If ANYONE can help it will be a miracle. So my Dell 1210 hard drive crashed because well....it sucks. So I replaced the drive with another one that they sent me and now I am trying to recover all the files I had on the old drive. Only problem is that no one I have taken it to even knows how to retrieve data off this kind of drive. I took it to Frys, Best Buy, and a couple other places but no one can help. Stupid Dell and Samsung are completely useless for this operation and I don't want to pay a lot to get my stuff back since I have only had the computer for about 3 months. If you can just tell me the adapters I require I can probably figure the rest out myself. THANKS FOR ANY HELP POSSIBLE! - J1mbr0 (Attached is a picture of the drive. Sorry it is such crude photo but it is the best I can do right now.)

hi,
need adapter for it? i have for sell. please feel free to contact me by email or MSN. BTW. what's the problem with it? thanks.

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data recovery service[/b]

Yes I do need an adapter for it. I don't know exactly what happened but the computer kept locking up with no fix except to reboot. Then the other day I go and turn it on when the computer says 'No Operating System Found'. So they just sent me a replacement drive. I have to send this one back within 10 days or they'll charge me. I am never buying another Dell again.

The problem is not the adapter ... Even with it if the drive itself is failing you need much more to get data. You had a replacement drive and their responsibility ends, they can't be blamed for not giving back you data you didn't backup. You could simply buy new hdd and send the drive for recovery to a serious DR company, if data was important. It's not an unknown or uncommon drive. I know, it's going to cost, but that's life...

While I can understand that it isn't exactly their responsibility to have me backup my data, I do find it extremely annoying that I had called them several times to seek out a way to fix the original problem(the locking up) and they walked me through steps to 'fix' it by reformatting my computer which at the time I had backed up that info but here I am less than 1 month later with a crappy drive that failed and no way to retrieve the data without sending it to a DR company. I just want to know what adapter to use. I can figure the rest out myself but if you can't even sell the adapter or tell me what type to buy then at least I can try on my own to retrieve my stuff. That is where my frustration lies in Dell. Not that the drive failed or that I had to replace it myself or even that data retrieval has to be done without their help...it's that no regular company can even tell me where to start looking for the necessary parts. That's like selling Mitsubishi cars and then when the engine breaks down you're like 'Well I can send you a new engine but you have to install it yourself but you're going to need special tools to do it but we don't sell them or know where to obtain them. Thanks for shopping at Mistubishi have a nice day.'

The interface type is PATA/ZIF.

And the drive status is BROKEN/NOT WORKING.

The 3% you save by going with Dell will always burn you in the end. Just like when your car breaks down, you may not need a whole engine. Maybe just a small part. Your best bet is to send the drive to a reputable shop and get a diagnosis. Recovery can be quite inexpensive actually. It is usually after the end user has run spinright 20 times on a frozen drive that the recovery costs start going up. The worst that can happen by getting someone to look at it, is you know how much it would be to "do it right"

If the drive has internal problems, buying an adaptor is as useful as a tit on a bull. At least is the drive identified on post ?

Jimbro. Ur sittuation can be as easy as bad sectors on the MBR/MFT ( in that case u can get the adapter and try to clone ur drive onto a working drive , then get the data off the clone ) Or as bad as bad head(s) and or media damage ( no DIY solutions availible unfortunately )

I would strongly adivise u to find a local data recovery shop that provides free proper diagnostics ( Ontrack and I365 both do it i belive ) and see what they say / how much money they want.

Proper is the key here. Best Buy , Future Shop and the like caused more damage then they fixed in sittuations like urs.
Gl.

They often finish what customers begin...

Have you ever found an instance where they didn't?

Yes. Know some that outsource to me so don't fall in that category

Cheater

Oh, it's real. Before, they used the freezer