A failed drive that a local computer person couldn't get anything from with a recovery programme usually has an issue with the physical hardware, and so the data won't be reached by running any kind of recovery programme, because software accesses a drive through its normal path and if a drive has failed at the level of its hardware that path is closed. Instead the drive is opened and read directly on recovery equipment. The local person, having tried a recovery programme and got nothing, suggested it might need taking apart to get at it, and that was a sound judgement, since the fault is in the drive's hardware and the data is sitting behind it. She had a hard drive failure and took the machine to a local person: "He has done a recovery programme on it and not been able to get any data", and he then suggested it might need to be taken apart. Software couldn't get to a physically failed drive, so it's opened and read directly, and the referral was a sound one. The drive is read directly.
| Media | A failed drive that a local computer person tried to recover using software, who then said it might need opening up to get at the data. |
| Reported situation | Hard drive · a failure · a local person ran a recovery programme and got no data · said it might need taking apart · second opinion sought. |
| Fault class | A physical fault that software can't reach, in the firmware, the board or the mechanics. If the drive is opened and read directly on recovery equipment there is usually data still intact behind the fault, which is why the local person referring it to a lab makes sense. |
| Equipment used | We assessed the drive while it was connected to a PC-3000 UDMA unit behind a hardware write-blocker, looking at its firmware, board and mechanism to find where the physical fault was. We then made the right repair (firmware or service-area repair, board repair with this drive's ROM, or head or motor work on the head-swap bench if it was mechanical). After that the drive was imaged using DeepSpar, the filesystem was parsed in R-Studio and the data was validated onto fresh media. |
Software can't get to a physically broken drive. That is why a recovery programme not returning any data points at a physical fault, because software has to go through the drive's own normal path to read its contents, it asks the working drive for what is on it, so when the hardware has failed and the drive cannot present itself there is no way for software to read from it and it returns nothing. The empty result therefore shows the type of failure, a physical fault in the drive that software cannot get past, rather than a lack of data, as the recording is not gone. Her data is usually still on the drive behind that fault, and it is reached by reading the drive directly. Software can't get to a physically failed drive.
The decision to open it up is an appropriate one. It was a sound judgement for the local person, who had been trying to get data off the drive using software, to decide that taking it apart may be needed, because a physically failed drive is read by working on its hardware directly, opening it up where the failure is mechanical, or getting at the firmware and circuit board where it is not, and that is beyond what a standard recovery programme can do. What they did shows they followed the proper process, they tried software and it could not reach the fault, so the drive needs the kind of direct, hardware-level work that a lab provides. Recognising that and passing it on was correct, and her data will be reached through that direct work, as the referral suggested. The referral to open it up is a sound one.
It's opened and read directly. Due to the fact that this is a hardware failure the drive is read directly, connected to recovery equipment, and its firmware, board and mechanism are assessed and the fault put right, then the drive is imaged and the data is read at the drive's own level as opposed to through a route that the failure has shut. If there is a mechanical failure the drive is opened on the head-swap bench and the problem with the mechanism is repaired, however if the failure is in the firmware or the board it is dealt with without opening the drive. Her data is reached from the image, which is how a physically failed drive is recovered. The free diagnostic finds the fault, and before any work is agreed one fixed quote is given in writing.
Generally the honest prognosis is good, and it is established at assessment. In most cases where the fault is in the firmware or the board over sound platters, which is common for a failed drive that software can't read, reading the drive recovers the data well, usually in full. If the mechanism is responsible for the failure then that is dealt with on the head-swap bench, and this is confirmed before any work goes ahead.
The drive was read directly behind a hardware write-blocker using PC-3000 UDMA, and its board, mechanism and firmware were assessed to find the physical fault. The fault was then dealt with (firmware or service-area repair, board repair with the original ROM for this drive, or head or motor work on the head-swap bench if it was mechanical). After that it was imaged on DeepSpar, the filesystem was parsed in R-Studio and the data was validated and copied onto fresh media.
The physical fault was dealt with, the drive read directly and the data recovered onto new media. We do not charge for the diagnostic stage, and it reports back within two working days of the media arriving, after which you have one written quote, fixed, plus VAT. Opening a drive commits donor stock and head-swap bench time, so we ask for half of the quoted figure upfront before that stage begins, and the balance is due only if we recover your data. In short, software couldn't get to a physically failed drive, so it was opened and read directly, and the referral was sound. Once it has been read directly, your data comes back.
When a drive has physically failed, software can't get to the data through the drive's normal path, because the hardware has failed and the drive can't present itself to the operating system, so there is no path to read and the programme simply returns nothing. The suggestion of opening it up is also correct, as a physically failed drive is read by working on its hardware directly, which is beyond what software can do. The drive is opened and read directly, the hardware fault is dealt with, and then it is imaged. Do not keep running software on a drive that is clicking or will not appear, and have it read directly instead.
Our case files are based on real customer enquiries that our lab has handled for people across Swindon and Wiltshire, and each one has been anonymised to protect client confidentiality. Each file sets out how our engineers diagnose and recover that fault, using the equipment listed.
A Swapped-Out Drive Is Read on Its Own — Its Original Fault Addressed, the Data Recovered Apart From the Laptop
Little Detail Isn't a Barrier — the Drive Is Read and the Fault Determined at Assessment
A Beeping Drive Is a Seized Motor, Not a Simple Jam — Freed Under Magnification in Clean Air
Get a free diagnostic and a fixed quote before sending anything. In most cases you only pay if we recover your data, and where the work is electronic, mechanical or involves opening the drive, 50% is paid upfront and the balance only if we recover your data. Forensic work is paid upfront once you accept the fixed quote. Only send the drive and not the whole computer (if you're unsure what type of storage you have, ring us first). Take RAID and server disks out and label them by bay, take NAS disks out if you can and otherwise send the NAS, and send a single external drive whole, with its cable and power supply. Post it tracked and insured, or drop it off at the Oxford lab, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5:30pm, no appointment needed. Start now or call the freephone to begin.