Hard drive stupidity

DustSailor · 24 Oct 2010

So I did a really dumb thing recently. I upgraded my computer and switched the hard drive from my old. Instead of disconnecting it properly (device disconnect) I pulled it out of the computer after shut down. So now the whole thing doesn't seem to work no matter what computer i plug it in to. what can i do with it now? is there a way to repair it, a store i can take it in to, or someplace that will pay money to recycle it at the very least? im stuck

any advice is much appreciated

DocBrown · 24 Oct 2010

DustSailor said:

So I did a really dumb thing recently. I upgraded my computer and switched the hard drive from my old. Instead of disconnecting it properly (device disconnect) I pulled it out of the computer after shut down. So now the whole thing doesn't seem to work no matter what computer i plug it in to. what can i do with it now? is there a way to repair it, a store i can take it in to, or someplace that will pay money to recycle it at the very least? im stuck

any advice is much appreciated

If you took it out after shut down & the power was off, we should be able to help you.
What is the Make & Model of the HD ? IDE or SATA ? Laptop or Desktop ? Was there an operating system on it? Files, data, etc ?

DustSailor · 24 Oct 2010

I had all those options enabled on it where they warn you that in case of a crash, it may corrupt the drive, but made the drive faster.

It is a Western Digital Enterprise Storage WD VelociRaptor 600GB brand new 10,000RPM SATA Hard Drive. MDL: WD6000HLHX-01JJPV0
Its a smaller one (2.5 inch i think) but came with a case that made it able to fit in a desktop. All that I put on it at the time was a full downloaded game, nothing more.

i appreciate your help

Arc · 24 Oct 2010

DustSailor said:

So I did a really dumb thing recently. I upgraded my computer and switched the hard drive from my old. Instead of disconnecting it properly (device disconnect) I pulled it out of the computer after shut down.

After shutting down the computer , you may disconnect the hard disk . It should not cause a huge trouble .

DustSailor said:

So now the whole thing doesn't seem to work no matter what computer i plug it in to.

What is the exact situation ? Does it shows only solid black after the motherboard screen ? If so , check the sata ports are properly connected or not . But if it tries to boot bot fails , you should run Startup Repair .

Windows 7 loads the necessary drivers for the system during installation . If your upgradation includes changing the board and graphics cards etc , I am in doubt that the old installation will not work in the new system . In this case you art to have a clean install again .

Etihtsarom · 24 Oct 2010

"So now the whole thing doesn't seem to work no matter what computer i plug it in to. "

What does this mean? More info.

they warn you that in case of a crash, it may corrupt the drive, but made the drive faster.

This doesn't make sense or show me the steps so I can make my drive run faster

.

Probably the boot order? BIOS defaulted to something else w/out boot loader?

kword88 · 24 Oct 2010

he probably means he disabled write caching in the drive properties.

kword88 · 24 Oct 2010

how is it connected? USB?

James Colbert · 24 Oct 2010

DustSailor said:

So I did a really dumb thing recently. I upgraded my computer and switched the hard drive from my old. Instead of disconnecting it properly (device disconnect) I pulled it out of the computer after shut down.

It's doubtful that what you describe damaged the HD, even if you disabled write caching in the drive properties, the worst that could happen would be some lost data.

So now the whole thing doesn't seem to work no matter what computer i plug it in to. what can i do with it now?

I'm afraid you'll have to be a bit more descriptive. From what you've posted, it seems as though your use of this drive was not as a System Drive (with Windows installed), but merely to run games from.

Questions that can help us help you:

1) In what capacity are you attempting to use it in the new system(s)? Are you trying to use it as a System Drive?

2) How are you connecting it to the other computer(s)? What happens when you do?

a} Are you trying to use this drive a System Drive in the new machine(s)?
b} Do any error messages come up?
c} Does the machine you connect it to not boot?
d} If it does boot, are you able to see the drive in Windows Explorer? How about Disk Management?
e} Is there a System Drive in the machine(s) you have tried moving it to?

DustSailor said:

I had all those options enabled on it where they warn you that in case of a crash, it may corrupt the drive, but made the drive faster.

Again, the worst that could happen in this scenario is a loss of data, not drive damage.

All that I put on it at the time was a full downloaded game, nothing more.

All the more reason to believe that there are no issues with the HD, but that your problems are due to human error. More info is required (specifics).

James

DustSailor · 24 Oct 2010

* The computer it used to be in and my new computer both cannot detect it within computer management, however, another hard drive is detectable in both. This is not human, error, my bios is correctly set, but my computers both cannot seem to detect this particular hard drive at all.

This drive had only a single game (a purchased dragon age expansion game) on it and little else. Can't remember if I had indexing on it or not, but not the system. It is a sata drive and had all the proper connections. in fact, my other drive had the same connections and works great.

And the steps to make your drive run faster I believe were under device properties>policies. Not every hard drive has them. Write Caching is enabled automatically and I did not touch that bit. Something like disabling quick removal policy and such.

I just wanted to create a new volume and then format the drive as extra storage space. I connect to other computers the same way every time. computer off, connect power and sata cords, turn on computer, look in computer manager. works with one and not the other. Tested on two computers

Both machines will boot no matter what I connect to them, as these are just storage drives. They just cannot detect the one drive at all, nowhere.

I understand this is very weird. perhaps the drive itself is just faulty and suddenly stopped working completely. I doubt it but something like an electric charge could have effected it perhaps? I think thats about all the information i have. If i need to clarify further, let me know. till then, I am staring at a useless drive

James Colbert · 24 Oct 2010

DustSailor said:

And the steps to make your drive run faster I believe were under device properties>policies. Not every hard drive has them. Write Caching is enabled automatically and I did not touch that bit. Something like disabling quick removal policy and such.

Since you state that you powered down before removal, this should not be an issue. I recommend you try a disk utility software such as the free Partition Wizard to see if the disk is visible,:

BEST FREE Partition Manager Software for Windows supports all 32-bit & 64 bit Windows No-server OS.

...where you can try formatting and paritioning it. If not, download WD's Lifeguard utility (is it still called that?) to check the drive. If both of these suggestions don't produce successful results and the drive is still in warranty, call WD for verification & RMA.

James