Crashed Hard Drive

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

I had a hard drive crash on me this weekend. I have read elsewhere that data
can be re-claimed if this happens. How? The secret - put the hard drive in
the freezer for one or two hours. Then re-connect the drive normally -
boot - and move all data to another drive. Of course, this only works if the
crashed hard drive is set up as a slave.

Works like a charm!!

Julie

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

In news:%23V30fZ2IFHA.2656@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl,
Jeff Richards <JRichards@msn.com.au> had this to say:

> I would be very wary of placing any faith in this fix. For instance,
> did you prove that the drive was not already working as a slave
> before putting it in the freezer? It's quite possible for a drive to
> become unbootable but to continue working just fine as a slave.

I've heard the same thing in the past as well as people who've had luck with
hitting it (gently) with a hammer. Having suffered from many drive failures
in my life I've tried both suggestions (and each has some logic behind it,
the cold will shrink the plates or the whacking will break the stuck plates
free and some/all data could possibly be saved) and have found none of them
have worked for me. Instead I have switched cases for the platters (not for
the meek I assure you) and then used recovery software whilst it was slaved.
Even that has not always been a success here I'm afraid. In this case the OP
was very lucky and I totally agree with your statement that it's not a fix
that anyone should plan on using though, oddly, this isn't the first time
I've heard of it working but I've not once had a case where it worked for
me. Pity too, I've lost a lot of good data that hadn't been backed up yet
that way. Now I back up everything three times and often do these backups on
a daily basis.

Galen
--

"My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me
the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis, and I am
in my own proper atmosphere. I can dispense then with artificial
stimulants. But I abhor the dull routine of existence. I crave for
mental exaltation." -- Sherlock Holmes

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

In newsLK00Z4IFHA.1528@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl,
Jeff Richards <JRichards@msn.com.au> had this to say:

> I have also tried freezing, without success. However, my concern in
> this case was whether OP had actually demonstrated whether the
> freezer did anything at all, as the description didn't indicate
> whether it had been tested as a slave before being frozen.

Quite true and very valid. My thoughts were add-ons and not corrections I
once had a similar drive where I'd attempted to use one of the *NIX-from-CD
that was popular at the time eat my MBR. No amount of fixing, drive
manufacturer, fixmbr, or other applications fixed it. At that time it was a
rather large and expensive drive (a 120 GB drive owned probably about three
or four years ago so they were a bit more expensive then) but it made a good
slave after. Even using the best partitioning tools (I tried them all in a
fit of rage) revealed the section of the drive that couldn't even be cleared
out and partitioned over. While that's off topic in a manner of speaking it
does go to prove that one should always try to use the drive as a slave
before trying to whack it with a hammer or freeze it. *chuckles*

Galen
--

"My mind rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me
the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis, and I am
in my own proper atmosphere. I can dispense then with artificial
stimulants. But I abhor the dull routine of existence. I crave for
mental exaltation." -- Sherlock Holmes

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

Thank you for the additional information, as it significantly enhances the
value of your experience as a guide for those confronted with a similar
problem.
--
Jeff Richards
MS MVP (Windows - Shell/User)
"Julie" <julieb@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:eifKc5CJFHA.2852@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
> snip <
>
> It was a slave to start with - used as a backup for all downloaded
> software.
> It was definitely NOT working, and you could ever hear the actuator arm
> knocking against the inside of the HD - sure sign of a crashed HD. And the
> freezer trick worked - at least this time.
>
> I was just passing on a possible remedy for crashed hard drives to your
> readers.
>
> Julie