Hi there, was just after some advice...

Drive:

Seagate (250GB)
Barracuda 7200.9
(ST32508244A)
Firmware: 3.AAE

A recently knocked my external hard drive off a table while it was in use and now it isn't recognized when connected. I opened it up and put it into another external closure I had, but still had no luck. After a lot of searching around on the net I am now convinced that something has gone awry with the internals but would like to get some expert opinion before I have to decide whether the data contained on it is worth taking it to the professionals or just throwing it away.

The drive spins up but has a slight clicking sound and then spins down after a couple of minutes. I managed to find the same drive with the intention of swapping over the PCBs (don't know if it's worth it?) but on closer inspection noticed that even though the model and serial numbers match, the firmwares are different (3.AAD) as well as the PCB layout. Is there anyway someone could give me a rough idea on possibilities of the drive's problem? Is there any chance it could it be a problem with the PCB?

I have included a video of the drive in action so you can see what I'm talking about as well as a pic of the 2 drives to show the PCB differences.

Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

Video of problem:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QplkJA8bJTo

PCB is NOT the problem and PCBs do not match in any case.
The problem is either heads, media damage OR both OR mechanical, and powering the drive in that state could have made more damage.
If data is not worth pro intervention, simply bin the drive or wait until it will be worth (if will be).

Thanks for your reply!! Hope my powering it up hasn't caused too much extra damage.

If I do decide not to take it to a professional data recovery company, is it worth opening it up and having a play around with the internals or is it pretty much 100% impossible to get any positives results without the correct head tools and in a non-clean room?

It is USELESS to fiddle with drive internals and it will contaminate the surface if the drive is opened in non-controlled environment (you won't see anything interesting).

A precise diagnose is required BEFORE opening, the less the drive is opened / manipulated, the better.

If you really want to see drive internals and how things work, it's easy (and safer !) to get scrap drives to play with.

The expert opinion you need can only be made by a professional.

Without actually seeing the disk, BlackST gives you as much information as possible:



If data holds any value, you really need to get it looked at professionally