Broken external HDD help/advice.

I "dropped" (ie it got a slight knock when a book fell on it) my WD Elements 1TB HDD. When I connect it to my PC it sees that a HDD is there but does not see what type it is, if any data is on it etc.

I have looked up on what to do about this but by the sounds of my problem it seems the options are freezing it or trying to get a data recovery service. It is making those awful clicking sounds which I know is very, VERY bad.

Is it now just an expensive paperweight? I lost nearly 900G of data; well not quite I do have back ups spread about but the last 3 months worth of data, (about 100G) is lost. I got lazy over the holidays but was (ironically) going to back it up today rolleyes.

Any ideas?

All help and advice (or possible uses for a dead HDD short of bashing it with a cricket bat which is my option of preference at the moment) Will be greatly appreciated.

Cheers

 

The clicking is an ominous sign the read/write heads have been knocked out of alignment or damaged.

If this is the case, it's very doubtful a data recovery program will work. Depending on the value (both time and cost) of replacing what was lost, your only option is to contact a few PC shops for an estimate of how much it will cost to do a recovery (in this case, it involves taking the internal drive apart and attempting to recover the data off the platters). The cost of this may run into several hundred USD; however reputable companies usually offer a money-back guarantee if they cannot recover the data.

Given the amount of files you have, it might be a good idea to consider both a replacement external drive and an online backup service. I use Carbonite. At $55 USD per year, it gives you unlimited online backup of files on a single PC's internal drive(s).

My house was broken into last year; the thieves got both my main PC and the external backup drive. Had it not been for the Carbonite backup I would have lost almost 10 years of writing, graphics and personal files.

Good luck. I hope you're able to recover everything.

 

That is my worst nightmare. All my personal files lost by some kids that just want the hardware. :eek

 

The saddest thing is that - although my neighbors got both a physical description of the b:***ds and their license plate # before they scared them away - the County Sheriff has been unable to find or prosecute them. On top of everything else, both the detective and I agreed (based on how they bypassed the security system) it was likely an employee of a contractor who did work at my house a few days before the burgulary.

The good news: Insurance covered most of the items stolen. The bad news? I just got my homeowners' insurance bill yesterday, sans claim-free discount. OUCH!

 

Had a feeling about that. 'Sigh'

I keep (usually) an up to date second HDD with all my most important stuff. I got lazy so it's more annoying than dire having to try and reassemble my data again. It's mainly copies of all my dvds so it's not too important. Luckily my work is still sitting on my pc. Work I almost deleted because i figured it was safely backed up rolleyes.

I'm curious about the online back up, is it secure? The thought of putting all my writing, pictures etc into the 'ether' of the net makes me a bit twitchy.

I'm sure it's just me but when a company like Blackberry bow to the demands of the Indonesian government I just start to wonder how 'secure' secure is.

Thanks for the reply gman863 it's really appreciated.

 

Carbonite uses SSL encryption. When setting up your account, you also have to set up a series of security questions and answers (similar to online banking) in order to reset your password if you forget it.

Unless the CIA or Interpol want in you should be totally safe. In addition, unless it's public knowledge your backups contain an unpublished sequel to Harry Potter, I doubt anyone would waste the time attempting to hack your or any other of the millions of online backups.

Going back to my original post, I feel online backup is safer than an external HDD by itself. The odds of a thief stealing your PC or backup drive during a burglary are far greater than having an online backup hacked.

 

I'm not suggesting any of my work is worth anything :-D Nice if they were.

But, Interpol hmmm........ if you're related to possible (and I emphasize possible) criminals; do they look into the accounts of family members?

 

I am not an attorney, nor am I familiar with privacy laws outside of the United States. If you want a specific legal answer on this question I recommend consulting a local attorney or a reputable web site dealing with the laws of your country.

I can, however, offer a personal opinion based on general knowledge of US law. In order to access private data, a law enforcement agency must have reasonable suspicion the person has committed (or plans to commit) a serious crime. Unless it is an extreme issue regarding terrorism covered under the Patriot Act (post 9/11), the agency must usually show cause in advance of the search and obtain permission from a Court of Law.

Even if such a search is conducted, the release or use of any files viewed is limited to those that are relevent to a known or suspected criminal act.

Based on news reports I have seen, Law Enforcement is far more likely to intercept and analyze direct communications between parties such as e-mail or private messaging. Since these are stored on Internet Service Provider servers, they would be easier to analyze quickly and in real time for keywords ("bomb", "hijack", etc.) than online backups.

If someone wants your data bad enough they will find a way to get it; however my opinion is using an online backup such as Carbonite would not make the process any easier for them to do so.