External Hard Drive-All Files Missing & Is No Longer Formatted

[mrichardson0220]

I have a 1TB Seagate External Hard Drive. I had moved most files(pics, videos, music, etc) from my C: drive to this hard drive to free up some space. Up until a few days ago it was working just fine. When I connected it to my laptop to access some files via windows explorer, it said the disk wasn't formatted and asked if I wanted to format it now. I knew better than that so I said no. It showed the free space as almost 100% but I could see all folders and files. I got nervous and tried to copy my pictures back to my C: drive but ran out of space there and only got a portion of them. My computer froze up and when it booted back up, the disk shows up as a local disk in My Computer but shows no Total or Free space now. When I click on it, it says it's not formatted. It also does not show up in disk management. I have purchased a new WD 2TB external hard drive and I'm hoping I can use iRecover to get my files back. Please advise. 

[Tom]

First you need to determine if the disk is having physical problems. If so, it would be better to clone the disk first (depending on the severity). Take a look at the windows system logs, see if you find any indication that the disk is failing. Also, a look at the SMART attributes would be helpful. You may need to connect the disk directly (i.e. lose the USB connection) to read the SMART details.

If the disk isn't having physical problems you might be able to fix the problem using DiskPatch, but given your description I'm not sure that will work out okay. Using iRecover to get the files from the disk is a good way to go.

The SMART details can be read with iRecover; in the disk selection window, right-click the disk and select the SMART report.

If you'd like us to take a look you can create a support analysis log and a SMART log and post it here.
Info on how to do that:
http://www.diydatarecovery.nl/dp_manual/guide_supportanalysis.htm
http://www.diydatarecovery.nl/dp_manual/guide_smartcheck.htm

[mrichardson0220]

I followed the links on your post and I tried to use DiskPatch to create a log, but could not get it to load from a 2GB USB stick. I'm not sure how to connect the bad disk directly.

I checked my event log and found several errors, which I'm assuming came from when that hard drive was connected to the computer. The error reads: The device, \Device\Harddisk1\D, has a bad block.

What does this mean? Please tell me this is fixable, somehow? How does something like this happen?

[Tom]

The log text confirms the suspicion; the disk is going bad and has read problems. This means that the best course of action is to clone the disk, if you want the files from it. If no files are needed or if you have backups, simply replace the disk (or return it if it's still under warranty).
It -is- possible to use iRecover to get files from the problem disk but the actions may speed up the disk's demise. So cloning first and then recovering files from the cloned disk is the way to go. The choice is yours.

Why does this happen? It just does. Disks don't have eternal life, and some die early. It all depends on how much the disk is used, the quality, and I guess a bit of luck is also a factor. There isn't much you can do about it, with the exception of thinking of a better backup strategy.

[mrichardson0220]

I really need the files from that drive. Just to make sure I understand you correctly, I need to purchase DiskPatch and iRecover? Will I be able to boot DiskPatch from a USB stick while my 'bad' hard drive is connected via USB also? Is the data cloned back to the 'bad' drive? I have another external hard drive to back the data up to which is also has a USB connection.

Right now I'm working off of an HP laptop. I do have access to a Dell desktop computer. It has a 37.3 GB hard drive in it. I'm not a computer expert, but could I take out the 37GB hard drive and replace it with my 1TB bad drive to run the program? I don't want to damage that drive more than it already may be.

[Tom]

I'll (hopefully) simplify this:
If you want stuff from the disk you have two options:
- clone the bad disk, then attempt recovery on the clone (best option)
- run iRecover on the bad disk, attempt to copy files from it (not so good option, might kill disk altogether)

For cloning you'll need a target disk of at least the same size as the occupied space on the source (the bad) disk. Preferably a target disk that is the same size or larger than the source disk. You'll need DiskPatch to clone the disk. For cloning it's best to connect a bad disk directly, not through USB, but you can try and see how far you get. After the clone you'll have to work with the result disk to see if files can be recovered. It's possible that certain areas of the bad disk didn't copy to the target disk because of read errors, so be prepared for not being able to access the disk normally; in which case you'll need iRecover to copy files from the target disk.

I need to purchase DiskPatch and iRecover?

Yes, but start with just DiskPatch for the clone, if you decide to go that way. Remember, we have a refund policy so if things don't go well we can work something out. If the clone goes well you may not need iRecover.

Will I be able to boot DiskPatch from a USB stick while my 'bad' hard drive is connected via USB also?

Yes, but it is best to connect the bad disk directly and not through USB. Same goes for the target disk.

Is the data cloned back to the 'bad' drive?

No. The bad disk is essentially worthless after the cloning has been completed. After copying files to safety from the cloned disk, the bad disk should be discarded; it's obviously not reliable anymore.

I have another external hard drive to back the data up to which is also has a USB connection.

That can be used but only if it is at least the same size as the bad disk. Remember, cloning means copying the entire disk sector by sector. It's not like creating a backup or copying files. So everything on the target disk is wiped and overwritten with stuff from the source disk.

Finally, that Dell may not be the best choice for the recovery operation. If it currently contains a 40gb disk it's likely to be an old machine, which means it won't be able to handle the large disks.

About the cloning, you should read the DiskPatch manual part that describes cloning before you get going. The walkthrough I gave earlier can help too, but you really need to understand what it is you're doing. If the data is important you have to do it right.

[mrichardson0220]

Thanks. You did clarify things better. The new hard drive I have is a 2TB so it'll hold the data from the old drive (which had about 400GB of data). I wouldn't know where to begin to try connecting the disks directly to my laptop so I'm hoping USB connectivity works. I'll read through the manual for DiskPatch. If I have more questions, should I keep posting here or move to a different forum?

[Tom]

No, here will be fine.