Desktop Hard Drive Data Recovery

Desktop hard disk drives are manufactured in a 3.5 inch form factor. They contain one or a number of platters having magnetic properties suitable for non-volatile data storage. Modern platters have high area storage density capability typically 160 GByte, 250 GByte, 500 GByte or 1TByte.

Pre-formatted tracks or cylinders are laid down in manufacture and these control the operation of the hard disk drive in a changeable environment. Read/write heads are attached to an actuator store and retreive data under the control of the operating system.

Failure is often as a result of damage to the control electronics, motor, platters or the read/write heads generally due to misuse or extended use of the device beyond its design life.

Symptoms:

• Clicking Noises
• Not recognised in the BIOS
• Drive motor and platters not spinning

Recovery:

The majority of electronic problems can be rectified and the stored data retrieved.

Mechnical failure of the read/write heads or motor is often associated with damage to the stored data. In the majority of cases this is not extensive. Basic component substitution will often render the hard disk drive operational and the data can then be extracted and repaired. In some cases however the control data is damaged beyond repair and data extraction is not possible without complex reprogramming and rebuilding processes.

Recommendations:

Do Not run or attempt to run repair utilities as this will often exacerbate any damage to the stored data.