Hard Disk not breathing?Did you try mouth-to-mouth???

[kelly]

According to the article an anti-static cover that usually comes with HDD will do the job i think. Why would you attach the cables while freezing

[Darth]

According to the article an anti-static cover that usually comes with HDD will do the job i think. Why would you attach the cables while freezing

Just leave the cables hanging loosely out of the bag. That way you won't have to unpack the drive off the foil and it stays cooler somewhat longer!

[Resurrection]

Why would you attach the cables while freezing

Yup doesn't make sense either...Actually the article Darth linked to has just the disk in the ziplock bag so I donno where that is coming from...

The method I mentioned is the last ditch effort...The freezing method is pretty easy to implement but any mistake in locking the bag and its game over before it began...

In any case,if you do get the thing to work you'll tell us wont you?

[kelly]

Yup doesn't make sense either...Actually the article Darth linked to has just the disk in the ziplock bag so I donno where that is coming from...

The method I mentioned is the last ditch effort...The freezing method is pretty easy to implement but any mistake in locking the bag and its game over before it began...

In any case,if you do get the thing to work you'll tell us wont you?

I sure will

I just removed my HDD after keeping inside the freezer the whole night. I had kept it inside a plastic casing. After removing , i saw moisture which soon condensed to form water . I was apprehensive about connecting it back to motherboard. Whatever object you remove it after freezing will always give moisture . ( this is basic science) . Should i wait till it returns to normal temperature & remove the water particles during that??

[slikrapid]

Should i wait till it returns to normal temperature & remove the water particles during that??

keep it at a relatively warm location, positioned in such a way that the water can slide/flow down without getting in contact with the electronic elements, which will allow you to see if there is still some water particles left after a few days - its similar to drying dishes after a manual cleaning/washing process (you could also use a hair dryer, but beware of its EM field affecting the electronics), its definitely preferable to leave it dry for more than a day or two before attempting to reconnect with a computer, as most (if not all) water particles will evaporate by themselves

[Resurrection]

keep it at a relatively warm location, positioned in such a way that the water can slide/flow down without getting in contact with the electronic elements, which will allow you to see if there is still some water particles left after a few days - its similar to drying dishes after a manual cleaning/washing process (you could also use a hair dryer, but beware of its EM field affecting the electronics), its definitely preferable to leave it dry for more than a day or two before attempting to reconnect with a computer, as most (if not all) water particles will evaporate by themselves

I think you lost a bit of perspective when you answered with that reply...
Remember we are freezing the hard disk to contract the metal part to make them functional for whatever little period possible.What good will thawing it for more than a day or two do?
Its a catch 22 sort of situation.You want to connect the disk as quickly as possible after you remove it from the freezer but not too fast or the moisture will short circuit everything...

I PMed KELLY some info which I think will work.
I remember having this chat with a friend of mine who is in the data recovery business.Unfortunately I've lost his contact info other wise I'd have given Kelly a much more up-to-date information...

[slikrapid]

Remember we are freezing the hard disk to contract the metal part to make them functional for whatever little period possible.What good will thawing it for more than a day or two do?
Its a catch 22 sort of situation.You want to connect the disk as quickly as possible after you remove it from the freezer but not too fast or the moisture will short circuit everything...

notice that i mentioned my skepticism towards this whole freezing idea in the first place - doing this is pretty much guaranteed to fry the hard drive, possibly damaging other components (fi. motherboard) as well

also you meant 'too slow', not 'too fast'

[kelly]

Guys, freezing didn't work out. I have now removed the outer cover & am able to see the inner parts of the hard disk.Where should i place the head when i boot the comp?

My hdd is acting similar to this.

YouTube - Harddrive 'click of death' aka Home Harddrive Recovery

[slikrapid]

well, personally i wouldn't mess with the hard drive interior (can't help with your particular question), what would be advisable is to contact some respectable pc shop/service and let them check what exactly is the problem, before attempting any repairs - some will do it for a small fee, sometimes even for free if its the same shop it was purchased from

- best case scenario: a little cleaning and it works again
- worse case scenario: it will work again (no guarantee for how long) if its electronics board is exchanged for a working one of the same hard drive type/generation
- almost worst case scenario: only specialized very expensive methods will help to retrieve the data (no guarantee of its condition/corruption)
- worst case scenario: its dead for good

the 2nd case above happened to me once before, interestingly the drive worked decently afterward even though it had a few bad sectors (afaik the norton utilities i used back then were able to flag those sectors so no app would attempt to write data onto them), it didn't fail at all

[caballero]

am able to see the inner parts of the hard disk

Can you go into details of what the inner parts are? Because hard drives are usually fixed in a clean room. So I would go with what slikrapid had said to avoid more damage.

[kelly]

Can you go into details of what the inner parts are? Because hard drives are usually fixed in a clean room. So I would go with what slikrapid had said to avoid more damage.

I am able to see the platter, (the actual magnetic disk). When i boot, the head keeps moving between the inner circle & the outer circle, just like in the video i posted in my previous link. I think , placing at some position will actually make it work.Well thats just my belief. Anyways, getting it to a data recovery guy would be the best option.