Corrupted external HDD

Technology and Gaming Help and Support
#1

So I have an external HDD that has been corrupted somehow. There’s no way to access it all.

Is there any way to retrieve the data before formatting?

#2

Short answer - it depends. When you say it’s corrupted, is it ENTIRELY inaccessible? Can the BIOS detect it? Does it show up in Device Manager, or Computer Management, but NOT My Computer?

If Windows can detect the hardware but not the partitions (in other words, it shows up in Device Manager but not My Computer) you may be able to run recovery software to access your files. A free favorite of mine is Recuva, another “free” piece of software I have used with success is DiskInternals NTFS Recover, but it’s up to you to find the free version :smiley: .

If Windows does NOT see the hardware, you can try accessing it from a bootable environment (BartPE, Linux, etc.).

Also keep in mind, it’s an external drive which means you have to consider the possibility that the drive enclosure (the USB/Firewire part of the setup) may be damaged (and the drive itself is okay). You should be able to remove the drive and physically install it in another machine sans the enclosure, which would rule out that possibility.

:slight_smile:

#3

Try Recuva. That helps you scavenge some lost files from HDDs.

#4

Once i had problem with my external disc, but program called DMDE recovered all of my data, so i recommend it.

#5

I know it might sound counterintuitive, but if you put it in the oven at 350 degrees for 60 minutes and then (after letting it cool!) run high powered magnets over it counterclockwise, it should be able to work well enough to get the data off after you’ve submerged it in battery acid.

#6

Haha.

But seriously, putting it in the freezer for a while can help if its a physical issue with the drive.

#7

Freezer thing does work, I’ve done it successfully. HOWEVER: only do this as a last resort to retrieve your data, don’t rely on the drive afterward. It’s only a temporary fix to get important stuff off there that you can’t be bothered downloading again.

Also, only ever do this if you know it’s the drive that’s screwed, not the partition table or enclosure or something.

EDIT: oh yeah, don’t forget to seal it as many times as it takes to feel comfortable that no moisture will get to the drive from the freezer.

#8

The drive shows up everywhere, but when I plug it in I get prompted to format it, and when I try to access it I get the following error:

H:\ is not accessible.

The parameter is incorrect.

Recuva seems to be able to recover some files with a deep scan, so I’ll have it run tonight. Unless there’s some other solution, of course. I think I can rule out physical damage then.

Thanks for the responses :slight_smile:

#9

Extract it from the cage, and plug it into your computer directly, the USB converter might be the problem.

#10

Maybe I should try that first then. Recuva is going ballistic. Current progress is over 9000%. No really, I’m not kidding. Estimated time left is constantly jumping from hours to days to months :expressionless:

Edit: there doesn’t appear to be anything else than the USB port :frowning:

#11

That’s the best image I could find via quick Googling. As you can see, your external drive is just a regular old hard drive (either IDE/PATA or SATA) slapped inside a box with a USB and/or Firewire connection and power jack. Thus, if you open the drive enclosure, you can access the actual drive and carefully remove it.

The steps may vary, but the process is usually like this: 1) open enclosure 2) remove screws mounting drive to enclosure 3) remove power and data cables from the drive. Drives like the Western Digital MyBook get a bit trickier, but they’re still manageable.

Once you’ve done that, you can place the drive in your computer which will eliminate the enclosure hardware as a possible culprit. This is likely, since Recuva is having strange reading issues - I’m not ruling out the drive, but it WOULD help to rule out the enclosure.

Keep us updated…

#12

Yeah, I had already opened it up. No sign of anything but the USB port. The USB port is also right on the drive itself, and not just a part of the casing.
I guess the newer ones aren’t regular hard drives in a case anymore.

Recuva has been running for over five hours now. It’s still in stage 1, at 10128%, and it has been stuck at 38110 files found for hours.
I don’t know what stage 2 entails, but if it keeps going like this I’m not going to be able to get there.
I can still recover the files that were already found even if I cancel though.

If all else fails, I’ll just reformat it.

It’s this one, btw, if that gives you any idea. Quick google search didn’t yield any pictures of the inside, but I can take some myself tomorrow if you want.

#13

Oooohhh that seems like it’s all one fixture. How about that, guess you learn something new every day. If it’s that new, is there any chance there’s a warranty? I know that’s an almost laughable question but I figured I’d put it out there. As for Recuva, it depends how much you need off the drive - figure, the more you access it, if it’s damaged, the less time you have. So if you want those 38k files and aren’t missing much else, you could just grab those. Up to you :slight_smile:

#14

The smallest usb to sata adapter I have is 1cm by 5cm and 1mm thick, it’s from a WD passport.

#15

Well, I just realized it’s only recovering deleted files, and I need the files that are still on there :frowning:

I’ll probably just reformat it, hope that’s enough to fix it.

Warranty should still be in effect, but I’d rather use that as a last resort.

#16

That’s very interesting. One of Recuva’s big features is obviously the marked-for-deletion (Recycle Bin) type files, but it is also useful for corrupted drives. Is there a flag when scanning that says, “Search for deleted files”? It’s also a small sign of good news - at the moment, the drive is accessible. I would be curious to see the interior of that enclosure, especially since Sersoft mentioned the small SATA-to-USB adapters. It is quite possible that the Passports have 2.5" laptop drives in them, which are still SATA, which means you could still pull the drive from the enclosure and try it in your box.

Yeah, just looked it up, you can pull that drive out, it’s a 2.5" laptop SATA drive. This link may help you out. Of course, this all depends on the importance of the data.

#17

Yeah, it says “Scanning for Deleted Files.” I’m assuming the non-deleted files come later, or something.
There’s a separate option to scan for non-deleted files, which I checked.

It appears that you’re right about that. I just opened it up again and the interior is exactly the same as in that link. I must not have looked very carefully last time :stuck_out_tongue:

I’m going to try plugging it in with a SATA cable in bit.

Edit: I just realized I don’t have an extra SATA cable, so no luck :frowning:

#18

no sata cable? unplug main HDD and boot off a live CD

GetDataBack is a good option if you’re not scared of torrents

#19

now why didn’t I think of that, I have an Ubuntu cd lying around somewhere…

I’ll get back to you once I’ve tried it :3

#20

I finally got around to booting up Ubuntu. The HDD was corrupted, but I formatted it in like 10 seconds. Now trying to recover files with Recuva in Windows.

Thanks for the help.

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