Technical FAQ - My hard disk appears physically damaged, can I recover data from it?

If the hard disk makes unusual noises (clicks, grinding, scratching etc.):

STOP using it immediately and do not attempt any software. Recovering data from a physically defective disk is very expensive so consider the need for this type of recovery carefully.

The hard disk spins but is not detected in the BIOS:

This can be caused by a number of things ranging from defective IDE cables to physical damage.

- Make sure the drive is properly configured in the BIOS (the AUTO setting should do well in most circumstances).
- Make sure the drive is properly jumpered.
- You can try if the disk is detected using different hardware, a different PC, different cables etc.
- Use diagnostic software or the drive manufacturer diagnostic tool. If these tools see the drive see if you can clone it.

Sometimes swapping the drive circuit board with one from an identical disk (type AND revision) can resolve this.

Drive doesn't spin up:

Consider if the value of the data outweighs the cost of data recovery by an outfit equipped to deal with physical defects (expertise, tools, clean room environment etc.).

Drive contains unreadable sectors:

Clone the drive immediately using disk clone tool. If required repair logical structures on the clone or extract data from the clone using Data Recovery Wizard.