FlyingJ 0 #1 September 9, 2004 Hey everyone. I fall into the category of those that know and understand just enough about computers to get myself into deeper trouble when I try "fixing" things. Here's the deal: -Laptop running Win2000. -Was on DZ.com and noticed things were slowing drastically and noticed a few things running in the background that I hadn't downloaded or noticed before. One was called Bouncer or something like that and all three were "adware" type sounding names. Didn't think much of it. -Went to Remove Programs to remove them and the machine froze. -Rebooted and froze on start up -Rebooted again and up came blue screen that said something about hardware or harddisk error. "If you installed anything recently, restart and uninstall it, if you can't restart, might be virus..." Unfortunately it was about 2am and I didn't think to write the message down verbatim. -Now...I reboot machine and it gets 3/4 through startup before stalling w/ audible mechanical clicking in reading the harddisk that has never been present before. -Attempt to start in Safe Mode - ran a list of files, etc. as if I had given a Directory command and froze on that screen making the same sound as mentioned above. -Attempt to restart "with last known working configuration" - same result. Stall 3/4 through startup. I do not have a Win2000 boot disk. The world won't end if I lose the hard drive, but I sure would like to avoid having to recreate my resume that I spent hours working on yesterday! Before I start trying what little I know I am hoping someone might have a suggestion. Whatta' ya think? Killing threads since 2004. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #2 September 9, 2004 Sounds like there is physical damage to the harddrive. I would go out and buy a new harddrive and make it the primary and set your old one as the slave and then install Win2k on your new hard drive and try to copy any files you want to keep off of the old hard drive onto the new one. then throw away the old hard drive. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tunaplanet 0 #3 September 9, 2004 Paging Dr. Ivan, paging Dr. Ivan. Someone get those kittens out of his office and drag him in here. The man needs help. Forty-two Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingJ 0 #4 September 9, 2004 QuoteI would go out and buy a new harddrive I had that thought. I have an external hd. Could I load an operating system onto the external HD using a different computer, and then plug it in to the laptop and boot off of the external? I have no idea whether that is even remotely possible. This laptop is a random ebay purchase from a few years back and it came with the Win2K installation, so I don't even have Win2K to install or reinstall. Killing threads since 2004. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kris 0 #5 September 9, 2004 QuoteSounds like there is physical damage to the harddrive. I would go out and buy a new harddrive and make it the primary and set your old one as the slave and then install Win2k on your new hard drive and try to copy any files you want to keep off of the old hard drive onto the new one. then throw away the old hard drive. It's a laptop, swapping drives is a bit difficult to do. In your case, you may be hosed. If you can get your hands on a Win2K install disk you can try running a repair on it. From the chattering of the drive, it does sound bad. I'm an ex-Seagate storage engineer monkey, so I'm pretty familiar with drives. One last-ditch thing you can try is to pull the drive from the laptop and throw it in the freezer for about 45mins and try it again. You may get it running long enough to backup important things... In the future, backup anything you want to keep. Good luck.Sky, Muff Bro, Rodriguez Bro, and Bastion of Purity and Innocence!™ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kris 0 #6 September 9, 2004 QuoteCould I load an operating system onto the external HD using a different computer, and then plug it in to the laptop and boot off of the external? Doubtful...look in your system CMOS on startup and see if it gives you the option for USB or Firewire as a boot device. If it doesn't then you can't.Sky, Muff Bro, Rodriguez Bro, and Bastion of Purity and Innocence!™ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #7 September 9, 2004 oops I keep forgeting that not everyone has the secondary hard drive bay that I have for my IBM laptop Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #8 September 9, 2004 You could ship it to me with a new hard drive and I could fix it and ship it back. I have done this so many times I could do it with out having to even think about it. I would charge a minimal fee. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #9 September 9, 2004 I just recently had a users laptop harddrive go bad and took the drive to a data recovery company and the quoted me $1200 not including parts to repair the drive and try to recover the info on it. It cost the company $100 just to get the assesment. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CrazyIvan 0 #10 September 9, 2004 What you can try (if possible) is to hook that HD to another computer (as a slave drive) at boot up time, the system might fix the problem on the secondary drive (yours), if you have NTFS Win2K will do it, if not, you can run CHKDSK on the secondary, it might be a "software" problem or a hardware problem, and that would be the way to find out.__________________________________________ Blue Skies and May the Force be with you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kris 0 #11 September 9, 2004 QuoteI just recently had a users laptop harddrive go bad and took the drive to a data recovery company and the quoted me $1200 not including parts to repair the drive and try to recover the info on it. It cost the company $100 just to get the assesment. Most places won't repair drives. They're considered disposables these days, with the exception of the fastest SCSI drives (Cheetah, Atlas, etc...) That's why I prefer to use Drive Savers....no charge unless you want your data back. They even tell you what they were able to find beforehand. I've seen recoveries top $10K though, depending on the damage and the amount of data recovered.Sky, Muff Bro, Rodriguez Bro, and Bastion of Purity and Innocence!™ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kris 0 #12 September 9, 2004 QuoteWhat you can try (if possible) is to hook that HD to another computer (as a slave drive) at boot up time, the system might fix the problem on the secondary drive (yours), if you have NTFS Win2K will do it, if not, you can run CHKDSK on the secondary, it might be a "software" problem or a hardware problem, and that would be the way to find out. Ivan's idea has merit. Compusa sells a converter that will let you plug that laptop drive into a regular IDE connection. If that drive has NTFS on it, the computer you plug it into will have to be running Win2K, XP, 2003 Server, or Linux with the NTFS driver.Sky, Muff Bro, Rodriguez Bro, and Bastion of Purity and Innocence!™ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #13 September 9, 2004 QuoteQuoteWhat you can try (if possible) is to hook that HD to another computer (as a slave drive) at boot up time, the system might fix the problem on the secondary drive (yours), if you have NTFS Win2K will do it, if not, you can run CHKDSK on the secondary, it might be a "software" problem or a hardware problem, and that would be the way to find out. Ivan's idea has merit. Compusa sells a converter that will let you plug that laptop drive into a regular IDE connection. If that drive has NTFS on it, the computer you plug it into will have to be running Win2K, XP, 2003 Server, or Linux with the NTFS driver. That is a good idea. I forgot about the converter. I don't need it with my IBM. They do sell a kit that will let you hook up your old hard drive through pcmcia slot on your laptop. So you could buy a new harddrive and a copy win2k and reinstall. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CrazyIvan 0 #14 September 9, 2004 I like to keep solutions simple. Those converters are cheap, I have a couple, bought them at a computer show $5 a piece.__________________________________________ Blue Skies and May the Force be with you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #15 September 9, 2004 QuoteI like to keep solutions simple. Those converters are cheap, I have a couple, bought them at a computer show $5 a piece. Yeah they can be a pain in the ass to work with. You have to be careful not to bend any of the pins on the drive. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingJ 0 #16 September 9, 2004 Thanks everyone, these are some great ideas. Thankfully my laptop is something I picked up on eBay a few years ago just to be mobile and I always backup to my desktop. I just moved so I've been using the laptop, and if the drive is gone I'll only lose a few items that have been created or updated since my move. I'm on my family's computer now, but I'm going to get my desktop pc up and running and will try a few of the proposed suggestions. Thanks again for the advice, and I'll let you know what the results are!Killing threads since 2004. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
weegegirl 2 #17 September 9, 2004 quick... run.... <<>> "THIS COMPUTER WILL SELF DESTRUCT IN 10..... 9....... 8....... 7....." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingJ 0 #18 September 9, 2004 QuoteThose converters are cheap, I have a couple, bought them at a computer show $5 a piece. Why do I feel like CompUSA won't be quite as cheap? Ugh I hate that place with a passion (long story - 7 months w/out a PC purchased there b/c it was a POS, but in the end they gave me a full refund on a 5 yr old machine). I'll see what other stores are in the area, but this converter idea sounds like a great one. Thanks!!!Killing threads since 2004. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #19 September 9, 2004 The converter is very small. I bought one at Fry's for about $3. its a small board with place to plugin the laptop drive and a ide cable and also power attachment Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
CrazyIvan 0 #20 September 9, 2004 QuoteWhy do I feel like CompUSA won't be quite as cheap? The real question is Will they know what you're talking about? __________________________________________ Blue Skies and May the Force be with you. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #21 September 9, 2004 QuoteQuoteWhy do I feel like CompUSA won't be quite as cheap? The real question is Will they know what you're talking about? LOL that will be the problem. Most people wouldnt even know what it looks like. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingJ 0 #22 September 9, 2004 QuoteThe real question is Will they know what you're talking about? No kidding. Actually, I won't allow myself to go to CompUSA after my previouis incident with them, but I'm sure Atlanta has more than that to offer. Just need to find one near my current job, otherwise I'll have to spend Friday when I'm off looking for computer parts rather than finishing AFF!Killing threads since 2004. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingJ 0 #23 September 9, 2004 QuoteLOL that will be the problem. Most people wouldnt even know what it looks like. Is the attached what I am looking for? Chances are I'll show up to the store and get the owner's nephew helping me rather than someone that has a clue, so it would be great to bring a photo.Killing threads since 2004. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
beowulf 1 #24 September 9, 2004 QuoteQuoteLOL that will be the problem. Most people wouldnt even know what it looks like. Is the attached what I am looking for? Chances are I'll show up to the store and get the owner's nephew helping me rather than someone that has a clue, so it would be great to bring a photo. yup that is exactly what I was talking about. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FlyingJ 0 #25 September 9, 2004 Quoteyup that is exactly what I was talking about. Great! Now, assuming I find this thing, should I be able to read the laptop drive w/ Win2k on a desktop with WinXP? If I can just get a few files off, I'll then consider trying to salvage the drive itself. For the moment I just want to get my resume off as I don't have time between now and an interview on Friday morning to rewrite it.Killing threads since 2004. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
