Looking around your site (this is a GREAT place!!) I see there are lots of problems with the Seagate 1TB drives.

Specifically a 1TB ST31000333AS - mine has firmware CC1H.

It has gone down, and im sure the data is perfectly intact, desperately trying to find a new PCB or donor etc....

PLEASE HELP MEH!

Thanks guys,

Nick

what the problem with the drive itself. ????

Well it sort of smoked a little and a part of the PCB gets very very hot, now it will not start up at all.

One PC (my server) wont even turn on when it is plugged in.

My main PC will boot up with it plugged in but the PCB gets very hot and after about 1 minute the PC will shut down :-/

When it first starts i can hear the drive spin up..

Post photo of PCB and do "Search" TVS problems. You will find hundards of post on this topic

_________________
Iorana Haraharaini

This article should help you locate the components:
http://hddscan.com/doc/HDD_from_inside.html

There is a TVS diode on each of the +5V and +12V rails.

One of them may be shorted. You can remove it and the drive will function OK without it, albeit without protection on the affected supply. Just be sure your PSU can be trusted.

:O

I dont think i'll be doing that! If i frazzle my drive even more and ruin it im totally stuffed!

I think you are on the right lines!

The TVS circled on here is exactly where the heat/smoke was coming from...

This is a very wise statement.

there are many firms in UK you can seek advice from, and I believe there are a few firms in Wales. Might be worth arranging a free diagnostic to confirm if TVS is damaged and if other damage is present. At this point you will then have a clearer idea of the situation.

If you think this simple job is beyond you, read the success stories in this thread:
http://forums.seagate.com/stx/board/mes ... 109#M18109

All those people needed was a little bit of confidence and a pair of side cutters.

Truth in this one. If you do not feel confortable to do this job. It is a very simple fix on it. This should not cost you very much to have your data recovered. As stated in UK there is Sean from PCimage he is member here on forum. You can contact him. He might even give HDDguru discount to you on this one. Feel free to PM him and talk about your case with him.

You are correct when removing this chip your drive is no longer protrected. If it shorts out again during your recovery process this can lead to even more problems and even a higher fix on it.

Once a TVS is removed you have to be very careful when working on this drive again. So if you feel this might lead to more problems then please seek some help in this one it is not that expensive of a recovery for you and you are ensured your data back on this one.

_________________
Iorana Haraharaini

Interesting, I will try and get the PCB off to have a look at this job, however the torx bits are TINY!!

You can replace the 12V and 5V TVS diodes with SMBJ12A and SMAJ5.0A parts, respectively. In the UK you should be able to obtain them from Farnell.

VISHAY GENERAL SEMICONDUCTOR - SMBJ12A - DIODE, TVS, 12V, 600W, SMB:
http://uk.farnell.com/jsp/search/produc ... ku=9550968

STMICROELECTRONICS - SMAJ5.0A - DIODE, TVS, 5V, 400W, SMA:
http://uk.farnell.com/stmicroelectronic ... /9802851RL

I am by no means a kean solderer, so it will be a challenge, but i will take it off and have a look.

Thanks for all your help people by the way!!!

A junior TV technician should be able to do the job for you. Otherwise, use a fine tipped, temperature controlled soldering iron, and a solder sucker. Be sure to get the diode's polarity stripe the right way round. IIRC, it should match up with a "v" on the circuit board.

Good luck.

Can someone please clear something up for me?

If i get an identical controller board, with identical firmware, and swap them from the donor to my drive, should this work?

No. You will need to transplant the serial EPROM (flash) chip from patient to donor. That's much more difficult and risky than replacing a diode.

Hi again people!

This is the broken/faulty component :



This it the Board ID :



And this is the PCB that it "fell off" of, literally touched it and it came away, totally blown from the board (as expected)



So.......... as the TVS has come away, am i likely to be able to power it up and get data off of it for now?

Also, on the picture above, which is the 5v and which is the 12v diode?

Here is the pinout of the SATA power connector:
http://pinouts.ru/Power/sata-power_pinout.shtml

I'd say the bigger diode is the 12V diode (SMBJ, 600W) and the smaller is the 5V diode (SMAJ, 400W). You can confirm this by means of a continuity test with a multimeter.

So can I powe the drive without the TVS then? I thought I read that I could.....