Hard drive failure-Help save my stuff!

[Younggun]

From what I can tell, the hard drive has failed on my HP ProBook work laptop. I have some stuff backed up on a thumb drive and other stuff on the HDD.

I get a blue screen on startup, which starts a loop of restarting. Running diagnostic shows the HDD failed.

Company IT will get me a new computer but I'm trying to figure out how to recover some of the stuff I had saved on the computer. Any suggestions that won't cost several hundred dollars to pay someone to do it? Maybe through DOS?


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[TheDan]

Does the computer still recognize it? Does it still spin up? Is it making a bunch of clacking noises?

 

[Younggun]

No noises. Other than not starting it seems normal. Yellow HDD light comes on, if that means anything.

Tried starting in SAFE mode with command prompt and got blue screen again.


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[TreyG-20]

Following.

 

[Younggun]

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[TheDan]

If it starts to boot but then blue-screens it's probably still recoverable. Download Hiren's BootCD, boot up with that and run chkdsk from there. You could also try to copy more files off that drive from there.

 

[Brains]

Your data may still be completely, or nearly completely, recoverable. The drive failed it's short self test, which is typically a warning the drive is in a death spiral, but often can still be read.

Boot from a Linux LiveCD, connect a USB drive, and see if you can copy what you need off the drive. If that fails, there are still other options.


ETA: You want to minimize or if possible eliminate trying to write to the drive. You only want to read, to prevent any further damage that may be occurring due to failed sectors. Do not check the disk, try to repair the disk, etc.

 

[TheDan]

That screen is black, not blue

 

[Younggun]

Yeah, just loaded the blue screen. This one comes up before an option to log in. Just after the little colorful dots come together and make the Windows Logo.

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[Younggun]

Your data may still be completely, or nearly completely, recoverable. The drive failed it's short self test, which is typically a warning the drive is in a death spiral, but often can still be read.

Boot from a Linux LiveCD, connect a USB drive, and see if you can copy what you need off the drive. If that fails, there are still other options.


ETA: You want to minimize or if possible eliminate trying to write to the drive. You only want to read, to prevent any further damage that may be occurring due to failed sectors. Do not check the disk, try to repair the disk, etc.

Thanks.


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[crackpot]

Even when windows or linux could not mount a drive, I have been able to recover the drive using
http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Duplicator-Function-EC-HDD2/dp/B00IKC14OG/
and its built in duplicate feature. In any case, this is a good device for when you pull a drive out of a machine and want to mount and copy data. The duplicate feature is a bonus and is more robust than typical file system expectations when a disk is circling the drain.

 

[mroper]

Follow Brains advice pull off the information you need then maybe try to repair the drive.

 

[Mreed911]

Younggun - I have a USB-SATA device that allows me/you to try mounting the hard drive as an external drive to see if it can be made to boot, spin up, be recognizable, etc.

I'd be willing to meet you somewhere (Starbucks, my house, etc.) and bring it to try out. The drive would have to be outside of the HP and you'll need a working computer to connect it to - I'm willing to test it on my MacBook as read-only, but understand if you'd be a little leery about connecting it to someone else's computer.

The other option would be booting to a live linux CD without the hard drive in your computer then use the device to mount as an external drive.

They also sell these things at Fry's, about $15-20 bucks if I remember.

PM me if you want to meet up, borrow it, etc. It's sitting in a drawer in my office and I'm in North Austin.

 

[Younggun]

Appreciate the offer, but I'm about 2.5 hours from Austin. Also being a company owned computer I don't want to open it up and be blamed for causing the issue.


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[matefrio]

If you get desperate this seems to work well: https://www.grc.com/cs/prepurch.htm

 

[Younggun]

Any suggestions for a download site to put Linux on a thumb or CD to boot from? I know some have been listed in the past.

Also, any version recommended?


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[Mreed911]

Did your work provide backup software, e.g. is there an automatic backup out there somewhere?

 

[Younggun]

If you get desperate this seems to work well: https://www.grc.com/cs/prepurch.htm

Not really desperate. Nothing on the computer in really worried about someone finding later. Just trying to not lose some personal stuff.


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[Younggun]

Did your work provide backup software, e.g. is there an automatic backup out there somewhere?

Nope. The new computer will have work related software preinstalled and I have a thumb drive with a backup of almost all my work related documents. When I get the new computer I can pick up with work right where I left off.

Just wasn't smart enough to back up what I considered less critical.


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[Brains]

For ease of use, get Linux Mint or Ubuntu. Download it, burn it to a CD, feed it to the laptop, and power on.