thin line between dumbing down and bullshitting the customer.

[BlackST]

No comment on diagnose, as I didn't see the drive. About DVDs why not ? When required data fits on few media, why not ?

[negul vaser]

@BlackST @ck forget the actual condition of the HDD, i am asking if what he is writing even makes sense:

1) is it possible for firmware corruption to destroy the read/write head?

2) once he swapped heads why would he have to image a single head a time?

3) doesn't $800 sound to cheap for all that?

[labtech]

I guess one answer that can suit all questions with little debate is "it depends on the type of drive".

[guru]

Pioneering procedure .... My @rse

[Doomer]

Don't forget that you are talking to customer service who's usually very far from technical details

[guru]

@Doomer

[hddguy]

1) is it possible for firmware corruption to destroy the read/write head?

2) once he swapped heads why would he have to image a single head a time?

3) doesn't $800 sound to cheap for all that?

1) Its possible for firmware to be corrupted as a result of a failing head, but not heads failing because of bad fw.
2) Imaging head by head is a common approach to dealing with disks after physical repair
3) $800 is cheap, considering the time resources and parts required according to the report.

For $800 if you get your data back then its a good deal. I agree with Doomer and CK that this is probably customer service with limited technical details in addition to the report being 'dumbed down'.

[northwind]

3) $800 is cheap, considering the time resources and parts required according to the report.

Totally agree.

[BlackST]

@BlackST @ck forget the actual condition of the HDD, i am asking if what he is writing even makes sense:

1) is it possible for firmware corruption to destroy the read/write head?

2) once he swapped heads why would he have to image a single head a time?

3) doesn't $800 sound to cheap for all that?

1 & 2 yes.
3 maybe.

[lcoughey]

The note certainly seems poorly worded. For that price, I'd question whether they actually did change the heads or if this was a case where the PCB has issues that make the heads appear to fail. We recently had a Western Digital project that required us to use two different PCB's and head mapping to complete the mirror...we charged a similar price, if memory serves me correct, but we did not need to change the heads.

So, whether or not the report is correct, $800 is likely not a bad price. If the drive truly does need donor heads, you would likely find yourself getting a higher quote elsewhere. If they are blowing smoke, you might find a place that might do the project cheaper, but it is a pretty big risk. If your data is worth it, I'd recommend going with it.

[scratchy]

Negul ..

What make/model is the hard disk. What were the original symptoms or failure mode .. It is difficult to make a 'remote' assessment at the best of times, but having this information helps

[HDD Spaz]

Don't forget that you are talking to customer service who's usually very far from technical details

A lot of the larger companies have dedicated 'salesmen' who are trying to justify the costs without having technicial knowledge.

£800 is a fair price for a professional in lab recovery service regardless of what the fault is in my opinion. Your paying for expertise to safely extract your data.

[hddguy]

£800 is a fair price for a professional in lab recovery service regardless of what the fault is in my opinion.

3) doesn't $800 sound to cheap for all that?

Its $800, so actually in GBP its just £506.43

[guru]

Give it a month and it will change Hddguy