PDA

View Full Version : Dead WD1200BB?


tetrakarbon
09-01-2006, 06:17 PM
Hey! I think I have pretty much the exact same hard drive problem posted about here: http://www.techspot.com/vb/all/windows/t-16504-Any-way-to-recover-this-HD.html I also have an A7N8X Deluxe and a WD1200BB hard drive, and the BIOS has the same problem recognizing the drive (it won't detect it on startup, but if I go in the BIOS and tell it to automatically detect the drive, it does)

It sets it for 16383 cylinders, landing zone 16382, head 16, sector 63, for 8455MB (it's a 120GB drive). Uses LRG mode, PIO 0. It has no problem with a new 250GB WD drive.

At startup it goes really, really slow if the drive is plugged in. Windows also boots real slow. Windows won't recognize the drive if it's plugged in. It's not just a formatting thing, since it doesn't even detect the presence of the physical disk in device manager.

I've messaged the poster about if he resolved his issue. Hoping to hear back.

I flashed my BIOS to the latest, and have tried using HDD Regenerator (it goes really slow, about 1MB every couple hours); I didn't wait, but so far every sector is listed as bad. WD's Data Lifeguard has been pretty useless too - it doesn't recognize the drive, just like Windows won't. Got the Ultimate Boot CD, but it can't detect the drive, so that's no help...

I'm trying to find tools which can help copy the image of the busted drive to a partition on my 250GB one. However, I haven't found anything that will even detect the drive.

I am not really sure whether the drive is spinning up. It does at least communicate _something_ to the BIOS. Is this the kind of thing where a logic board switch might help?

Frankly, I don't really know what the cause of this is, so I'm kind of guessing at the best approach. My sister says there was a lightning storm and the computer just blinked off.

Alright, thanks a lot in advance everybody! Hope to hear back! :)

-- Ned Ruggeri

Scott
09-01-2006, 06:25 PM
I would pull the drive an work with it outside the case. If you power it up and can not feel it spinning pick it up and rotate from side to side, if it starts spinning then the drive is croaking. We see that alot with failing drives here at the shop.

Kougar
09-03-2006, 12:53 AM
So you have already tried it in another working machine then, and Windows couldn't detect it? Have you tried a known working HDD in this current machine, since you mention lightening might have been involved... ;)