This wikiHow teaches you how to diagnose and recover a damaged or dying hard drive. Keep in mind that the instructions in this article cannot guarantee that your hard drive can be recovered. In addition, if you choose to take it to a professional service, you should be prepared to incur high costs.
Step
Part 1 of 2: Using Basic Troubleshooting
Step 1. Stop using the computer immediately
If the hard drive is still playing but is performing very poorly, we recommend that you stop using the hard drive as soon as possible. If the computer has been turned off, do not turn it on again until you take it to computer service.
If the problem device is an external hard drive, remove the hard drive from the computer immediately
Step 2. Try connecting the hard drive to a different port or computer
If your hard drive is still working fine on other computers, then the problem is not with the hard drive. Maybe the problem is with the cable or port on the original computer.
- If you're using an external hard drive, the solution is quite simple: to unplug it from your computer and plug it into another computer. Also try to replace the cable, just in case the old cable doesn't work.
- Internal hard disks pose a more complicated problem. In order for you to diagnose whether the internal hard drive connection is good or not, you must first disconnect it from the computer. After that, you can buy a docking station (a device for placing a hard drive that can be connected to a monitor or computer) or a USB cable converter (you can buy both tools online) to connect an external hard drive to another computer.
- Before removing the hard drive, make sure you have unplugged the computer's power cord from the wall outlet and removed the battery (if applicable).
- Removing a hard drive on a Mac computer is a very difficult job. If you still want to do it, do it very carefully.
- In some rare cases, a hard disk that won't work on certain computers (but may work on others) is a symptom of a faulty motherboard. If your hard drive works fine on any computer, but doesn't work on yours, it's a good idea to take it to a computer service provider for inspection.
Step 3. Know the various components present on the hard drive
Hard disks have 3 different components that tend to be the cause of why they don't work:
- PCB - The circuit board (which is usually located at the bottom of the hard disk) is responsible for controlling almost all the functions of the hard disk, as well as translating hard disk information into readable information. The circuit board is usually green.
- Plates (platters) - This is a thin disc used to store data. This disc is what makes the sound you hear when the hard drive is running. You won't be able to repair your hard drive yourself, unless you're a professional with proper equipment and a clean room.
- Head Assembly - Head assembly is a tool that serves to read the data on the disk. Again, you won't be able to repair the head assembly if you don't have experience and professional equipment.
Step 4. Observe the sound coming out of the hard disk
Depending on the problem, the hard disk will produce a certain sound. Be sure to cross-check the model of the hard drive and the sound it produces so that you can conclude the correct diagnosis.
- For example: if the hard drive makes a clicking sound, the problem is most likely in the head assembly.
- Unfortunately, most issues related to sound output from a hard disk should be handled by a professional.
Step 5. Try not to fix a damaged hard drive yourself with a quick fix
This includes freezing the hard drive in the freezer or applying forceful physical treatment. Although some users reported that they were able to solve their problems with this method, the chances of having the data recovered by a professional service are reduced if you handle it this way.
Even if this quick fix is successful, the effect won't usually last long. In the end the hard disk will still be damaged
Part 2 of 2: Bringing Hard Discs to a Repair Company
Step 1. Understand that hard drive recovery is a job for professionals
Due to the extremely complex construction of hard drives, you won't be able to repair hard drives to retrieve the data on them, unless you have a background in advanced electronics skills. For this reason, we recommend that you take the hard drive to a professional repair service.
- Trying to repair a damaged hard drive yourself will make it harder for a professional service to fix it.
- Even simply replacing a PCB board is an advanced job that requires knowledge of how to solder circuits and determine the right replacement parts.
Step 2. Prepare a large amount of money to repair the hard disk
Hard disk recovery performed by a professional requires clean rooms, specialized equipment and highly trained people. Therefore, maybe you have to prepare millions of rupiah to get your data back.
Step 3. Find a hard drive repair company that suits your needs
You can usually find hard drive recovery services through information from a computer store. However, you can also choose from the following two popular options:
- Best Buy - The "Geek Squad" branch at Best Buy can handle data recovery. You'll need to set aside anywhere from $200 (approximately $2,500) to $1500 (approximately $1000), depending on the level of damage to your hard disk.
- Drive Savers - Drive Savers is a data recovery company with 24/7 customer service with 30 years of experience. In addition to computer hard disk recovery, this company can also recover hard disks in smartphones and cameras.
Step 4. Choose a company and don't switch companies
Every time someone opens your hard drive and attempts to repair it, the chances of the hard drive being repairable decrease. This is because a hard disk that has been opened will be susceptible to several things, such as static electricity, dust, and other environmental hazards. To minimize risk, do not use the services of many different companies. If you want to know the competence of the company you want to use, ask what data recovery tools they use. If they use PC3K or DeepSpar, they are a good company.
Tips
There are several powerful data recovery tools if you want to retrieve data from a dead or damaged hard drive. However, you may have to spend a lot of money to buy a reputable tool
Warning
- Removing the internal hard drive may void the warranty.
- Attempting to repair the moving parts of your hard drive yourself may result in loss of data on it.
