Seagate 1TB HDD 3.5" not reading/spinning

[craig_campbell]

Hi everyone. Im hoping someone will be able to help me. So I learnt the hard way a few years back... power surge fried my computer and I didnt back anything up (I do now though!). Motherboard and both hard drives finished. This was probably back in 2011 or so. Ive only just hauled out the HDDs from storage now and want to recover whatever stuff could still be on them. Ive bought an external casing - so currently using that via usb. The one HDD (WD 320 gigs) starts up but doesnt read via "my computer". However, if I use data recovery freeware (GetDataBack NTFS), I am able to access most things. The other hard drive, however, does not have such luck. It is a Seagate 1TB 3.5". If I plug it in, there is no spinning whatsoever. Just a slow, soft beeping noise that carries on indefinitely. So, other than paying a fortune for someone to recover everything professionally, does anyone have any other ideas for me please? Ive read about swapping the green circuit board at the back, but I cant find one of the same year/model. Ive tried using a newer circuit board from last years HDDs, but still get the same result. Any ideas? Please ask as many questions as you feel necessary. I will answer whatever I can. Thanks!

 

[Boogieman_WD]

Hey there, Craig.

Unfortunately it really sounds like the PCB of that drive has failed. And if this is the case your only options are indeed PCB swapping with the exact same model, data recovery, or in some really really rare cases you might take the drive to a technician and if there's something that just has to be soldered it might be fixes (but if I were you, I wouldn't put my hopes in that). Swapping a PCB is also not recommended, as even if you find the exact same model, it's still not guaranteed to work.

The bottom line is this, if you have really valuable data on that HDD, perhaps it would be best to seek professional help.

Hope that helps.
Boogieman_WD

 

[craig_campbell]

Thanks so much for the input 'boogieman'! I appreciate it I was afraid something like that might be the issue. I will keep looking for a PCB of that year/model. Maybe I get lucky. The data is not important to me, but would be cool to get back. But no train smash! Thanks again and take care.

 

[Boogieman_WD]

You too mate. I hope you are able to get your files back. Let me know if you do.

Cheers!