How much ram do you have in your system? While your computer is open it's always a great time to upgrade the ram. And video card. Makes the internet porn load faster.
Got a 2TB hard drive. Going thru the fun re-install now. They said my old hard drive is toast. But I'm not giving up hope on being able to recover files from it yet. They said there are places that can still get the data as long as the disc itself isnt scratched.
If you are using XP, you should consider upgrading to windows 7 or windows 8. This software can recover many/most of your files as long as the drive isn't physically damaged. You would hear the drive make bad noises if it's damaged. http://www.prosofteng.com/products/data_rescue.php $99 You might find cheaper software somewhere.
If it says "starting windows" then it is reading SOME data from the disk. No guarantee much is readable though. It seems like a lot will be, but windows won't boot because it's retrying some disk error. It could be taking a long time, too.
After he has removed the files that he wants to keep from the drive he should go to the drive's manufacturers website and download their software for testing and reformatting the drive. If the drive checks out he should reformat it, test it again and if that time it checks out he can use it for a second drive or internal backup.
You guys forgot to tell him, the best time to back stuff up is when it all works. A tits up back up doesn't work all that well.
Naw Sly! when a drive is questionable, you best get your stuff off while you can, and junk the bugger. When the heads don't fly right, they won't read very long.
The files could be crunched but that might not mean the physical drive is damaged. That's why I said use the latest diagnostic software from the drives manufacturer. I've seen computer companies use the formatting software that comes with Windows instead of the formatting that comes with the drive. That can leave the data on the drive unstable but the physical drive itself fine. Test.Reformat.Test Again. After you do that then make the decision if you want to continue to use the drive.
When I plug in the old drive, my PC finds it and it shows the files/folders but then says "not responding". Damn!
I dont have an extra data cable, so I used the cable from my CD/DVD drive. Unplugged from cd/DVD drive and into old hard drive, left the other end of the cable in same spot. That OK? I can feel the drive working when I plug in the power cable. It doesnt make any crazy noises. The new hard drive is louder than the old one, but probably because I have the case opened up on both sides.
Are you doing this with the computer on? Have you rebooted the computer since you replaced the DVD with the hard drive? Is the BIOS reading the hard drive? Who makes the hard drive? Are there any naked pictures of your wife or Mrs HCP on your old drive?
Yes Yes, but it stayed on the "shutting down" screen so I manually turned it off after waiting 5 min. Haven't tried restarting with old drive plugged in. When old drive is plugged in, it seems to make everything that looks for drives to "not responding". I tried finding the drive with Security Essentials to see if I could scan it & it stuck at "not responding". Same with the program (demo) that Denny suggested. I don't know. ???? Seagate Yes. No
If you try swapping the DVD drive with the hard drive will the computer is running the computer won't know that it has the hard drive installed, it will think it's still the DVD is installed. ALSO YOU CAN SHORT OUT YOUR COMPUTER SWAPPING HARDWARE WITH THE POWER ON. Don't do that anymore. Do you know how to get into your BIOS? Do you know what the BIOS is? You normally do it by hitting the F10 or the ESC key when you first turn on the computer. It will briefly flash on the screen how to do it. Once you're in the BIOS there will be a section for the Hard Drives and DVD stuff. Make sure that is reading the names of your 2 hard drives. Can you describe the nude pictures of your wife to me. In full detail, it will help determine how much more I really want to help you.
He could do it as Hoojacks suggested. Here's a link to How to Get Data Off an Old Hard Drive (Without Putting It in a PC) http://www.howtogeek.com/182452/how-to-get-data-off-an-old-hard-drive-without-putting-it-in-a-pc/
Don't listen to SPD. Your drive is fucked. Only way to recover the data is to pay $1000 to a recovery company. You can try freezing it as a last resort, but the drive is fucked. You need to mirror the drive but like I said it will hit that bad sector and freeze up