How to Repair Hard Drives

Running Chkdsk in Windows

For many people, computers are now the central storage location for music, videos, financial information, documents, photos and much, much more. The majority of this irreplaceable data is stored on the computer’s hard drive, which, as a magnetic storage medium, is susceptible to failure. While there are many services available to repair a hard drive and retrieve the information contained on it, the costs can be prohibitive, and few people can justify spending that amount of money for a few personal files. Fortunately, there are a few ways that the average person can repair a hard drive and retrieve her lost data. The method used will depend on whether the problem lies in the file system of the drive, the drive electronics or the mechanical structures of the disk.

Things You'll Need

• Data recovery software
• Secondary computer

Instructions

Repairing File System Errors

1. Run your operating system’s built-in error-checking programs, if the disk is accessible. In Windows, the program is named Chkdsk. To access Chkdsk, select “My Computer” from the “Start” menu, right-click on the affected drive and select "Properties.” Then select the Tools tab and press the “Check Now” button in the Error-Checking section. In Linux, the program is named E2fsck and it must be run from the command line or terminal. In OSX, use the First Aid tab in the Disk Utility to check for errors. If these programs do not help, or the disk cannot be seen by the operating system, you may need special recovery programs.

2. Download or purchase advanced data recovery software. There are many free programs on the market that can recover lost partitions, deleted files or even overwritten files. In addition, there are some more sophisticated programs available for a fee. Some offer the ability to recover files even if the computer’s BIOS can no longer recognize the drive.

3. Follow the instructions included with the data recovery program, and move any recovered files to a safe location.

Repairing Problems With the Drive’s Electronics

1. Check the printed circuit board of the drive for any obvious problems, such as loose connections or burn marks. If the board appears to have a problem, the only available options are to repair the problem component or to replace the entire board.

2. Apply new solder to loose connections or replace the damaged component, if possible. Due to the complexity of today’s circuit boards, it is nearly impossible for the average person to repair or replace a component on the board. The remaining option is to replace the entire board.

3. Find a working hard drive that is the same brand name and model as the damaged drive. Carefully remove the circuit board from the broken hard drive, and replace it with the circuit board from the working hard drive. Be watchful for small ribbon cables and other items that may be hidden on the underside of the board, since they tend to be easily broken.

4. Install the repaired drive, and immediately move any data on it to a safe place.

Repairing Mechanical Problems With the Drive

1. Determine if the failure is related to the drive’s mechanical components. Indicators of a mechanical failure include strange noises, excessive warmth when the drive is touched or a lack of any drive movement at all. If there is a mechanical failure, and it is not possible or practical to send the drive to a professional recovery service, it is actually possible to recover some information by freezing the drive. Drive components that are expanded or warped by excessive heat, or heads that have crashed into the disk surface, may be temporarily repaired by reducing the temperature of the hard drive.

2. Remove the hard drive from the computer, and place it inside a few zippered freezer bags, with all air removed to prevent condensation.

3. Leave the drive in the freezer for a minimum of 24 hours.

4. Take the hard drive out of the freezer, quickly connect it to the computer and remove any data on it as soon as possible. After the drive has a chance to warm to normal operating temperature, it may stop working again.

Tips & Warnings

• Always use all available software options before attempting to repair the hardware.

• All of these methods have the potential of leaving the drive inoperable, or they may even cause further damage. You must determine the value of the data on the drive before proceeding.

• Even if the hard drive returns to a normal operating state, it should not be used for the storage of critical data, and it should be replaced as soon as possible.