Tick Tick in HDD?

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R.Padmakumar - 16 Nov 2004 14:33 GMT

Hi,
My 8GB Samsung Hard Disk is 5 years old. I am having Windows 2000Pro.
Yesterday, when I tred to boot my PC, i heard the tick-tick.. sound
followed by the message of harddisk failure. I restarted and tried to
auto detect hard disk from setup after pressing the <DEL> key (F2 in
some PCs). It is not detecting the HDD. I tried in manually setting
the parameters for HD and it also failed. I realized that some thing
is very serious in my HDD and started to hear the hard disk sound with
my ear very very close to the hard disk surface. I got the following
observation:
1. mild sound of disk rotation startup and speedup
2. the strong tick-tick (some times trick-trick or trilck-trilck)
sound.
3. mild sound of disk rotation slowing down.
these three sounds repeat and repeat.. this very unusual.

What can be the possible problem in my hard drive.. Is it in a dead
condition.. can ti be recovered or can the data inside recovered?
Please help me

Yours
R.Padmakumar

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Mike - 17 Nov 2004 01:34 GMT

> What can be the possible problem in my hard drive.. Is it in a dead
> condition.. can ti be recovered or can the data inside recovered?
> Please help me

First of all, you're in the wrong group.

Secondly, It's Dead Jim! Five years is a good life for a hard drive
these days. The info on it *may* be recoverable, but it depends on how
much you want to spend/how much the info is worth to you.

Mike

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Gnarlodious - 17 Nov 2004 03:33 GMT

Welcome to the "click of death", most common to Windows machines.
Most likely the data is lost forever unless you actually transplant the
magnetic disk in a working identical drive.

-- Gnarlie

Entity R.Padmakumar spoke thus:

> Hi,
> My 8GB Samsung Hard Disk is 5 years old. I am having Windows 2000Pro.
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
> Yours
> R.Padmakumar

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Mike - 17 Nov 2004 13:15 GMT

> Welcome to the "click of death", most common to Windows machines.
> Most likely the data is lost forever unless you actually transplant the
> magnetic disk in a working identical drive.

Actually, it has nothing to do with "Windows machines". The hard drive
is just dead. It would die the same way in a Mac, an Amiga or a TRS-80
for that matter.

Mike

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Gnarlodious - 17 Nov 2004 14:24 GMT

Maybe so, but I have never heard of it happening to a Mac. Probably just a
statistical anomaly.
My HDs have always failed gradually, and I have never heard of a Mac HD
failing catastrophically like that.
On the other hand, I have replaced plenty of Windows HDs that have failed
suddenly with the click.

Is this not the usual experience?

-- Gnarlie
http://Gnarlodious.com/

Entity Mike spoke thus:

>> Welcome to the "click of death", most common to Windows machines.
>> Most likely the data is lost forever unless you actually transplant the
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
>
> Mike

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Mike - 18 Nov 2004 02:40 GMT

> Maybe so, but I have never heard of it happening to a Mac. Probably just a
> statistical anomaly.
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
>
> Is this not the usual experience?

I would say no. Definitely a Statistical Anomaly. There are hundreds
of millions of Windows machines, and only a few 10's of millions of Macs
sold through their entire history. Of course you would hear about this
more often in Windows machines.

I have had drives fail suddenly in all sorts of machines, including this
Mac, my TRS-80 (many years ago) and even a Xerox 4050 Laser Printer.
What makes you think that the data stored on hard drive has any relation
to when/how it will fail?

Mike

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Mike Rosenberg - 18 Nov 2004 13:57 GMT

> Maybe so, but I have never heard of it happening to a Mac.

Oh, I've encountered it often.

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<http://www.macconsult.com> Macintosh consulting services for NE Florida
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Walt Basil - 19 Nov 2004 02:08 GMT

> Maybe so, but I have never heard of it happening to a Mac. Probably just a
> statistical anomaly.
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
>
> Is this not the usual experience?

Happened to a 333MHz blueberry iMac of mine. I think it took 3 years
for that one. I ended up replacing it myself with a 20 gig. Had to
partition it first before I could load the OS.

It sounded more like a clunk clunk. Almost like a ball ping pong ball
being dropped.

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R.Padmakumar - 23 Nov 2004 08:23 GMT

Hi,

I got all the data back. I tried the technique of keeping the HDD
in to the freezer (max freezing point) for 2 days packed (airtight) in
a plastic cover (with tight ropes on the package). After the HDD got a
dead cool temperature, I connected it and found that my PC detectd the
HDD (now i heard un-interpretable noices from the HDD).. "GREAT".. my
Win2k booted up and i am lucky to copy all the necessary data into my
secondary HDD.

But the HDD stucked up 2 3 times and I used the same freezer
technique to recover the remaining data. Dont remove the plastic cover
over the HDD while you connect to your PC. make a opening at the
connector end of the HDD or better place the HDD in a tight thermocool
box in order to keep the coolnes while the HD is in operation. After
doing this, i found that the HDD is running for more than 2 hours
without any problem.

Also I found that, the previous click-ckick have created lot of bad
sectors (i got many CRC errors in many files, while i am copying
files).

While you are taking bkup, remember the following.
- dont overload the HDD by doing more than one copy.
- but try to copy the needed files as quick as possible.
- do not try to write the data in a CD or some other slow writing
media, as this may take more time and ur HD might stop at any time.

If you succeed in this HD freesing technique, it is like you are
just lucky to retrieve the needed data and do it AS QUICK AS POSSIBLE.
it is something like you have got the GOD's grace.. LOL.. (if u r not
an atheist)

I found this HDD freezing technique worked with some other HD also
(i saw in some forums).. But I am not clear about why this dead HDD
(somethimes) works under very cool temperature.

I am very eager to know about the technical details.

Thanks
R.Padmakumar

> > Maybe so, but I have never heard of it happening to a Mac. Probably just a
> > statistical anomaly.
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
> It sounded more like a clunk clunk. Almost like a ball ping pong ball
> being dropped.

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Mac Forum / General / Networking / November 2004

Tick Tick in HDD?