A failed PC hard drive can cause loss of hours of hard work, unique family photos or many dollars value of bought music. Though PC hardware is becoming dependable, there is good option that a power surge, lightning strike or accidental harm could end life of drive. But with any hard drive company like Seagate, there are programs accessible that will help recover from data corruption. Hardware failure is hard to work with; if hard drive clicks when it's powered up and does not read, you are able to utilize a parts hard drive and a clean work space to obtain the data back.

Instructions

Logical Recovery of Corrupt Data

1. Step 1

Take out hard drive from PC. Remove any brackets or cages from outer of drive. Decide the drive type: SATA drives have two flat connectors on front, as IDE drives will have two rows of tiny brass pins. Read drive's label for more information if needed; label will recognize drive type as SATA or IDE.

2. Step 2

Buy an external USB hard drive adapter intended for type of drive you want to
regain data from. Attach adapter's USB cable to working desktop or laptop. Put hard drive in adapter or, based on brand of adapter, attach cables.

3. Step 3

Download or buy a recovery program like TestDisk, Handy Recovery, Stellar Phoenix or Ontrack. Utilize software to scan drive in adapter and regain data. Try hardware recovery if drive still clicks as being scanned.
Hardware Data Recovery

4. Step 1

Buy a utilized donor hard drive of similar construct, model and size as drive that failed. Read drive's label for data like model number. Utilize only a donor drive that is similar model number.

5. Step 2

Check donor drive to make sure it is useful by putting it in drive adapter and confirming it shows up and is understandable in My Computer. Marker can be used to write Good on new drive. Turn drive upside down and write Good on controller board. Tiny screwdriver used to take out controller board from donor drive. Do not touch contacts and chips on board if likely.

6. Step 3

Turn failed hard drive over, take out controller board and place to the side. Watchfully align screw holes to make sure good contact between board and drive head connector below it. Install good controller board on failed drive and tighten the
screws.

7. Step 4

Put failed drive with good controller board in adapter. Check that drive displays in My Computer. Explore the drive and check data is there, and then move data to a secure place. Again scan drive with data recovery software if data does not display in Windows Explorer.

8. Step 5

Hear clicking sounds when you put drive in adapter; if it still clicks and data is not readable with alternate controller board, contact a professional recovery company. Then disassembly of hard drive is not suggested for home users.