Saving a hard drive

thedonclark · 01-15-2006, 01:05 PM

If a hard drive quit working is there any way to save the memory stored on it, if the memory is still there? Can it be taken apart and linked to another hard drive or the computer itself? How can it be done?

**johnwill** · 01-15-2006, 01:15 PM

If the drive electronics have failed, you may be able to find an indentical drive and swap boards. If the HDA assembly has failed, the only hope is a data recovery service. You will not have the expertise, environment, or equipment to do anything useful inside the HDA.

**bruiser** · 01-15-2006, 03:22 PM

I don't know if this works, but I've read and heard that sometimes you can remove the hd and put it in a freezer for several minutes. Apparently the chilling sometimes revives the hd long enough to recover data from it. Don't know for sure if it works.

**johnwill** · 01-16-2006, 05:16 PM

Yep, the freezer trick sometimes works, again it depends on the specific failure cause. You want to put it into a ziplock bag for the trip to the freezer.

01-15-2006, 01:05 PM	#1 (permalink)
thedonclark Registered User Join Date: Jan 2006 Posts: 3 OS: XP	Saving a hard drive If a hard drive quit working is there any way to save the memory stored on it, if the memory is still there? Can it be taken apart and linked to another hard drive or the computer itself? How can it be done?

01-15-2006, 01:15 PM	#2 (permalink)
johnwill Manager, Networking Forums Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania, US Posts: 41,748 OS: Windows 7, XP-Pro, Vista, Linux Blog Entries: 1	If the drive electronics have failed, you may be able to find an indentical drive and swap boards. If the HDA assembly has failed, the only hope is a data recovery service. You will not have the expertise, environment, or equipment to do anything useful inside the HDA. __________________ If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

01-16-2006, 05:16 PM	#4 (permalink)
johnwill Manager, Networking Forums Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: S.E. Pennsylvania, US Posts: 41,748 OS: Windows 7, XP-Pro, Vista, Linux Blog Entries: 1	Yep, the freezer trick sometimes works, again it depends on the specific failure cause. You want to put it into a ziplock bag for the trip to the freezer. __________________ If TSF has helped you, Tell us about it! or Donate to help keep the site up! Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience

01-15-2006, 03:22 PM	#3 (permalink)
bruiser TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 1,974 OS: xp	I don't know if this works, but I've read and heard that sometimes you can remove the hd and put it in a freezer for several minutes. Apparently the chilling sometimes revives the hd long enough to recover data from it. Don't know for sure if it works.