WD 1023 Elements Hard Drive not working

[Nakes469]

Hi there

I have a WD 1023 elements hard drive and the disk does not want to initialise. give me the following error (below image). Its also states its a 2tb instead of a 1tb. can you advise what tools are required to fix hard drive so that it works. also i have data on that i cant lose so what is the best way forward.

 

[badger906]

thats not an error message, just the standard windows initialisation box. its also not stating its a 2gb disk its just advising disks above 2tb should use the gpt structure.

what happens when you try and initialize it?? you want to select MBR for your current drive.

 

[Nakes469]

when i try to initialise it it gives a "disk is write protected".

When i connent the hard drive the following happens:
1. you hear the windows sound that something has just been connected
2. drive does not appear in my computer
3. only if you go to disk managment then it shows but not in the top window

 

[badger906]

download the wd diagnostics tool from here: http://support.wd.com/product/download.asp?groupid=810&sid=3&lang=en

that will help see if the disk is at fault.

 

[Mark Phelps]

i have data on that i cant lose so what is the best way forward

If it were my drive, I would use a data recovery app to recover as much as I could before I started into reformatting or repartitioning the drive.

Based on my experience at doing this successfully, my suggestions are the following:
1) Download and install the trial version of RecoverMyFiles from Runtime Software in MS Windows.
2) Right-click the RecoverMyFiles shortcut and select "Run as Administrator"
3) Select the option to Recover a Drive
4) You will get a list of drive, scroll down to find the one for your USB stick or memory card
5) Select Automatic Driver recovery, press Start button
6) It will run for a while but when done, will show a directory tree in the left pane. Do NOT interrupt it.
7) When done, browse the folders in the directory tree -- and be SURE to check the filesizes of the files you want to recover. If the filesize is zero, the file is trashed and you will NOT be able to recover it.

If the files look OK, you will need to contact Runtime Software to purchase a license for the recovery. You won't have to reinstall the app; instead, they will email you an activation code which you can use to turn on the recovery feature.

According to their website, the "standard" version of the app is $70 USD. They also have a Pro version for $99 dollars, but if you go to the website below, you can compare the features and (at least for me) the extra cost wasn't worth it:
Purchase Recover My Files data recovery software

Your data ... your money ... your choice.

 

[Layback Bear]

From post #3 from Nakes469.

when i try to initialise it it gives a "disk is write protected

Where did this drive come from and who write protected it?

 

[badger906]

I dont mean to be condescending.. buuuuuut why havent you backed everything up!?!? its 2014.. dvds are like 3p/3c each and a 32gb pen drive is like £10/$10..
a failed hard drive should never be a concern, other than "oh plumbs I have to buy a new one".

if the data is that valuble why limit it to one drive!?!?

rant over =)