[SOLVED] Storage Server offline again...

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Hello, so my janky storage nas went offline. I noticed the web interface said the HDD went offline before the nas went offline entirely, which is likely due to the way its plugged into the optical bay and the SATA data cable likes to fall out.

I took the hdd out and plugged it into my PC just to ensure the data is still there. Nothing shows in file explorer, however, disk management shows the drive fine.

How can I assign the drive a letter and make sure no data is destroyed? The option to assign a letter is greyed out.

I believe the drive is formatted for Linux or something due to the OS on the nas.

@USAFRet
 
Solution
Follow the instructions in my FAQ. It tells you which components to examine and provides you with a possible zero-cost DIY solution.

At least tell us the model number of the HDD, or preferably upload a photo of the component side of the PCB. The screws are most likely Torx 6 or similar.

If you have a multimeter, connect the adapter cable to the PSU, but not the HDD. Now measure the voltage at the SATA pins. This should tell you whether the adapter is correctly wired.

https://pinoutguide.com/Power/sata-power_pinout.shtml
Omg. I have never had electronics catch fire like this before.

This external hdd adapter came with a molex psu and a molex to sata adapter.

I wandered if the sata to molex adapter was the issue.

So i went and grabbed the molex modular cable for my cx550m. Plugged the molex modular cable into the sata to molex adapter and the hdd. The other end went into my psu.

i turned my computer on. The oc turned on fine, but the adapter immediately started smoking and burst into flames. I turned the psu off and blew out the flames.

So now im super confused what happened. The 5v wire of the adapter completely melted, but all of the other cables look fine.
 

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
Omg. I have never had electronics catch fire like this before.

This external hdd adapter came with a molex psu and a molex to sata adapter.

I wandered if the sata to molex adapter was the issue.

So i went and grabbed the molex modular cable for my cx550m. Plugged the molex modular cable into the sata to molex adapter and the hdd. The other end went into my psu.

i turned my computer on. The oc turned on fine, but the adapter immediately started smoking and burst into flames. I turned the psu off and blew out the flames.

So now im super confused what happened. The 5v wire of the adapter completely melted, but all of the other cables look fine.
And this is why the generic answer to the generic question "Can I use an adapter?" is....No.
 
And how many threads have we had conversations in where I've told somebody that using adapters is a HORRIBLE idea, when it comes to power, because IF a device was intended to be powered by that device, it would HAVE the correct connectors. I know you've seen that. I know there have been a few instances where you suggested to the OP it was ok and could be done. Now you know WHY I say it's a bad idea.

I agree, in some cases it might be ok to use SOME adapters, and a SATA to Molex adapter is probably one of those cases, but all in all, it is ALWAYS better to get the right tool for the job AND it is NEVER a good idea if you are going to get and use an adapter, to skimp and get a cheap one. They are not all created equally. Sorry this happened to you man, but it's not really like you didn't know that when using an adapter it's potentially an outcome. Hope you can get it sorted though. Really sucks to have stuff like this happen.
 
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USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
The "issue" is...you've taken a bad situation ("so my janky storage nas went offline. ") and made it very much worse ("I turned the psu off and blew out the flames. ")

Probably stemming from "I guess I'll just have to jump the 18pin propriatary connector to get it started, but this may be a pain with black wires and no wiring diagram. "

Now, you have actually smoked up parts. Might be just the drive, might be several other things as well.
 
Follow the instructions in my FAQ. It tells you which components to examine and provides you with a possible zero-cost DIY solution.

At least tell us the model number of the HDD, or preferably upload a photo of the component side of the PCB. The screws are most likely Torx 6 or similar.

If you have a multimeter, connect the adapter cable to the PSU, but not the HDD. Now measure the voltage at the SATA pins. This should tell you whether the adapter is correctly wired.

https://pinoutguide.com/Power/sata-power_pinout.shtml
 
Solution
I did measure the outout of the sata to molex adapter while it was plugged into the molex power adapter before this incident.

Without the hdd connected, i probed the sata end of the connector.

I saw around 12v and 5v ish. With the hdd connected the 5v stayed the same but 12v jumped up to 13v. The hdd spun up and down.

I didnt measure the voltage when the stat to molex adapter was plugged into my cx550m. Stupidly enough, this situation didnt trip any protections on my psu...

Oddly enough both black wires of the stata end of the adapter were not shorted either.
 
I cannot identify the tvs diode.

I can see which components failed and i hope you can help identfy them from the images.

The big component that failed says "QA RC07"

The 2 little components that failed are too small to read the top, but i think i just see a q on top. These are on the 5v pins of the connector.
 
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The 5V TVS diode is most probably shorted, and the corresponding zero-ohm resistors appear to be open circuit. The solution is to remove the shorted diode and flow a blob of solder over the resistors. However, this will leave the drive without overvoltage protection on its 5V input, so be careful not to clobber it again.

ST2000DM001_TVS.jpg