Almost dead Hard Drive.

Have a laptop that was dropped from several feet. No backups are available.
So far was able to transfer portion of the data. But now looks like things
are downhill
When using BartPE trying to run chkdsk /r and get error message saying that
drive can't be
locked. ERD doesn't even see the installation. When try to bootup machine on
its
own get error message that ntloader is missing. When just let the machine
sit on it own
hear clicking noises coming from HD once every minute. I think it's pretty
obvious that
hard drive is still spinning up but for some reason I can't read from it
anymore.

Any suggestions/methods on how I can revive it at least temporarily to
finish getting
data off of it.? I'm talking about simple things that I can try such as
freezing it
or smacking HD against the tabletop so that reading head will retract etc.
Basically anything I can try without any dedicated equipemnt.

Also thinking of getting this little gizmo and maybe hooking it up to my
Desktop
and seeing if I can reading anything else. Will it allow me to hook up
laptop drive
to desktop?
http://www.compusa.com/products/prod...4956&pfp=srch1

Thanks a million in advance for all the wonderful replies

"asdf" wrote in message
...
Also thinking of getting this little gizmo and maybe hooking it up to my
Desktop
and seeing if I can reading anything else. Will it allow me to hook up
laptop drive
to desktop?
http://www.compusa.com/products/prod...4956&pfp=srch1

Instead, get an ide to usb adaptor, some of them do laptop and desktop hdds
and it might be something you can use in the future. It is quite possible
that the laptop is faulty and not the drive so the first thing I'd be doing
is eliminate the laptop. You could be making things worse, or even damaging
good data with what you're doing.

Michael

ohh i gave those two things as examples only. I never actually put the hd
into freezer
or dropped on a table. I was simply wondering what other tricks are there/
The device that i provided in the link will that allow me to hook up
HD to my desktop??

thank you
"Michael C" wrote in message
...
"asdf" wrote in message
...
Also thinking of getting this little gizmo and maybe hooking it up to my
Desktop
and seeing if I can reading anything else. Will it allow me to hook up
laptop drive
to desktop?

http://www.compusa.com/products/prod...4956&pfp=srch1

Instead, get an ide to usb adaptor, some of them do laptop and desktop
hdds
and it might be something you can use in the future. It is quite possible
that the laptop is faulty and not the drive so the first thing I'd be
doing
is eliminate the laptop. You could be making things worse, or even
damaging
good data with what you're doing.

Michael

On Tue, 20 Sep 2005 23:04:05 -0400, asdf wrote:

Have a laptop that was dropped from several feet. No backups are available.
So far was able to transfer portion of the data. But now looks like things
are downhill
When using BartPE trying to run chkdsk /r and get error message saying that
drive can't be
locked. ERD doesn't even see the installation. When try to bootup machine on
its
own get error message that ntloader is missing. When just let the machine
sit on it own
hear clicking noises coming from HD once every minute. I think it's pretty
obvious that
hard drive is still spinning up but for some reason I can't read from it
anymore.

Any suggestions/methods on how I can revive it at least temporarily to
finish getting
data off of it.? I'm talking about simple things that I can try such as
freezing it
or smacking HD against the tabletop so that reading head will retract etc.
Basically anything I can try without any dedicated equipemnt.

Also thinking of getting this little gizmo and maybe hooking it up to my
Desktop
and seeing if I can reading anything else. Will it allow me to hook up
laptop drive
to desktop?
http://www.compusa.com/products/prod...4956&pfp=srch1

Thanks a million in advance for all the wonderful replies

Don't smack it against a table, that will just finish the job of wreaking
the drive. If I were you I'd get some sort of adapter that allows you
connect it to a desktop system. I'd hook it up and hope that it operates
long enough to get at the data on the drive. If that doesn't work you
could try the freezing trick, that should be harmless. If that doesn't
work your pretty much screwed.

"asdf" wrote in message
...
Have a laptop that was dropped from several feet. No backups are
available.
So far was able to transfer portion of the data. But now looks like things
are downhill
When using BartPE trying to run chkdsk /r and get error message saying
that
drive can't be
locked. ERD doesn't even see the installation. When try to bootup machine
on
its
own get error message that ntloader is missing. When just let the machine
sit on it own
hear clicking noises coming from HD once every minute. I think it's pretty
obvious that
hard drive is still spinning up but for some reason I can't read from it
anymore.

Any suggestions/methods on how I can revive it at least temporarily to
finish getting
data off of it.? I'm talking about simple things that I can try such as
freezing it
or smacking HD against the tabletop so that reading head will retract etc.
Basically anything I can try without any dedicated equipemnt.

Also thinking of getting this little gizmo and maybe hooking it up to my
Desktop
and seeing if I can reading anything else. Will it allow me to hook up
laptop drive
to desktop?
http://www.compusa.com/products/prod...4956&pfp=srch1

Thanks a million in advance for all the wonderful replies




The freezing trick works (sometimes) and there are 2.5" to 3.5" converters
for hard drives...
http://www.interloper.com/products/p... =1&sec=1&od=
That was just the first one I came to. Your local mom-n-pop computer shop
might also have them in stock. The freezer method won't make it worse, so
I'd try that.
--


"I don't cheat to survive. I cheat to LIVE!!"
- Alceryes

Any suggestions/methods on how I can revive it at least temporarily to
finish getting
data off of it.? I'm talking about simple things that I can try such as
freezing it
or smacking HD against the tabletop so that reading head will retract etc.
Basically anything I can try without any dedicated equipemnt.

You may try to operate disk drive (laptop) in a different postion. Turn
laptop on, when is standing on a side or in other position. Sometimes it may
work.

"asdf" wrote in message
...
ohh i gave those two things as examples only. I never actually put the hd
into freezer
or dropped on a table. I was simply wondering what other tricks are there/
The device that i provided in the link will that allow me to hook up
HD to my desktop??

thank you
"Michael C" wrote in message
...
"asdf" wrote in message
...
Also thinking of getting this little gizmo and maybe hooking it up to
my
Desktop
and seeing if I can reading anything else. Will it allow me to hook up
laptop drive
to desktop?

http://www.compusa.com/products/prod...4956&pfp=srch1

That adapter should work just as you asked. HTH, s

"asdf" wrote in message
...
ohh i gave those two things as examples only. I never actually put the hd
into freezer
or dropped on a table.

I know, but what I'm saying is that trying to fix it in a laptop that might
be faulty could be damaging the data.

I was simply wondering what other tricks are there/
The device that i provided in the link will that allow me to hook up
HD to my desktop??

Yes, but that's really the old way of doing it, the usb adaptor probably the
better way to go.

Michael