Solved External Hard disk Iomega 2 Tb recognized by pc but can't be formatted

wait. you should locate the SATA connectors on the board, align the HDD's SATA connectors (usually with the white sticker with name and whatnot UP) and mate them. Don't push too hard.

Then connect the whole thing via USB to the PC (attach power brick if necessary) and run some tests. Open or not it should work the same.

Otherwise you can post some pics and someone will provide directions, this forum allows you to attach images to the posts. click on the paperclip icon.

ok thanks

i'm on it

i'll update you guys asap

cheers

ok guys a little update

so far i have tried 2 different brand hdd brand new enclosures.
they both didn't work
same exact problem as before.
then today i tried with an IDE ADAPTER.
again same thing.
the hdd is recognized for a brief moment but then it becomes unaccessible and nothing can be done on it, neither be formatted nor its files accessed...
is it over? nothing else to do as of right now correct?

Well it's never totally over as you can always pay someone to crack it open and get info off but it's wildly expensive. As far as making it a functioning drive again....it's really not looking good.

Here comes another update.
So far the "best" solution i found to solve this problem is connecting my hdd via an IDE ADAPTER.
This is because this way each program i used managed to recognize its connection to my pc, while with either enclosure i had replaced it with, it was nowhere to be found.
I was suggested to give it a last try and see how things would work with this IDE ADAPTER.
well so far:
the sea gate tester starts the test but gives the "failed" result while before he wouldn't even put it on the available disks list.

each program i sued for formatting the hdd and partition wizard as well, start the formatting process but immediately stops it and says failed.
after that the hdd is recognized as "BAD" and becomes unavailable( i need to plug it out and in again order to make it visible and recognized on my pc).

phew i have been doing all kind of tests on this hdd but apparently it's just dead.

time to drop it on the dustbin?

cheers

As they say there are only two types of hard drives, those about to die and those that have died.

Hi there
the 2.2 TB limit is the THEORETICAL limit -- because of formatting and the way Disk MB are counted in dollops of KB rather than actual MB you might find your HDD is on the actual edge of the limit.

Is 1024 MB 1K or is it 1000MB and there were loads of posts on how Disk drive capacities are published back a while ago.

I'd convert to GPT anyway -- I even do this for 1 TB external USB drives and they actually all seem to work about 40 - 60% faster on standard USB2 ports for data transfer than when they were standard MBR devices. Don't ask me why this is so --it's just from observation -- and also GPT devices don't have the 4 physical partition limit that MBR devices have for windows (and I HATE Logical partitions / extended partitions).

HDD's DO fail but fortunately failure is a lot rarer than you might think - especially for NON laptop type drives. Portable drives fail due to the much more rugged treatment they get -- but even with these failure is surprisingly rare if you don't do stupid things like spill Beer or hot coffee over them.

Cheers
jimbo

It's sad, but seems like it's gone. Well, at least you did all that was possible to save it.

ok guys you won't believe this:

after all the tests and trials and having lost any kind on hope....

only 1 SINGLE PROGRAM MADE THE IMPOSSIBLE

EASUS PARTITION:

it wiped out my partion.
it formatted my hdd entirely
it restored to it like new

as of right now i'm coping back on it some of the data i had backed up

LOLOLOLOLOL

i can't beleive this myself however even though any program i used (even the not free and expensive ones) couldn't do anything on it, while this freeware program SLOVED MY PROBLEMS!!!


ALL HAIL EASUS PARTITION MASTER 9.2.2. FREE EDITION!!
IT'S EFFING AWESOME!!!

CHEERS EVERYONE

Wicked....way to stay after it !

I was reluctant to pass on a "dead as dodo" verdict on the hard drive since all indications - upto a certain stage - pointed that it was OK.

That said, it is still a mystery why it didn't straightaway work when you changed it into a new enclosure.

You really did a tireless job of trying with whatever you can and that succeeded. Kudos.

Haha, you are truly awesome. Great news.

Adding a note about suggesting EASEUS to the next guy with similar issues.
It's one of my favorites (the pro version anyway), but I didn't know it was so much better than the rest.

That said, it is still a mystery why it didn't straightaway work when you changed it into a new enclosure.

Click to expand...

Agreed, I can understand not working in My Computer window, but afaik all drive partitioning programs should have been able to see the drive just fine and wipe the mess.

YEAH GUYS
Teoretically all of the programs i have been using should have been able to.

However it didn't happen unfortunately.

Not only that but there were also those 2 different brands enclosures which didn't work while things got a bit better with an IDE ADAPTER.

A bit better because i still had lot of work to do, but at least everything works just fine now.
Again, thanks to all of the awesome members who gave me such a big help and assistence.
I'm truly grateful!

Cheers everyone

That sets me thinking whether it would have been better anyway had you hooked it up as a second drive on a PC. It is a pity that you didn't have access to one.

Anyway, I can see how happy you are and all is well that ended well.