hard drive sticktion fix

[Kaizen]

I have had success with three hard drive recoveries with drives with sticktion issues(head stuck to platter), in fact, three in a row. While plugged in I gave them a couple of wrist flicks to get the head to unstick. After doing this I have had no or very minimal surface damage. So I was able to get perfect recoveries.

I am not so certain this is irresponsible behavior. You could make a case, this is a better solution than disassembling it in a clean room, then trying to manually move the head with special tools. My thought is the less invasive the better. I would be happy to be corrected by hard drive recovery professionals if you think this is reckless.

 

[altrenda]

Smacking a hard drive is up there with putting it in the freezer -

It can give you good results, but not something I would do other than in desperation.

Googling "smack hard drive" gives lots of sites recommending this as a fix. Scary.

 

[Kaizen]

Smacking a hard drive is up there with putting it in the freezer -

It can give you good results, but not something I would do other than in desperation.

Googling "smack hard drive" gives lots of sites recommending this as a fix. Scary.

I did not smack it, a lite wrist flick. This was done methodically after diagnosing the issue. This is not something we just do to make it work without sound reasons.

 

[300DDR]

You could make a case, this is a better solution than disassembling it in a clean room, then trying to manually move the head with special tools.

How could it possibly be better to "drag" the heads across the platters (which is what you are doing), as opposed to "lifting" the heads off the platters and moving back to ramp/parking position?

Yes, it can work sometimes, but I would certainly not recommend it without first sending your customer a very strongly worded email asking them to approve an extremely risky procedure which may scratch the platters and/or further damage the heads. We have a form letter for this exact procedure, which we send to our customers when we don't have the proper tools to perform this operation safely (FYI: we use these tools for this kind of operation and they are fantastic: http://www.hddsurgery.com/tools/categories/1) . We make it very clear that it's risky, we may further damage the drive (and won't be held responsible), and there may be better solutions (for example, taking to a company that has custom-made tools for their specific drive to perform the operation safely).

If they give approval, then it's still probably best to open the cover and move the heads as safely as possible (in a clean room would be ideal) *while spinning the platters*. With the cover off, at least you can inspect the heads after moving to the ramp. If the heads are visibly bad, don't power it on and refer to another company. If you don't have a clean room, I still think it's safer to open the cover. The risk of dust damaging the drive is much less powering on a drive with bad heads. Again, I'd only recommend this as a last resort, if your customer can't afford the cost of professional recovery ($300).

This was done methodically after diagnosing the issue.

If you aren't opening the cover, you aren't properly diagnosing the issue. A bad PCB, blown preamp, stuck spindle, tilted platters, etc, can mimic the symptoms of stiction. Flicking around a drive with (or even without) these problems can further increase damage.

 

[Larry Sabo]

If there is no way the client is willing to pay for recovery by a pro, and they are advised of the risk of media/head damage and consequent loss of their data, why not? If the flick of the wrist doesn't do it, "percussive maintenance" might, i.e., a gentle tap on the (thin) side during the attempt to spin up.

The phaser sound that normally indicates stiction (heads stuck to the platters) could also be the result of heads jammed between the parking ramp and the platters. I would think a quick peek to see if that's the case might be justified, rather than risk media damage by powering up the drive in that state.

But I'm just a rookie at this stuff and am also interested in what the pros say. I'll bet 100:1 they say get it in writing that the client doesn't value their data more than their minimum charge before such reckless shenanigans.

Edit: I'm a slow typist, and didn't see Brian's reply, which I would endorse.

 

[Kaizen]

Thanks ddr300. I was hoping to hear a professional's opinion. As to diagnoses, it is not perfect. My point was it was not being done with out some practical judgment.

 

[300DDR]

Thanks ddr300. I was hoping to hear a professional's opinion. As to diagnoses, it is not perfect. My point was it was not being done with out some practical judgment.

Right, makes sense. It's good to at least have the experience to know what sounds would indicate this could work. It should go without saying (and this isn't directed towards Kaizen, but any newbs that may be reading), but if you hear the drive spinning or clicking, this cannot work and will likely worsen the situation.

 

[Kaizen]

If you don't have a clean room, I still think it's safer to open the cover. The risk of dust damaging the drive is much less powering on a drive with bad heads. .

I appreciate your non condescending honest feedback

Is it true that newer WD drives will get unallinged if you take the cover off. Do they have to be removed is a special way?

 

[bertie40]

If I recall correctly, the cover screws need to be re tightened with a specific torque setting.

I've seen videos (with a good drive) where a cover has been removed, reapplied and the drive fail.

The procedure was repeated using a torque wrench to refit the screws, and the drive worked.

 

[lcoughey]

1. Stiction: can you free up the heads by torquing the drive, tapping with a hammer or by applying heat/cold?

Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, no. But, by doing this, you risk ripping the sliders off of the read/write heads, resulting in a very disastrous head crash. So, these methods should only be tried as a last resort when clean room data recovery services are out of the question.

We encounter stiction drives frequently and the result of the heads sticking to the platters is media damage (which will eventually lead to a fatal head crash) and damaged heads that require a head change. It is always better to free up the heads, remove them from the drive, visually inspect and then try them, without risking killing the drive permanently.

2. Open Drive: Does removing the cover affect head alignment?

In some older model Western Digital drives, yes. But, not so much with the majority of drives on the market these days. However, if you don't have the clean room, tools and experience to work inside a drive, do not open it. The only thing you will accomplish is that you will no longer get a free assessment at most labs and the cost for the recovery will increase exponentially.

When a lab receives a drive, we have to assume that we aren't getting the full story. So, when the drive comes in with the seal broken, it makes it very difficult for us to diagnose the original issue which might have been only a firmware or PCB issue and now because a question of heads and media.