Panic! LaCie External Hard disk... whhirrrr_click won't mount!
in [UK Mac]
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From: Chris Ridd on 17 Apr 2010 03:53 On 2010-04-17 08:44:39 +0100, John said: > On 2010-04-14 10:10:33 +0100, deano <d.heighington(a)btinternet.com> said: > >> It fell on it's side yesterday and now just goes >> whhhirrrrrr_click_whhhirrrrrr_click_whhhirrrrrr_click_whhhirrrrrr_click_etc > > Check out the power connection for damage, try another power supply. I > have three LaCie products, they have all developed the not mounting > fault, every time it has been down to the power supply. Could also be > worth checking out the Firewire/USB lead and socket. Genius Bars at Apple Stores seem to have drawers full of LaCie (etc) power supplies and external disks, so they might be worth a visit. -- Chris
From: deano on 17 Apr 2010 04:23 Right... now back home in Blighty, although that was a close shave as well, with the volcanic ash cloud moving steadily over the UK and Europe... my flight in was one of the last allowed, before everything was grounded... so one bit of luck there I suppose... could it be that I'm on a luck roll? ;-) The disk is still exhibiting the same behavior... From power on, it spins up for about 5 seconds (audible acceleration), until a click is heard, then about 1 second of whirring before another click is heard. This cycle is repeated for about 30-40 seconds (a timeout I suppose) before the process is aborted and the drive spins back down zero. Having read the various posts about putting the disk in the fridge and then sealing it in a bag. What would be the best procedure for me to adopt in trying to get the drive operational... if only to recover what data I can from it? Is there a step by step guide or other online documentation that I can study that would enlighten me about what is actually wrong with it and how I might fix it? As mentioned, I have tried Disk Utility, which can't see the disk... would Disk Warrior have a better chance? And what might I need the boot disk for... I can see why a disk imaging program and a spare disk. Would it be worth me contacting the disk manufacturer do you think? Not quite so panicky but now a little resigned and depressed when I recall everything that's on the drive B( d.
From: Jaimie Vandenbergh on 17 Apr 2010 04:42 On Sat, 17 Apr 2010 01:23:12 -0700 (PDT), deano <d.heighington(a)btinternet.com> wrote: >Having read the various posts about putting the disk in the fridge and >then sealing it in a bag. Other way around: bag it first, then cool, then try to read it. The bag is to stop moisture condensing on the cold disk exterior and circuitry (and breaking it even more) when you take it out of the fridge or freezer. But that particular last-ditch rescue operation will likely be useless in your case. From your description of the sounds, you have the wrong sort of problem for this procedure. >What would be the best procedure for me to adopt in trying to get the >drive operational... if only to recover what data I can from it? Send it to a professional. The head tracking mechanism is probably broken, which usually means the read/write heads are screwed from the fall. There's no software way around that, the disk platters themselves need to be transferred into a new drive casing with working heads. >As mentioned, I have tried Disk Utility, which can't see the disk... >would Disk Warrior have a better chance? It won't. From your description the disk is never getting past it's own self-test, so will never show itself to the Mac. The whiirrr-click is it retrying to find the data tracks, the spindown means it has given up. >Would it be worth me contacting the disk manufacturer do you think? No, they'll only offer to replace. Well, they might refer you to a data recovery firm or three. www.retrodata.co.uk are good - and cheaper than most, which doesn't mean actually cheap. They'll quote for you though. Congrats on getting back to the UK - I nearly got stuck in Denmark for an unspecified duration, but thankfully got cancelled at the UK end on Thursday. Cheers - Jaimie -- If it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing.
From: Chris Ridd on 17 Apr 2010 05:04 On 2010-04-17 09:42:42 +0100, Jaimie Vandenbergh said: > Send it to a professional. The head tracking mechanism is probably > broken, which usually means the read/write heads are screwed from the > fall. There's no software way around that, the disk platters > themselves need to be transferred into a new drive casing with working > heads. Absolutely In particular don't run *ANY* fixes-your-disk-honest-guv software if you're going to send it to a drive recovery outfit. It makes their job much harder and perhaps impossible. -- Chris
From: The Older Gentleman on 17 Apr 2010 05:22
Jaimie Vandenbergh <jaimie(a)sometimes.sessile.org> wrote: > Congrats on getting back to the UK - I nearly got stuck in Denmark for > an unspecified duration, but thankfully got cancelled at the UK end on > Thursday. I'm supposed to be travelling to Delhi tomorrow. Like that's going to happen. -- BMW K1100LT Ducati 750SS Honda CB400F Triumph Street Triple Suzuki TS250ER GN250 Damn, back to six bikes! Try Googling before asking a damn silly question. chateau dot murray at idnet dot com |