External hard drive problem.

[Ray1000]

Hi Nev,

 

I asked earlier if the drive was running and the light was on and it was ... but you are right about the enclosures ... in mine for instance the drive is literally suspended on the connection when stood vertically ... I took the precaution of fitting a piece of sponge in the bottom to stop it disconnecting itself.

 

Ray

[sunshine14]

Does the drive show up on the computer itself, as Drive E or some other letter ?

 

If it doesn't show in computer, or at the bottom left of the libraries, see if it shows in Disk Management.

If it isn't being seen by the computer, the software certainly won't find it.

 

Does the external drive have its own power supply, is that connected and showing as on?

Check the USB connections as well.

 

I did recently see where a member took the hard drive out of the external case, then connected the drive by an adapter and it worked, proving there was a fault in the enclosure electronics or connections, that might be the next if it doesn't show up in the computer.

 

Nev.

 

It shows in all those places thats why its so strange that ' icare' isn't picking up on it. The light is on and I can hear it running. If I am to open it I will have to force it as it seems to be glued, there aren't any screws or such.

[KenB]

Hi

 

EaseUs have data recovery software that should let you get at the files on a RAW drive.

click here

 

The "free" trial may not be totally free. Hopefully it will be free to use for 30 days.

If it isn't and you can see the files but not recover without payment we can look around for other software if you wish.

 

Give it a try and let us know how you get on.

[DSTM]

I have used the Trial, Ken. They only recover the smallest amount of Files if it's possible for free..

If you want all your files recovered you have to buy the software, with no guarantee they can recover all the lost files.

[sunshine14]

Hi

 

EaseUs have data recovery software that should let you get at the files on a RAW drive.

click here

 

The "free" trial may not be totally free. Hopefully it will be free to use for 30 days.

If it isn't and you can see the files but not recover without payment we can look around for other software if you wish.

 

Give it a try and let us know how you get on.

 

I dont believe it but I can see the files. Ive just read what DSTM has said. I will have to see how it goes. Where will I put these files if I ever recover them, what if they dont fit on my computer. What is the best way to back up files, it is something we have never thought about.

[KenB]

They only recover the smallest amount of Files if it's possible for free..

I thought that may be the case DSTM.

 

Where will I put these files if I ever recover them,

I think you will need to be selective about the files that you recover as you may well be looking at many files that you do not need or want.

 

You could create a folder on your desktop and dump the files into that.

 

Check on how much free space there is on the computer hard drive.

Start > Computer > right click on C: > Properties

It will tell you here.

 

If you have an external hard drive that has a lot of free space on it you can use this too.

 

Is EaseUs going to let you recover the files without charge ?

[sunshine14]

Ok now, to let ye all know how I got on. I did the scan, it took hours to complete. I could see where there were 'lost files' also a list of 'Raw' files. DSTM you were correct, Easeus would only give me 10gb for free so unfortunately I had no choice but to purchase the software as my son was getting desperate. I was just about able to store the files in a folder in my desktop.

 

What can be done with the harddrive now? Is it safe to use again? For the future what is the best means for holding files?

[KenB]

I was just about able to store the files in a folder in my desktop.

Good to hear that you got your files back - even if you did have to pay EaseUs ...... if the files were important then the relatively small cost is worth it.

 

What can be done with the harddrive now?

Good question :)

Seatools passed the drive - but you cannot format it.

Is this still the case ?

[sunshine14]

Good to hear that you got your files back - even if you did have to pay EaseUs ...... if the files were important then the relatively small cost is worth it.

 

 

Good question :)

Seatools passed the drive - but you cannot format it.

Is this still the case ?

 

I havent done anything with it yet Ken, to tell you the truth I'm a bit afraid of it.

If I click on format, will it be safe to reuse for storing the previous files I put in the folder?

[Plastic Nev]

If I can poke me nose in, by all means try a reformat, if it will do so.

 

Afterwards, copy some files onto it, (Don't delete the originals) then check that the files can be accessed, leave it for a day or two, and check again. Providing that it will reformat OK and also that it will accept and hold without losing files, there is a good chance it is OK.

 

Whatever you do, please remember to always use the "Safe to remove" procedures before disconnecting it.

 

If at any time you get the message that in cannot be removed due to some files being in use and you cannot find what is using them, save any other work and shut down the computer, it will only be safe to disconnect after a full shut down.

 

Nev.

[Ray1000]

First of all I'm pleased you managed to get the files back ... as I mentioned in post 26 after seeing your problem I re-copied my external HD onto my desktop HD so I now have two copies. You could also make a spare copy onto DVDs depending on size.

 

I'm still unsure if the problem was caused by simply not using the "Safe to Remove function" You might feel inclined to do a couple of tests after the drive has been formatted ... put something on ... use the "Safe to Remove function" and make sure you can view it ... then put something else on and bypass the "Safe to Remove function" by pulling the USB connection out then check if the second file is available ... or if you get the same response you got at the beginning of this thread ... you won't do any damage.

 

Ray

[Plastic Nev]

If a drive is disconnected while files are still in use without using the safe to remove function, it is most likely to do exactly what has happened and turn all the data RAW.

 

If done too many times it can actually damage the drive as well due to the read head will crash if disconnected during read or write functions. I don't recommend trying the disconnecting while it is in use for that reason. So sorry Ray, it may well do some permanent damage.

 

Nev.

[sunshine14]

Thank you all so very much for your help and advice. Thanks for your patience with me. Thanks for taking the time to reply to me.

 

I will try what you said. My son will definitely use safe to remove after this.

 

I have another problem, this time with a computer. I will find the forum that applies to it, I might meet some of you there.

[KenB]

You are very welcome :)

 

We will try to assist with any other problems that you have.

[Ray1000]

If a drive is disconnected while files are still in use without using the safe to remove function, it is most likely to do exactly what has happened and turn all the data RAW.

 

If done too many times it can actually damage the drive as well due to the read head will crash if disconnected during read or write functions. I don't recommend trying the disconnecting while it is in use for that reason. So sorry Ray, it may well do some permanent damage.

 

Nev.

 

Thanks Nev,

 

I wasn’t considering people might disconnect the drive while it was still transferring information ... I can easily imagine it causing a problem if they did.

 

I was referring to disconnecting it after it had finished and the likelihood of the data becoming unreadable every single time someone disconnected hardware without using the “Safely Remove” option.

 

The reason I’m unsure is ... there will be more occasions of hardware being disconnected without using the safe function than there are of data being lost.

 

Is the “Safely Remove” option different on different versions of Windows ... does the more advanced versions actually turn the drive off ... stop the disc and turn the light out?

 

Ray

[Plastic Nev]

Not sure about Windows above 7 Ray, however with Vista and 7 all the safe to remove does is to check that data isn't being passed or used, hence why when it finds that data is still in use it tells you to stop whatever program is using it first. It cannot normally actually stop data as far as I know and therefore won't turn off the drive as such, unlike when you tell the CD/DVD drive to eject and it then stops the drive and sends the drawer or disk out.

 

As an aside, with either the external hard drive, a thumb drive or even an SD card from my camera, I simply right click on the drive and choose "Eject", the pop up small window then comes up to say it is safe to remove. or to turn off whichever program is using it.

[Ray1000]

Thanks Nev,

 

Also using the "Eject" or "Safely Remove" from ... Computer > Right Click on the drive in question > gives you a visual conformation that its safe as the drive disappears from the list.

 

Ray