Anyone know of Preboot data recovery for damaged slave drive program

[slug]

This drive is most likely just completley worn out.

 

I've accepted the fact that I 'll probably not be able to access any of the data again but I've heard good things about recovery programs.

 

I was reccomended a program called 'teskdisk' highly rated at NTK.net, it looks like a decent app but it only runs when your operating system is loaded.

 

The problem is that I can't load Windows with this drive attached as Ide slave. I get to the Windows loading screen, with the progress bar moving on black background, it just never actually loads.

 

So, does anyone know of any kind of killer app I can use to scan and transfer any data with that can be booted from cd?

 

I'm assuming that any attempt to attach the drive wile windows is loaded would be a dangerous disaster. If anyone also knows of any method of preventing windows from failing by attempting to access this drive in loadup, but allowing it to be accesed through the loaded operating system I'm all ears.

 

Any help appreciated.

 

Edit)

 

Any experts who read this and would like to suggest that this isn't possible, would also useful to know.

 

[bones2097]

any live linux cd that can read fat32/ntfs will read your hdd....

[slug]

Is Linux good at reading damaged hard drives? Will I be able to use it to copy onto another drive?

 

Cheers for the tip.

[TetsuoShima]

BartPE, but that won't do you much good now, since you need to built that yourself.

 

UltimateBootCD, will work.

 

Hiren's BootCD, will probably work.

 

Knoppix, will probably work, but is probably overkill.

 

Those are some of the best known, but there really are hundreds of them out on the net...

[Guest c4evap]

Those are all good suggestions. Also try this:

 

http://www.911cd.net/

 

Blurb from web site:

 

The 911 Rescue CD is the Admin's Swiss Army knife it is an integrated set of software designed for the emergency situations when the system doesn't function properly or when assembling a new PC and no pre-installed operating systems or software is found.

 

The 911 Boot Disks are a set of startup disks based on the ModBoot framework, they have mouse-driven user interface and greatly simplify the process of setting up and recovering failed systems, and allow the user to diagnose problems and assist in the fixing steps.

 

I found this site a few years ago and the CD I constructed has saved my arse many, many times since. Hope this helps ya...

 

c4 :)

[Hilander72]

The problem is that I can't load Windows with this drive attached as Ide slave. I get to the Windows loading screen' date=' with the progress bar moving on black background, it just never actually loads.[/quote']

This tells me that your hdd is having an circuit malfunction...

 

Simply put:

Windows is asking the hdd: "Are you ready?"

HDD: "No response"

 

Connecting (mounting) a hdd to a computer with a running OS is no problem at all (if done correctly), but if a hdd has an circuit malfunction it will most certainly FREEZE the OS or DAMAGE the computer.

 

To extract data you'll need to replace the circuit board on the hdd and extract the data and then discard the malfunctioning hdd, since the circuit malfunction might be secondary caused by a mechanical malfunction.

[slug]

Thankyou all for the useful possibilities.

 

I think I may have made it look like I was lacking an operating system and needed to fix the one on my malfunctioning drive, whereas it is more the case that I simply wish to salvage what I can from this drive and then ditch it, the problem is that it won't load as a slave drive.

 

Or maybe you understood this exactly, I wouldn't want to suggest people far better informed than myself were misinterpreting me.

 

I may try nudging in the data cable when the OS is booted to see if that allows me to access it, hopefuly without frying myself. Any advice regarding the dubious task of connecting an HD to a booted OS would be appreciated.

 

Its interesting that C4 chose to use the British spelling 'arse.'

 

Thanks all for the good advice.

 

 

 

[MrDad]

It does sound like a mechanical problem, as others have said. You could place the hard drive in a freezer. I've done just that a couple of times to milk data from bad HDs. Switching the contoller board on the HD has already been suggested, also. As far as installing a HD after the system is booted, a USB or Firewire adapter os some sort is the safest bet. The IDE/SATA connectors on computer motherboards are not hot-swappable.

[Guest c4evap]

Its interesting that C4 chose to use the British spelling 'arse.

LOL. Well, we're not supposed to use the "American" spelling because it's against the forum rules to post cuss words. No one seems to mind though if it's spelled "arse"...and as a forum mod I have to be careful and set a good example ya know ;)

 

Anyway...back to your drive problem. If you just want to access it, you could try putting it in a HD USB enclosure. That might work. Maybe a friend has one you can borrow? Also, are you setting the pins on the drive to slave or cable-select? You might also try hooking it up as a master and boot up with a DOS floppy (if you have a floppy drive) and see if you can access the drive.

 

c4 B)

[slug]

I took the plunge and connected it while the computer was on, it did what one would expect, eventually recognise it, fail to show it in 'my computer,' and fail to function bearly at all, the computer was obviously under stress from the baffling damaged drive.

 

Now freezing, that sounds like an exciting plan. How long for?

 

I assume I'd need to get hold of another identical model to switch the board? I know they're easy to remove, problem is they have those batty screws to stop stupid people doing stupid things, like when I take stuff apart.

 

[Guest c4evap]

You could try putting it in the freezer for an hour then drop it on a carpet from about 3 feet up. Seriously, I've hear this works sometimes. At least long enough for you to access your files and transfer them to another working drive.

 

EDIT: Go here ---> http://www.hackaday.com/2005/11/17/hard-drive-resurrection/

 

c4 B)

[slug]

An hour you say, thats good to hear because I just put it in the freezer at about lunchtime, with the intention of taking it out at about 5 0'clock. It might have looked a little Walt Disney by that time.

 

Then I'll give it a little encouragement, by dropping it on carpet.

 

To be honest though, I don't hold out much hope, on account of the fact that I've already played about with it too much and its probably too far gone.

 

A word of advice to anyone who ends up in a similar situation:

 

The moment it looks like your hard drive has packed up, set about a decent plan to evacuate it, because you may only get one shot, sticking it in another computer and watching it squirm squanders what little chance you have left.

 

It would be a shame to lose it, but I've already accepted it and its an encouragement to stop maniacaly collecting nonsense and develop some sense of proportion.

 

If this doesn't work I may get another of the same model and swap the board. Although it was a clunking 300gb beast that could bearly manage two simple tasks at once. The whole hard drive transplant seems just a little too complex for me. Anyway, I'll see how this goes and stop wasting your time.

 

 

Or I could just leave it in the freezer until tecxhnology has advanced significantly enough to resurrect it...

 

 

 

 

[slug]

I stuck it in the freezer and then dropped it at 3 feet.

 

I was encouraged when the system booted but realised that it was probably because the drive was now so far gone that it didn't even have the power to confuse the computer any more. There was some evidence of its existence but no signs of life or system recognition. Its like trying to communicate with a coma patient. Ah well, it was worth a try.

[Hilander72]

I assume I'd need to get hold of another identical model to switch the board? I know they're easy to remove, problem is they have those batty screws to stop stupid people doing stupid things, like when I take stuff apart.

That's correct, you'll need an identical model, but there's no guarantee it'll work... (if it's a mechanical fault)

 

And the freezing thing is a long shot, but I know from experiance that it do work, for a very short time, and only when it's a mechanical malfunction that overheats the hdd in which case the built in heat sensor turns off the power to the motor that spins the disk/-s (which causes the heat).

Put simply: a cold hdd takes a little longer to overheat.

 

If you really need the data then it's better to let a pro do it for you, but they don't come cheap (atleast I didn't).

 

ps. I was a computer repairman... a decade ago... and listening to a hdd during power up tells a lot about it's state if you know what to listen to...

[Megalith]

if its mechanical another 'tip' is to place the drive upside down i've got HDD's working that just clunked and nothing else by doing this. of course HDD's are not designed to work upside down and getting the cable in can be a problem but it would/should let you get access to that precious comodity its data.

[slug]

To be honest I think I permanently damaged it with the freeze, drop method.

[NiteShdw]

I know that this is a bit late, but I just found this page on Digg

 

Complete Hard Drive Data Recovery Guide