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HELP!!!

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by nightflower

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Our computer just died (I think the power supply went dead since it can't even spin the hard drive with nothing else plugged in). We got a junker off someone and tried to hook it up as a main (both run XP). The computer says "no operating system found". So I tried to hook it up as a slave and it doesn't come up with anything being hooked up. Now what? All our family photos and whatnot are on that computer and we have no other way to get the stuff off. How do we pull the info off. I have another computer, but it is running Vista and is a laptop.

5 replies

by thechas

It sounds like the drive may have been damaged when the power supply failed. Specifically, the controller electronics on the drive itself.

Before you do anything else, ask yourself how valuable the data on the drive is. If you have a strong need to fully recover as much data as possible, disconnect the drive right now and send it off to a data recovery service. Yes, it may cost you several hundred dollars. But, the less you attempt to do to the drive yourself, the easier it will be for a service to recover as much data as possible.

If you want to go the do-it-yourself route, the first step is to buy an "IDENTICAL" hard drive. Swap the circuit board on the bottom of the drive and cross your fingers.
NOTE: This work should be performed on an ESD safe work surface while wearing a properly grounded wrist strap.

Chas

by thumbsup2

Did you check the BIOS to see if the drive can be seen? Did you double check that the slave/master jumpers on all drives are set correctly so that the BIOS can see it? You said you "tried" to slave the old drive. What does the BIOS see when you tried?

by nightflower

When I plug it in as a slave and go into setup, it doesn't recognize anything there, nor does "my computer." I read somewhere to hook it up like you would a cd drive and try that. Do you think that will work?

by jjbueyes

I think that you can try using a external storage cage, put the disk into this, and connect the external storage using the USB to the Laptop, may be you can usage the info stored and make a backup.

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