laptop hard drive trouble

tuna55 wrote: Through Linux, as an external hard drive, I get the following when trying to start gparted from the live version of Linux Mint. Error fsyncing/closing /dev/sdb1: Input/output error

That means there's a problem with the hard drive's hardware, now you have to choose if you want to take it to the professionals or DIY it.

I have had a similar issue with a deck star and went on eBay and got another drive that was very close in the manufacturing run and moved the electronics from one drive to the other. I was then able to access the previously broken drive.

dean1484 wrote: I have had a similar issue with a deck star and went on eBay and got another drive that was very close in the manufacturing run and moved the electronics from one drive to the other. I was then able to access the previously broken drive.

Yep this gets the hard drive running fine again if the problem is in the control board. Hard drive manufacturers change the control board mid-production without changing model numbers like they're GM or something and this is why the pros keep libraries of control boards.

Why I went with a drive that was as close to my manufacture date as I could find. With the cost of used drives being almost nothing it is a cheap thing he could try.

The hardest part I found was re soldering the ribbon cable back on. On the deck star the ribbon cable is held in place with a clip. Makes the swap a five minute thing.

I have had good luck with this fix. I have found that most drives the board is damaged by heat.

it was a western digital drive...

oh no, they are out of ideas.

GRM is out of ideas.

GRM can't fix something

I am going to go cry. This world feels like a darker place now.

The DIY options for rescuing data from a physically damaged drive are indeed bleak.

There's board-swapping, where you'll need a drive from almost the same production date, and then there's the freezer trick...and that's basically it. The freezer trick is a hail-Mary and usually you only get one shot at it.

You have an enclosure, this is good for the freezer trick. So you want to run the drive when it's cold and yet not let condensation get it wet.

Put the drive in a ziploc bag and squeeze out as much air as you can, and put it in the freezer.

In about 4 hours it should be ready to go. Get your enclosure ready and have the laptop with the new destination drive ready to go nearby. Running the drive INSIDE the freezer is best, this maximizes recovery time while cold and minimizes condensation, but one or the other will probably put an end to the process eventually. You may need a USB extension, keep in mind that USB signals have a maximum range of about 15ft.

Open the freezer, put the drive in the enclosure, put the whole thing back in the freezer and close the freezer again as much as you can. The seals should conform around the power and data cords.

Now you follow pretty much the same steps I gave you before to ddrescue the damaged drive to an image file on a good one.

Edit: There's one more option besides board swapping and the freezer trick but it's ultra-dangerous, it involves running the drive with the cover off without a clean room. It may fail instantly and it makes a mess when it does.

BTW you might just want to shop around with the professionals to see what it costs. Many data recovery companies have special rates for college students, know anyone with a college ID?

tuna55 wrote: oh no, they are out of ideas. GRM is out of ideas. GRM can't fix something I am going to go cry. This world feels like a darker place now.

I told you what to try. Did you try it or did you ignore my post? Some times I wonder why I bother. Another hint, if the drive stops spinning, give it a small wack and get the data off, you may never have another chance.

tuna55 wrote: it was a western digital drive...

AKA a deck star or as we call them Death Stars. Western digital made the deck star. I would try a control board swap. This is a pretty well known failure for these.

Another thing you can try is freezing it. I have taken droves in USB carriors an put them in the freezer to revive them. This does not always work and you really need to be prepared to get the data then and now as you may only get one chance.

In reply to pjbgravely:

Wow man, who pissed in your Cheerios?

I'm a Linux newcomer. I tried as best as I could but no commands in the terminal did anything other than that error which I presented here. I don't know how to implement any of your suggestions if I can't get it to do anything.

Which comes first, freezing or swapping boards?

Just to be sure, being mostly an idiot, can you send me the correct command lines for this so I don't have to look the up as I go?

You're confusing me a bit with the freezer explanation. I get that you want it to be cold. Can't I just throw the whole external enclosure in the freezer with the cable dangling out?

You said the drive gave an input/output error. No software can help in that situation. If the drive is spinning the bearings might be going bad. Freezing the drive and seeing if it will work for a little while will tell you if that is the case. If the drive doesn't spin, try a small wack, if it spins up get the data off without turning it off. If neither of those work then you will have to try to find a board to try.

Personally I have not had a WD board go bad. I do have good luck with drives and I still have a working IBM death star.

tuna55 wrote: Which comes first, freezing or swapping boards? Just to be sure, being mostly an idiot, can you send me the correct command lines for this so I don't have to look the up as I go? You're confusing me a bit with the freezer explanation. I get that you want it to be cold. Can't I just throw the whole external enclosure in the freezer with the cable dangling out?

Swap boards first, if you can.

The commands I listed before are still exactly the same as you'll use for the freezer trick, you've gone through the steps before, the only difference is that the drive names will probably be different this time.

Throwing the whole enclosure in the freezer with the cable dangling out is pretty much what I'm telling you to do - if you want to assemble the enclosure with the drive in it before putting it in the freezer, you can do that, it will just waste some energy and possibly cause some thawing since your freezer won't seal that well around the cords.