[SOLVED] Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but... failing hard drive [Moved f

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Dracia

527 posts · Joined 2008

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#2 · Oct 15, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Hi and welcome

Yes, there is a way to connect your hdd to another computer. You can purchase what is called an external hard drive enclosure. You put your hard drive inside it and then connect it to another computer using the USB port.

You can also connect it to the slave cable in another computer and access it that way. I've never done these things myself, but I'm sure a quick Google search will help you.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#3 · Oct 15, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Thanks, Dracia. I'll check it out. That may be my last resort to recover my files.

Richard.

 

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Dracia

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#4 · Oct 15, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

No problem Richard

 

justpassingby

6,672 posts · Joined 2007

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#5 · Oct 15, 2008 (Edited)

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Hi Digipixel and welcome to TSF !

1. Most OEM installations (except Dell) won't allow a repair install. You pay less than for a retail licence but your options are limited.

2. You can very easily take the hard drive out and hook it in another desktop computer. No need to buy an external enclosure unless you don't have access to another desktop computer. Another method would be to use an Ubuntu live CD or a Bart PE CD which allow you to boot into a windows like environment where you can access your drives. From there you can save your data to an external USB drive. As long as the partition information is not damaged you shouldn't have any trouble accessing your files. If you get an access denied error message when trying to access your \documents and settings\user name\ folder from another computer you'll need to take ownership of that folder. If you can access your drive but all your files and folders appear to be missing don't do anything, turn the computer off and report here.

First thing is to see if you can access your stuff and save it on another computer.

If you prefer to take the hard drive out of the case and hook it in another computer see if some computer savvy friend can help you. Open the computer case, see on which cable the drive is hooked and write it down somewhere. Tell us what's the brand and model of the drive (it'll be written on the drive itself).

If it's an IDE drive (the data cable will be a 5cm wide ribbon with 40 or 80 wires) then you can hook it in any desktop computer, either as slave on the primary IDE connector or as master on the secondary IDE connector.

If the computer you'll want to hook it into has a single IDE cable you'll need to change the jumper (= a small plastic cap on metal pins near the data and power connectors) of your drive to the slave position (refer to the sticker that's on the drive itself) then hook it on the middle connector of the IDE cable (replace the drive that's already there if needed).

If there are 2 IDE cables you can hook your drive as master (you won't need to change the jumper) on the end connector of the cable that's hooked on the secondary IDE channel.

Enter the BIOS and check that the drive appears properly (either as primary slave or secondary master) then boot into Windows and see if you can access your files and folders.

If you want to try Bart PE you'll need a retail XP CD with SP2. Use another computer to create the CD, follow these instructions.

An Ubuntu live CD will work the same way only that you don't need anything else to create the CD but you'll get into a windows-like environment based on linux. Ubuntu is pretty user-friendly though.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#6 · Oct 15, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

>>> An Ubuntu live CD will work the same way only that you don't need anything else to create the CD but you'll get into a windows-like environment based on linux. Ubuntu is pretty user-friendly though.<<<

Thanks!

I don't have access to a Windows XP OS CD, other than the Compaq-branded one. So Ubuntu may be my best bet. I do have a Dell laptop with a high speed Internet connection, so I should be able to download Ubuntu live without too much difficulty.

Please clarify: So, if I understand this correctly, I simply download the Ubuntu (Linux) OS, burn it to a CD, and then boot my sick PC to the Ubuntu CD? Will I have access (through Linux) to all of my files and folders? Will I also be able to access my CD Rewritable drive in the sick PC, be able to format a R/RW CD, and then save/archive those files to the CD?

Sorry for all of the questions, I just want to ensure I understand the whole process.

Thanks so much for your help!

Richard McCarthy

 

justpassingby

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#7 · Oct 15, 2008 (Edited)

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Give it a try, can't tell you by heart if there's already a CD writing program included on the Ubuntu live CD but there should be. Usually with desktop systems Ubuntu detects the hardware properly. I'll see if I can take some time to boot into my Ubuntu installation later on to tell you more.

Be warned that to create the bootable Ubuntu CD you'll need to use the "burn from image file" feature of your burning software, if in doubt use ImgBurn (write image file to disc and browse for the .iso file). You'll also need to change the boot order priority to CD-rom first in the BIOS, check the startup screens for some "press xx to enter setup" message.

Once in Ubuntu your best solution would be to borrow a friend's external usb drive and copy all your data there. You probably have several GB's of data and it'll require more than 1 or 2 CD's. Also if you have files bigger than 750MB they won't hold on a CD.

The equivalent of windows explorer in Ubuntu is called Nautilus, you can access it through the dropdown menu that will be at the top of the screen. You'll need to click once on your drive in the left pane (so that Ubuntu automatically mounts it) before you can browse through the files and folders. Usb drives should be mounted automatically.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#8 · Oct 15, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Great! ray: Thanks for all the helpful advice!

I think I've got an idea of what I need to do now when I get home tonight. If I can salvage all of the .jpg and .doc (MS Word) files, my wife will be really happy, and so will I...

:4-clap:

 

justpassingby

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#9 · Oct 15, 2008 (Edited)

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Ok, just booted on my Ubuntu 8.04 Live CD, here are the detailed step :

First screen asks you to pick a language, pick english. Then take the first option to "try ubuntu without making any changes to your system"

It'll take some time for the system to load, especially if you only have 512MB of RAM. Be patient and eventually you'll hear some sound and see the Ubuntu desktop. If your monitor shows an out of specs resolution message wait a little until it detects the proper resolution and refresh rate or try another CRT monitor.

At the top left menu go to places => computer. There you'll be able to browse your drives and your files. You'll need to click on a drive once to mount it (it'll appear on the desktop) before you can browse it.

If you want to save your data on CD's you can use the CD/DVD creator (still in the places menu), drag'n'drop your files in CD/DVD creator and click on Write CD. If you want to save your data on an external USB drive the drive will be mounted as soon as you power it on (you'll see a drive icon with a little orange symbol on it) and you'll be able to drag'n'drop your files on it.

Again if you can see your drive but can't find any data on it don't do anything and report here. Also don't try to write any data on your drive, the priority is to backup its content on another drive or on CD's.

When you're done use the top right red icon to turn the computer off.

If you want to know in advance what Ubuntu looks like check this (the background pick will be different) :
http://www.linuxfortravelers.com/screenshots-of-the-ubuntu-6-06-live-cd

 

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godivafilm

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#10 · Oct 15, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

I have a question here as I have the same problem s the OP-

If I boot from Ubuntu and I am in-- can I take cd out and then replace the urlmon.dll file that is creating my reboot loop??

And then-- how do I do this??

 

justpassingby

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#11 · Oct 16, 2008 (Edited)

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

@ godivafilm : I'll reply in your thread. Short answer : you can use ubuntu to backup the files you need so bad. If you can get the right version of the urlmon.dll file from the internet you can try to overwrite the one in the system32 folder but there are other steps to take beforehand and you need to make sure you have the right-version of the file. Check your own thread.

 

justpassingby

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#13 · Oct 16, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Those peripherals shouldn't cause any trouble but I would disconnect them, you're not going to use them while in Ubuntu anyway.

Fyi godivafilm was able to retrieve his data and save it to an external drive without problems using the Ubuntu live CD. With a desktop system all should be recognized properly (you may even be able to surf the net right away). The only possible problem I can see is if the file system or partition is damaged and you can't access your files. We'll know once you've booted into Ubuntu.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

16 posts · Joined 2008

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#14 · Oct 17, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Must be the HDD...

I booted to the Ubuntu live CD just fine. Everything came up looking great. I can see the HDD in "Places". It shows up as an 80GB device, but when I double click on it, a box pops up that says, "Cannot mount volume". I also tried a right button mouse click on the HDD icon, and used the menu to "mount" it. Still same error.

When I click on the "details" button I get a very long message that complains about NTFS/RAID/FakeRAID, etc., etc, and also mentions possible hardware problems.

Sorry I can't post the entire error message because I know it might offer more clues. I wrote down the error message last night , but then left home this morning without it. I'll try to post the error message tonight after I get home.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#15 · Oct 17, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

So, looking ahead, if booting to Ubuntu is not going to be an option, what should I look at as plan B? :4-dontkno

Should I build a BartPE CD and try booting to that? Will BartPE allow me to "repair" my currently installed XP OS without overwriting my existing data files/applications?

 

justpassingby

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#16 · Oct 17, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

You don't have a RAID array do you ? How many physical hard drives do you have ?

My guess is the MBR is damaged which prevents Ubuntu from accessing the files on the drive. The exact error message will tell us more.

Give the Bart PE CD a try or take the hard drive out and attach it inside another computer. Taking it to another computer would be the best since it'll allow us to rule out a bad cable issue. If an XP system can't see your files either then there's a problem with the hard drive itself and not only with the missing system files.

If you can't access your files then first thing is to check that the drive isn't physically damaged. Look on the sticker that's on the drive itself to find its brand and model (tell us what it is). Then check this website to create the DOS bootable diagnostic CD for that model. Boot your computer on it and run the long/full test on the drive. Tell us if there are any error messages.

Once that's done we can try to repair your MBR and partition table.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#17 · Oct 17, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

I'll post the more complete "Cannot mount volume" error message later tonight to see if that sheds more light on the problem.

I don't have a RAID array, just the single, physical 80GB hard drive, plus one DVD-ROM drive and one rewriteable CD drive.

Thanks again for your help.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#18 · Oct 18, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

justpassingby,

As promised, here's the error that showed up after attempting to access the Windows HDD (80 GB Device) from Ubuntu Live. Hope this clarifys a little more.

Cannot mount volume

ntfs_attr_pread failed: input/output error
failed to read NTFS $Bitmap: Input/output error
NTFS is either inconsistent, or you have hardware faults,
or you have a softRAID/FakeRAID hardware. In the first case run
chkdsk /f on Windows then reboot Windows TWICE.
The usage of the /f parameter is very important!
If you have SoftRAID < then more stuff about RAIDs>........

I don't have a second PC to install my HDD in, but I do plan to take
your suggestion and get the make and model of the HDD, and download
the appropriate diagnostic software. I'll let you know the result of that in a later post.

Nighty night for now....

Richard McCarthy

 

justpassingby

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#19 · Oct 18, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Yep, you need to rule out hardware faults before we can try to repair the MBR and partition table.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#20 · Oct 18, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Will do. Thanks...

 

justpassingby

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#22 · Oct 18, 2008 (Edited)

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but...

Seagate bought Maxtor some time ago, you should have run Seatools for Dos but I don't think it really matters. The failing hard drive message means you won't have many opportunities to recover your data before the drive dies.

IMO the safest solution would be to use findandmount :
http://findandmount.com/tour/
This program doesn't write any data on the drive, it only reads from it, and as such it limits the risks of failure during the recovery process. You will need to hook your hard drive as slave inside another desktop computer and run findandmount from within Windows. Once you can see your files transfer them to another hard drive. The free version comes with a transfer speed limit (0.5MB/s) so it may take a day to transfer everything.

The other solution is to repair the master boot record and partition table of your drive. This will rewrite the proper data on the first sectors of the drive and presents a limited risk. Follow these instructions : Have you "lost" a hard drive or partition in your computer?. You can run this from a bootable Parted Magic CD but don't try to boot from the hard drive once the partition table has been rewriten, you don't want to boot Windows from a damaged hard drive. What you can do is repair your partition table using the parted magic CD, restart so the changes take effect, enter the BIOS before XP starts to load, insert the Ubuntu CD and retry to backup your stuff.

If you can now access the drive properly (either from another installation of XP or from the Ubuntu live CD) and it appears to be empty you'll need to use some data recovery program. Check this thread : http://www.techsupportforum.com/f10/data-recovery-251133.html#post1493045 (third post).

Whatever you do don't write anything on the drive. Save all the recovered data on an external USB drive, CD's or another physical drive.

I'll move your thread to the hard drive support section.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#23 · Oct 18, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but... failing hard drive [Moved from X

Okay. Well. This is rather a lot to digest, given the options. My priority now, obviously, is to try and recover the data files rather than worrying about getting Windows XP to boot.

I am resigned now to buying a new PC (with Windows Vista, God save us all). Personally I would be fine with migrating to Linux, but my wife is totally hooked into so many Windows-based programs that I'm sure that will not be an option.

Thanks again for all your patience and advice. I'll let you know what I do from here and see if I manage any of it without shooting myself in the foot (or the head).

Kind regards,

Richard McCarthy

 

justpassingby

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#25 · Oct 20, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but... failing hard drive [Moved from X

Feel free to call a professional if you're not overconfident in your technical skills, if he can access your data he should be able to copy the whole content of the drive to a new hard drive.

 

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Digipixel Discussion starter

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#26 · Oct 24, 2008

Resolved: We apologize for the inconvenience but... failing hard drive [Moved from X

Just following up on this thread:

I did take my failing HDD to a local, independent company - Vulcan Data (www.vulcandata.com). The owner, Don, was able to recover almost all of the files that I was desperate to salvage - literally thousands of family photos, MS Word and Wordperfect files (actually a book that my wife is writing), Quicken financial files, etc. He copied them over to a 500GB external drive which I can now connect to my new Windows Vista machine. Not only that, he didn't charge me an arm and a leg to do it.

Lesson learned: backup, backup, backup...

Richard McCarthy
Chelsea, Alabama USA

 

justpassingby

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#27 · Oct 24, 2008

Re: Error: We apologize for the inconvenience but... failing hard drive [Moved from X

Happy to know you got your files back :smile:

I marked the thread as solved.