Computer Repair Tips: Broken Hard Drive? How to Recover Your Data Files

Computer Repair Tips: Broken Hard Drive? How to Recover Your Data Files

If you need to recover your important files quickly and easily from a dying hard drive then you can’t afford to miss reading this article…

“Technology… is a queer thing. It brings you great gifts with one hand, and it stabs you in the back with the other. ” ~C.P. Snow

It’s an accepted fact that hard drives are the weakest link in computer technology. The hard disk is where the operating system and all software applications are stored. Because of this, a properly working drive is essential in the operation of any computer.

But since these drives are basically just an electro-mechanical devices, and like any other machine they will eventually breakdown and fail.
And then oops, without backups, all your family photos, legal documents and important emails are gone!

There are three levels of data or file recovery for a dying or broken hard drive:

1) Basic Level: The drive is working (your can hear it spin up but it will not boot to Windows)

This usually means that some essential Windows files have been comprised or damaged in some way. With the right software you can view your files and even copy them. You have to choices…

Use a Rescue CD: You can grab a bootable CD with hard drive utility software already installed on it. You can then make repairs or copy your files from your bad drive to a replacement. A good name brand rescue CD for Windows is the “Ultimate Boot CD”

Move the Drive: If you don’t have a way of burning a rescue CD and don’t want to wait for a copy to shipped to you; you can always move your bad drive and place it in another working desktop PC. Once installed you should be able to view all your files on the drive from a secondary slot (normally where the CD or DVD drive live.)

2) Intermediate Level: The drive works but you can’t see the files you want using the methods above.

Okay, things are not going good. You at this point have to get out the big guns. You will have to download and run a data recovery program such as “Active UNDELTE”, “Recover My Files”, etc. Both of these programs are powerful, reliable, and easy to use and won’t cost you an arm or a leg to buy.

With Active UNDELETE you can also make a bootable CD to run on a PC if you can’t move the drive to another computer. Both have technical support options if you need further help.

3) Advanced: You have tried everything above but you still can’t find that Last Will from Aunt Sue…

At this point you have probably spent several hours (if not days) without your PC and invested just over a $100 in software if you used all of the above products. Now, is the time for you to decide to either use a professional level recovery application or throw in the towel and take your drive to a recovery specialist.

If you have the time but not a lot of cash (understand that hard drive recovery services can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars) then you can ratchet it up a notch and buy a copy of the home version of EasyRecovery from Ontrack. Ontrack is one of the leading data recovery companies in the world.

But if time is more critical and money is no obstacle then bite the bullet and take your drive to a local computer shop that does recovery work. Or if that is not possible then contact a big service like Ontrack and ship your hard drive to them.

Data recovery can be expensive no matter who does it, so to be on the safe side and make file backups frequently and fully.

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Help answer the question about computer shopping tips

Tips for shopping this Black Friday??
I want to get a laptop from walmart this Black Friday. I here they will be about $398 for a HP ze2308wm Notebook….Last year walmart did this and swarms of ppl crowed the store and they ended up being pepper sprayed……I want this computer….so any tips would be nice…

sorry if i put this in the wrong spot i just wanted a lot of ppl to read it…..

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10 Responses to “Computer Repair Tips: Broken Hard Drive? How to Recover Your Data Files”

  1. PACERzx says:

    I really liked your channel and this video. If you need any help getting this video exposed I use a site called tubeviews.(net) It has really helped like 20 of my main videos get to the top in position. Its nice.

    I like what i watched.

  2. A nerd who needs help says:

    Just like any business, you need to define your target market and determine how to effectively reach them. Some possible target markets include:

    - Small business owners, who more often than not do not have a dedicated employee for computer repair needs. Most of small businesses also would rather outsource the repair and maintenance of their computers rather than spend too much time away from their core business to do the repairs needed.

    - Home business owners and one person businesses whose computers are extremely essential to the operation of their business

    - Retired baby boomers are another important possible target market for this business. Most of the old folks will not drive to town to get their computer fixed. Plus, many of them are not willing or do not have the technical know-how to do even simple fixes or installs.

    For additional information, read the following books:

    Computer Repair Business Lessons Learned by Daniel Hand
    How to start and run your own computer repair business by Joe A. Wisinski
    Start Your Own Computer Business: Building a Successful PC Repair and Service Business by Supporting Customers and Managing Money by Morris Rosenthal and Reva Rubenstein

  3. JayB says:

    Try to stick to one site to avoid spending a lot on shipping. Go to newegg and make sure every item you get is either a combo item or has free shipping. I saved 80 dollars by using combos for every piece of my latest rig. Sink most of your money into a video card, I would go EVGA if you are getting an NVIDIA card. They have a step up program so that if something new comes out within 90 days of your purchase you can upgrade by paying the difference between how much you paid versus the new card. Adds a lot of life to your computer for only 30ish dollars. You can go cheap on the case as long as it gets good airflow. AMD Phenom 2s are the best for the money atm, Intels are more powerful but the platform will cost you a lot more. Don't go cheap on a power supply, and make sure you get ram from a decent brand (Corsair, OCZ, GSkill). Get a nice after market heatsink too, this can greatly increase your performance through overclocking.

    Have fun, I love building budget computers.
    Here's an example, remember you can save a lot of money by re-using old pars (HDD, CD-DVD drive just depends what is compatible.)

    LITE-ON 24X CD/DVD Burner Black SATA Model iHAS324-08 –
    Item #: N82E16827106291

    Thermaltake Strike Mx VI6001BNS Black SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
    Item #: N82E16811133069

    Western Digital Caviar Green WD6400AACS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive

    MSI 770-C45 AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard –
    Item #: N82E16813130228

    EVGA 896-P3-1258-AR GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 SSC Edition 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported
    Item #: N82E16814130441

    OCZ StealthXStream OCZ700SXS 700W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready Active PFC Power

    G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL8D-4GBHK

    AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Black Processor Model HDZ720WFGIBOX –

    Scythe SCKTN-3000 92mm Sleeve "KATANA3" 3Heat Pipes CPU Cooler

    Copied from newegg it was 705.00 without shipping. All of these parts can be scaled down by the way. Just make sure you get a good video card!

  4. Brian W says:

    no but scrubbug is a great place to visit!!!

  5. bri0987 says:

    Your initial tables need to be :
    components (id int(6) primary key auto_increment, description varchar(35) unique key, type_id int(6), obsolete int(1) default 0);
    component_type (id int(6) primary key auto_increment, type_descn varchar(35) unique key);
    client_selection (order_id int(6) not null, component_id int(6));
    orders (id int(6) primary key auto_increment, user_id int(6), Order_date date);
    Coupled with a client table using an auto_increment id field and carrying each user's details you can link each build to the client, and an order. A client can make hundreds of orders this way, the data is linked by id, and each build can be distinguished from previous orders. A quantity order could be created using an additional table for build_1, build_2 etc, including a quantity field, the primary key id from this can be used to link groups of components to each of a different machine on the same order. You would then add a field to the client_selection table to identify which part fits in which machine. Keep the fields in each table to a minimum, use id links to identify data to it's client, machine, order, build etc. A price table listing prices against component id allows for simple costing updates, a table for prices at date of order against component id on the order could mean selling at one price today, increasing the price tomorrow and building the machine next week without upsetting the client. He gets billed what he was quoted. Small amounts of data and linking makes the system flexible, don't be afraid to modify tables as required during testing.

  6. Casey S says:

    There are screw extractors out there, but for a low torque application like this the best way is probably to take a toothpick, cut part of the tip off so it fits flush into the circular hole, put epoxy on it and tape or support it there overnight while the epoxy cures. Should come right out after that. I wouldn't recommend superglue, it is too brittle.

  7. angelsgurl_06 says:

    take your own pepper spray

  8. Hambone says:

    There are lots of good cameras out there. Anything 5 megapixels or above will be fine. I like the Canon A series cameras.
    Here are some things to consider
    Camera size, do you need a really small and thin camera?
    Do you want rechargeable battery or easily obtained AA?
    do you want to make video?
    Do you need a high optical zoom or is 3x enough?
    Memory card type. SD is pretty much the standard and new computers all have SD slots. Sony cameras use memory sticks and they have had compatibility issues.

    hope this helps.

  9. Rony A says:

    You can't limit it to a certan amount of time with out special softwhere which you will need to buy and install, but you can however make your comuter shut down at a certan time of day by pasting

    '@echo off
    title Scheduled Shutdown Batch
    color A
    echo Enter Time To Shutdown (Use 24 hr format, eg 21:35)
    set /p stime=
    cls
    at %stime% ""shutdown -s -t 00"" >nul
    echo Your PC Will Auto Shutdown At %stime%
    echo Press Any Key To Exit
    pause >nul
    exit '

    into a notepad doccument and saving it as .bat , then when o click it you can input the time you wish it to shut down.

    Hope i helped =)

  10. stesud22 says:

    Everyone knows that Windows computers can sometimes slow down over time. While not an exhaustive list of solutions to problems, this collection presents some ways to speed up a computer.

    1. De-Fragmenting
    Over time, the data on your hard drive gets scattered. Defragmenting your hard drive puts your data back into sequential order, making it easier for Windows to access it. As a result, the performance of your computer will improve.
    a) Right click of C Disk.
    b) Click properties.
    c) Click tools tab.
    d) Click "Defragment now".
    e) Click Defragment.

    2. Uninstall Unneeded Programs
    Removing programs that you no longer use can free up space on your computer and speed up your system's performance. However, you need to uninstall the programs properly to see much improvement; deleting them is not enough.

    3. Stop Programs from starting on Windows boot
    One way you can speed up your computer is to prevent programs from launching themselves at start-up. Not only do the unwanted programs delay the start of Windows, they also continue to slow down your computer since they use system resources.
    a) Open your Start menu.
    b) Click Run
    c) In the command screen type "msconfig.exe"
    d) In the "system configuration utility", click either "service" or "startup" tab
    e) Uncheck all programs that you are no longer using.
    f) Click "OK"

    4. Check for Spyware and Adware
    Spyware is software that allows companies to monitor what websites you visit or even access your computer. Adware is software that displays advertisements. Both use system resources and slow your computer down. Detecting and removing the programs will improve system performance.
    Get the best one from: <–http://toptenantispywareviews.com to scan your pc

    5. Clean your Registry
    Microsoft Registry Problems = Slow Computer!
    Use the tool: <–http://downloadlk.com/themosteffectiveregistrycleaner.htm
    Learn more information "why is my computer running so slow": <–http://downloadlk.com/WhyIsMyComputerSlow.htm

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