Damaged external hard drive- suggestions
Jan 13, 2022 09:12:40 #
osoblancophoto wrote:
Ok it happened. I managed to knock over a Seagate ... (show quote)
Recently had data (40K + pics) recovered from a secure data recovery company. Pleased that 95+% of data recovered and mailed back on an HDD Harddrive.(immediately transferred to SSD). Many pics not as they were on the dead HD I sent them though almost every one edited well. Only advice I would give is when the recovery company quotes in the thousands of $ ask if it can be done for less. I got this co down from $1700+ to $900. They said it would just take longer, a couple of weeks. Make sure the recovery co works in a dust free, controlled lab. Good luck.
Jan 13, 2022 09:16:20 #
Also, most recovery companies will give a diagnosis and possible prognosis before you agree to or decline services.
Jan 13, 2022 09:21:53 #
osoblancophoto wrote:
Ok it happened. I managed to knock over a Seagate ... (show quote)
Mechanically damaged drives cost more to repair - on average from $500 to $3000 depending on size and extent of damage. Logically damaged drives can cost from $300 to $2000. When you get this sorted out, make sure you get 2 replacement drives - and use one as a backup. If the cost of an SSD is too high, you should get a much cheaper, like a WD Gold or Black, or Hitachi (HGST) Ultrastar - which I have found to be reliable. You'll know a good drive from a lesser one by cost (better cost more), warranty (robust drives have 5 yr warranties), and performance - faster read/write specs. I would then purchase a decent enclosure with the connection you need (USB 3, USB C, Thunderbolt, etc). The enclosures are usually between $20 and $40.
Good luck!
Jan 13, 2022 11:01:15 #
Drive Savers is the trusted resource the folks at the Apple Genius Bar recommend for such problems. Not inexpensive, but they do get the job done.
Jan 13, 2022 11:22:06 #
dandev
Loc: Enumclaw, WA
I recently had a WD Passport fail. It spins - but won't connect. It had a number of processed images on it. I keep my raw images on a separate drive so I can recreate the finals if needed.
It finally prompted me to by a Synology 4 bay hard drive solution. It has 4, 6TB spinning hard drives. It's set up so if one drive fails, the data is recoverable. It cost about $1K in total.
I will also back up critical files (customer images) in the cloud as a second backup.
It finally prompted me to by a Synology 4 bay hard drive solution. It has 4, 6TB spinning hard drives. It's set up so if one drive fails, the data is recoverable. It cost about $1K in total.
I will also back up critical files (customer images) in the cloud as a second backup.
Jan 13, 2022 11:22:08 #
Peteso
Loc: Blacks Hills
Stop messing with this yourself and find a local computer forensics lab. If there is no local computer forensics lab, you can deal with this the old fashioned way…i.e., UPS or FedEx. They can pull the disc out of that drive and transfer the contents to a CD or other digital media.
Jan 13, 2022 11:31:29 #
Gene51 wrote:
Mechanically damaged drives cost more to repair - ... (show quote)
(My preference is for the WD Gold.)
Jan 13, 2022 11:33:30 #
tramsey wrote:
I've had pretty good luck with a program call Recovera. It got a much smaller external hard drive going and then I back it up. Later it went out for good. Some say if you put the thing in a freezer over night that will work. I think that is a bunch of horse hooky. It sounds too ridiculous for me to even try it, But is what I know
Good Luck That's one reason to back up
Good Luck That's one reason to back up
In order for us ppl at home to recover data, like from recova, the drive has to spin and be recognized, with bad data. Programs like recova scan the disk for bad sectors etc, and save what it can.
I sure hope this was not your only back up, but it sounds like it was. One back up is not really a back up.
To get and data that is recoverable will cost an arm and leg. It will take a lot of time and manpower.
Jan 13, 2022 11:41:15 #
Unless is like a life-or-death situation, I would forget about it and rely on your backups. The same thing happened to me years ago. Somehow (I suspect gravity) a hard drive fell to the floor while it was copying files. I have my files on at least four separate hard drives.
Jan 13, 2022 12:02:46 #
tramsey wrote:
I've had pretty good luck with a program call Recovera. It got a much smaller external hard drive going and then I back it up. Later it went out for good. Some say if you put the thing in a freezer over night that will work. I think that is a bunch of horse hooky. It sounds too ridiculous for me to even try it, But is what I know
Good Luck That's one reason to back up
Good Luck That's one reason to back up
Recovera will not work if the drive is not recognized by the host computer.
Jan 13, 2022 12:45:25 #
osoblancophoto
Loc: Venice FL
Thanks all for your comments and suggestions. I'm sending to Pitts for free evaluation.
I do have all (I hope) backed up across a couple of other drives as well as orig data on the SD cards.
So I can find most, if not all of the files. Time to get external drive housing with ssd drives.... and backblaze.
I do have all (I hope) backed up across a couple of other drives as well as orig data on the SD cards.
So I can find most, if not all of the files. Time to get external drive housing with ssd drives.... and backblaze.
Jan 13, 2022 13:03:50 #
osoblancophoto wrote:
…Time to get external drive housing with ssd drives.... and backblaze.
Right answer! Should be a teaching moment for those without a local backup AND an off-site disaster recovery copy of your data.
Jan 13, 2022 13:18:28 #
osoblancophoto wrote:
Ok it happened. I managed to knock over a Seagate ... (show quote)
Check out these youTube videos on Data Recovery:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkVbIsAWN2luuTWVKH7Eb6OLvTwK9_Wcy
The shop is Louis Rossmann: https://www.rossmanngroup.com/data-recovery-service-nyc/
If you watch the videos, you can see why data recovery is expensive!
Be well! Ed
Jan 13, 2022 13:29:08 #
TriX wrote:
Right answer! Should be a teaching moment for those without a local backup AND an off-site disaster recovery copy of your data.
Boy Howdy!
(And not just pictures! ALL data.)
Jan 13, 2022 14:10:19 #
I have used PITS Global Data Recovery Services Web: www.pitsdatarecovery.com. They are pricey but very professional. They were able to restore 100% of my files from a non-functioning USB thumb drive. They use a network of people around the country to do the work. I am in CT and the person was in Brooklyn, NYC. Everything was done via mail and email, not in person. It's worth a conversation with them.
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