RE: HDD Failure - What to do?

["Hawes,Timothy Edward \(GEG\)" <haweste@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks Simon,

I came across that on my Googling too, although I'm trying to exhaust
all of the free options before looking at paid-for solutions. What I do
seem to be finding though, is that while there are a huge amount of
FreeWare applications available, once you start looking at data
recovery-type solutions, they're rather thin on the ground :-/

Thanks for the thought though, I'll let you know how it goes if I do use
it.

Cheers,

Tim.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Simon Ryley
>
> Just a thought, have you tried SpinRite?
>
> www.grc.com
>
> Have never used it, but the user testimonials on the site are
> fairly impressive.
>
> Simon
>
>
> Hawes,Timothy Edward (GEG) wrote:
>
> > Ian,
> >
> > Thanks for that. Can you remember what Knoppix tools they
> were and/or
> > where they were located. I had a quick go with it and
> although Knoppix
> > could "see" the drive (i.e. it could tell me it was
> NTFS-formatted and
> > how much space was used/free), I couldn't see any of my data. I'm
a
> > Linux virgin so all tips appreciated :-)
> >
> > Incidentally, I also ran the Maxtor utility (PowerMax) and
> while the
> > drive failed the Quick Test ("drive is failing" and
should
> be replaced
> > asap") it *passed* the Advanced / Full test. I still can't
> boot with
> > it or access it in any other way. I've logged a ticket with
Maxtor
> > support but it's been nearly 3 days and no response :-(
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Tim.
> >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Ian Oliver
> > >
> > > In article <d8rbuh+avi6@xxxxxxx>, Jonsemailstuff
wrote:
> > > > I assume you are using windows. I had a disk that was
> completely
> > > > unreadable under windows, but I managed to rescue the
> > > contents under
> > > > linux.
> > >
> > > I second this approach.
> > >
> > > Knoppix even has utilities to do a smart copy of the HD.
> They grab
> > > off the good bits first (working on the assumption that
> the HD has
> > > limited
> > > life!) and then keep trying to bad bits and get as much
> as they can.
> > >
> > > You then have a copy (somewhere) of everything that could
> be read.
> > > You can then see if chkdsk will mends things enough to
> get what you
> > > need, or use other tools to hunt for important files.
> > >
> > > Regards
> > >
> > > Ian Oliver
> > > Sunny Leeds, UK
> > > Using Java on Tini for control via Dallas 1-wire