[fritzleboo]

My friend as Dell 8400 Dimension. The Hard Drive became corrupt.
I purchased this product http://sewelldirect.com/usbtoideadap...5converter.asp

It worked. I had the entire drive and 5000 pictures (that he never backed up) on my harddrive. But I had to leave so I cancelled the data transfer from his corrupt drive to my documents (external drive).

When I went to my next job I did the same thing and had to leave again so I cancelled.

When I got home THE HARD DRIVE STOPPED SPINNING. I tried to use it as a secondary drive to make sure the USB Adapter that I purchased worked.

Bottom line. The hard drive won't spin. No matter what I do? He has a ton of pics on the hard drive.

I don't know what to do? What if I remove the chip on top of the metal case (hard drive case- Maxtor) and buy a new chip? Does that make sense. I appreciate your help in advance.
Andy

[Gr3iz]

I doubt replacing any of the electronics will revive this drive. It's likely stuck mechanically. Did you hear any noise prior to it's demise?

You might try flicking it to try to "unstick" the platters, that is hold it in your hand and flick your wrist to try to spin the platters manually. That used to work with drives that had a "stiction" problem many moons ago.

You can also try to put it in the freezer (carefully wrapped to prevent moisture) for a few hours and re-connect it. You may get some life out of it, briefly.

[computerguy1990]

If the data is extremely important and I mean like life threathning cruitial you have it you could (if you have the skills) open the drive and put the platters into a new working drive. However if not done by a professional this will most likely just mess up the drive.

[Mosquito555]

Originally Posted by computerguy1990

If the data is extremely important and I mean like life threathning cruitial you have it you could (if you have the skills) open the drive and put the platters into a new working drive. However if not done by a professional this will most likely just mess up the drive.

Only a pro can do that mate.

Do not try doing this alone, the drive's casing is sealed. Even a molecule of dust can corrupt your data, imagine touching the platters. As computerguy1990 said, if you really need this data (for your job for example) then contact a pro.

Now there's something that I don't understand. What metal case are you talking about? Is the drive removable? I ask this because some external hard drives are just normal drives installed on an external enclosure.

If that's the case you could remove the drive and test it on a different casing or even install it on your computer if possible (if it's a normal SATA or PATA drive). Hopefully, if the drive itself isn't damaged you will be able to backup all your data.

[computerguy1990]

I think he has already popped the sealed case on the HDD and is looking at the chipset on the inside of the sealed case. And as Mosquito555 said dont attempt to change platters yourself contact the pros if you really need it but be prepared to spend some big bucks.

[fritzleboo]

OK. Guys. It sounds like a professional must make this drive operational. GR3IZ said that I can try sticking it in the freezer. I will. The chip is on top of the metal casing. I was thinking about replacing that. It should have contacts that communicate with the disk?

I called a service. They charge 600 to get out the data.