external hard drive

I have a a Maxtor Personal Storage 3100, 80gig external hard drive. It does not have an on and off switch so all this time the hard drive was running. Today it is still running with the orange (drive reading/writing) light on but my computer doesn't recognize the drive. Is there any way I could capture what was on the drive to discs or another hard drive. All my backup is on the drive. I am not literal in computer hardware so I need to ask silly questions. I do apologize and thank you in advance for any assistance you might give me.:cry

Thank you,

Wadda

 

do you know if its a SATA or IDE? Is this still under warrenty?

If its not under warrenty, crack the case, take out the hard drive, and try a direct connection to your mobo. See if it will recognize it then.

 

It is not under warranty anymore. It is about 6 or 7 yrs old. It doesn't say whether it is a SATA or an IDE. Is there anyway of telling?? I'll try and get the nerve up to do as you directed. Thank you for your reply and suggestion

 

If it's out of warranty then open up the case, pull out the drive and you can tell if it's IDE or sata depending on the connection -

IDE -

http://amigakit.leamancomputing.com/catalog/images/cable-ide.jpg

Sata -

http://sierra-cables.com/SATA/Images/SATA-Signal-Cable-1.jpg

 

Is there a difference in me trying to do this with one or the other? (IDE-SATA) As I stated before I am not to experienced with this sort of problem. Should I even bother to try and retrieve the files? Is it out of my range of experience?

Thank you,

Wadda

 

No, it's a simple enough procedure.

If you have a spare IDE/sata port on your motherboard then connect up the drive and you should be able to access it through Windows.

 

Thank you, I will try that. I guess there isn't much I could lose?

Wadda

 

I'd guess that your problem lies with the enclosure and not the drive itself, therefore all data should be fine. You can pick up replacement enclosures fairly cheap off the bay now.

 

I have no idea what you mean by the enclosure. Do you mean the internal workings?
When I plug the drive in it makes some beeping noises, the orange lite goes on like it was reading or writing and just sit there doing that. My computer does not recognize the drive.

Wadda

 

The hard drive is actually inside the box that connects to your computer. The box is just an enclosure, so the drive needs to be taken out. You should have about 4 screws to undo in order to get the drive out.

 

That is interesting I didn't know anything could go wrong with the box(enclosure). Thank you for replying.

Wadda

 

Yup, it's a common problem - happened to me on a few occasions but I think I've got a fairly stable one now

 

Do you have any suggestions on what kind to get?

Thank you, again

Wadda

 

Generally, I've found that spending a bit more gives a better quality product that lasts longer.

 

Should I get in touch with the manufacturer. Seems to me that might be the best. I am going at this with no knowledge so I want to try and do it right the first time.

Thank you,

Wadda

 

To be honest, you won't get much help from them if it's out of warranty.
Have you taken the drive out of the enclosure yet to determine if it's sata or IDE?

 

I took the drive out. Inside the drive is enclosed with metal prongs all over it. The only thing I can see is a long plasti curved wand which touches the two lites, green and orange for reading. After awhile the beeping stops and then it just hums. I can feel the drive spinning. I am afraid if I remove all the metal I will not be able to salvage anything. I cannot see if it is an sata or ide. Any thoughts on this???

Wadda

 

OK I figured what the heck. I have to know whether it is sata or IDE. It is IDE. Does that help for any suggestions?

Thank you,

Wadda

 

OK so we know it's IDE. You can unplug both connections from the drive and take it out, so long as you don't dismantle the drive itself (shouldn't be able to as the screws are special ones).
You then either need to decide if you want to have it as a drive in your computer (harder) or get a new external enclosure for it. I'd pick the latter, although it's more costly, it's easier and you still have it as an external drive.

Now we need to know - are you a US resident, UK etc?

 

I am a US resident. Sorry so long getting back to you. I suffered 2 congestive heart failures in July so I am always traveling to the Doctors. I really appreciate your assistance and understanding being so much of your time is involved.

Thank you,

Wadda

 

Do I just go to best buy(local) to purchase one of the enclosures? Do I look for anything in particular? Also, do I purchase, a new IDE cable?

Thank you,

Wadda

 

You can get them off Newegg online - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817193019

That one seems to have good reviews.
All cabling etc is provided in the box. Just to check that it's a 3.5" drive and not a laptop drive (2.5")?

 

Thank you! You have been a lot of help.

Wadda

 

Glad to have solved your problem, let us know how the installation goes