Anything else to try on external FW drive before sending it out to DriveSavers?

Question

Anything else to try on external FW drive before sending it out to DriveSavers?

After sending them the pertinent information, Drive Savers of Novato, CA is quoting me $700 to $2,700 to recover the data contents of an external and now no-longer-mounting120Gb OWC Mercury FW hd consisting of 34.5 GB of images.

The drive contains only image files, no OS or apps.

The backup of that particular drive turns out to be bogus due to human error (brain short-circuit: wrong data).

The drive mounted initially, for about a minute, then disappeared. I managed to get it to mount another couple of times after little fiddling with it, only to see it disappear and freeze the Finder after about half a minute each time.

At one point, I connected it through its USB2 port, and the System Profiler did see it, so I made a screen shot of that:

===>>

Now the drive will not mount, Apple's Disk Utility and Disk Warrior do not see it, neither do the System Profiler, TechTool Pro or Data Rescue 3. :-(

Any suggestions will be most appreciated by yours truly, before painstakingly examining the Bridge-cache thumbnails on my boot drive one by one to see how much I'd be willing to invest. In other words, I'm not sure I have $2,700 worth of images there. 😝

Thanks in advance.

PowerMac, Mac OS X (10.4.11), 2.5G5Quad,16GB,7800GTX 512MB, Tiger

Posted on Dec 30, 2012 2:38 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Klaus1

Level 9

52,759 points

Dec 30, 2012 3:21 AM in response to Ramón G Castañeda

You might consider contacting OWC for advice. Their after-sales service is excellent, and it may be that it is not the drive but the case that it is in.

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Answer 2

Dec 30, 2012 3:25 AM in response to Klaus1

Thanks, Klaus1. I had not gone that route because the drive is definitely out of warranty. I'll try them on Monday or after Jan 2.

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Answer 3

Dec 30, 2012 3:29 AM in response to Klaus1

On the other hand, I can hear the drive spinning if I put my ear to it, I can ever hear it whirr as it first starts up, then hear the motor spinning afterwards, independent of the clicking sounds.

Do you still thing it can be just the enclosure?

I'll definitely contact OWC next wee.

Thanks again.

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Answer 4

Klaus1

Level 9

52,759 points

Dec 30, 2012 3:33 AM in response to Ramón G Castañeda

Clicking sounds = not good!

But still worth having a word with OWC.

Post back with results! 🙂

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Answer 5

Dec 30, 2012 5:14 AM in response to Klaus1

Will definitely report back. Thank you, Klaus1.

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Answer 6

Jeff

Level 6

12,058 points

Dec 30, 2012 10:04 AM in response to Ramón G Castañeda

There could be a problem with a component on the bridge board - even the controller chip itself. Before you send an out-of-warranty external hard drive for professional data recovery, open the case (occasionally, the snap-catches can break, without the factory's tool to release them) and remove the drive. When you're dealing with a plastic housing having top and bottom halves, examine the sides of the case for a pair of open slots along the narrow joint where the two housings meet. If you have something that's thin, stiff, and narrow enough to fit the width of the slot, you can insert it into the slot and press in on the catch to release it. Something like an old credit card can be trimmed to do this. If you alternate from side-to-side, you should be able to free the two halves. With all-metal enclosures, removing (2) screws from the rear will often enable the internal chassis to slide out of the housing. A warranty-void sticker is usually covering one of the screws. Depending on the date of manufacture, the internal drive will either be a PATA (IDE/EIDE) or a SATA drive. Connect an adapter such as this one to the drive and to the USB port on the computer. If the drive is functional, it should mount properly. If it doesn't, it may have an electronic and/or mechanical problem. If that's the case, professional data recovery is an expensive option that you'll (unfortunately) need to consider. Incidentally, this type of adapter isn't platform-specific, so you don't need to buy it from OWC. Check any PC or electronics stores in your area. I paid $15 for one from Micro Center and it works with my Macs and PCs.

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Answer 7

Dec 31, 2012 12:07 PM in response to Jeff

Much obliged, Jeff. I'll get on it right away. I'll try my local Fry's first for the adapter.

I checked and I've had the OWC Mercury drive since January of 2003, probably a PATA drive. There's a clear acrylic case around the all metal enclosure, I'll poke around.

I'll report back.

Thanks.

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Answer 8

DrJaymez

Level 1

0 points

Dec 31, 2012 5:11 PM in response to Ramón G Castañeda

If it is clicking, it is probably hosed. I agree with above inout from Jeff, but would also try the hard drive freezer trick before sending it off to Drivesavers. I have had this work long enough to recover data.

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Answer 9

Dec 31, 2012 5:46 PM in response to Ramón G Castañeda

Consider a DIY file recovery using DataRescue

http://macs.about.com/od/systemutilities/fr/Data-Rescue-3-Review-When-You-Must-R ecover-Your-Macs-Data.htm

 Cheers, Tom 😉

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Answer 10

Dec 31, 2012 10:11 PM in response to Texas Mac Man

Thank you, Tom. I do have that utility, but it doesn't do me any good as long as it cannot see the drive. :-)

If I manage to get it to mount with a Newer Tech drive adapter ( http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Newer%20Technology/U2NV2SPATA/ ) currently on its way to me, DataRescue 3 will be the third on my list to try, after Disk Warrior and Apple's Disk Utility.

Thank you for chiming in.

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Answer 11

japamac

Level 7

24,400 points

Jan 1, 2013 12:36 AM in response to Ramón G Castañeda

I'll vouch for Data Rescue software. I have DR 3, DR 2 as well, and DR 2 saved my data and but t bigtime. Works very, very well with image files.

DrJaymez mention of the freeze trick is a highly viable option.

Seriously, check this out:

200 ways to revive a hard drive - Obvious

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Answer 12

Jan 4, 2013 9:50 PM in response to japamac

Update: the Newert Tech drive adapter works as designed, but the drive still fails to be recognized.

Next step will be to stick it in ther freezer overnight. I'll report on what happens tomorrow.

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Answer 13

Jan 6, 2013 8:52 PM in response to Ramón G Castañeda

Further update: No luck with the freeze trick. 😟

On to the professional services in Livermore (Data Rescue Center, affiliated with Prosoft Enginnering) and in Novato (Drive Savers) tomorrow. 😢

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Answer 14

japamac

Level 7

24,400 points

Jan 7, 2013 1:41 AM in response to Ramón G Castañeda

Sorry for your loss....$$$$ 😟

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Answer 15

Apr 4, 2013 4:05 PM in response to japamac

Here's the bad news update:

As a last resort, I personally took my dead external drive to The Data Rescue Center in Livermore, CA. They're with the makers of Data Rescue 3.

I was highly impressed with their operation, having been there personally, but even they couldn't rescue any data from my drive. 😢

Ouch!

Just got the bad news from

The Data Rescue Center

1599 Greenville Road

Livermore, CA 94550

Examination process:

• Complete visual inspection of the hard drive’s casing, electronics board and warranty seals. • Complete visual inspection of the drive’s internal parts; Read/Write Heads, Particle Filters, Spindle Motor and Data Platters. • Electronics board is tested to verify component integrity. • Read/Write Heads are tested to verify integrity. • Depending on the drives state, the drive’s service area is check for corruption.

Examination:

• No visual signs of damage were noted to the external casing, electronics board or warranty seals.

• Electronics board testing completed without error.

• Physical damage was discovered to the read/write heads during the internal inspection.

• Severe platter scoring was discovered on multiple platters during the internal visual inspection.

• The Service Area could not be tested due to the platter damage.

• Diagnosis:

• This hard drive and the data contained are unrecoverable due to severe platter damage. The platter damage was caused by physical contact between the read/write heads and the platter surface during operation. This contact is typically the result of physical impact to the hard drive or device containing the hard drive, it can also occur under normal operating conditions.

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