My external HD is clicking....

Paul Iddon

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I have a couple of 1TB Seagate external drives connected by USB, but recently, one of them is making loud clicking noises as it accesses.

I assume then, that maybe it's time to do something before it suddenly dies, as I suspect it is indeed, dying...

I can get a new 1TB, or even a 2TB from my local Maplins store, but I would like to know this:


Can I simply connect a new external drive and then send all the folders/files directly from the clicky one onto the new one, or will I need some sort of transfer software installed?

I am running Windows 7. Will I get loads of "administrator permission" prompts or is it simply a matter of sending the info and leaving it a few hours to do the copying?



Thanks in advance.


Paul
 
I have a couple of 1TB Seagate external drives connected by USB, but recently, one of them is making loud clicking noises as it accesses.

I assume then, that maybe it's time to do something before it suddenly dies, as I suspect it is indeed, dying...

I can get a new 1TB, or even a 2TB from my local Maplins store, but I would like to know this:


Can I simply connect a new external drive and then send all the folders/files directly from the clicky one onto the new one, or will I need some sort of transfer software installed?

I am running Windows 7. Will I get loads of "administrator permission" prompts or is it simply a matter of sending the info and leaving it a few hours to do the copying?



Thanks in advance.


Paul
Yes, you can just copy and paste them over. You shouldn't get any "administrator permission" prompts.
May I recommend the 2tb one ;)
Just make sure that it is indeed dying first, but it does sound like it is dying.
 
The light has just gone out.

The plug from the power cable was extremely hot, and now the HD is off. It may have already bitten the bullet.

I'll let it cool of and try once I get a new external.


Thanks Ash.

Paul.
 
The light has just gone out.

The plug from the power cable was extremely hot, and now the HD is off. It may have already bitten the bullet.

I'll let it cool of and try once I get a new external.


Thanks Ash.

Paul.
Oh dear :thumbsdow
Makes me feel quite insecure that my data could go just like that. I would not be impressed if my external hdd broke on me just like that. All those family photo's from when I was younger...
 
i had this happen to the hard drive in my first ever pc, i was not impressed as being store bought it took the windows installation files with it :suicide:

Might be worth prying the enclosure open and seeing if you can connect the drive directly up to a PC without the caddy, it's a long shot but you might be able to get it working for long enough to salvage some essentials. I had a portable maxtor one do this a few weeks back and removing the enclosure seemed to give the drive a new lease of life somehow, the drive even works when i returned it back to the old case :confused:
 
I'll maybe give it a try, thanks. :)

Paul.
 
I will not run the drive again until a new drive is ready for backup. Removing the candy to connect the drive direct to the pc is another good option to minimize the possible fault.
 
I have been able to open the external up and I have connected it temporarily via the Sata inside my PC. So far, the copying process is working. If it all goes well, once done, I'll consign the faulty drive to the bin...


Paul.
 
Oh dear, well at least it seems you got your data back.

I used to only buy seagate drives, but it seems that their recent models have proven very unreliable based on reported failure rates, so I will not risk buying any seagate drive for the foreseeable future.

A quick search on the net will show which ones are perhaps to be avoided!
 
Oh dear :thumbsdow
Makes me feel quite insecure that my data could go just like that. I would not be impressed if my external hdd broke on me just like that. All those family photo's from when I was younger...

Maintaining regular backups are the order of the day! (as well as monitoring hard disk drive health for signs of impending failure)

There's been a useful discussion on the subject on a thread here on avforums titled 'How common are Hard drive failures?', a quick search should bring it up!
 
Thanks for ll the responses folks.

I'm happy to say that the whole 650Gb of content was successfully transferred to the new drive, and I am pleased about that!

Now, I just need to find a big hammer... :)


Merry Christmas to everyone.

Paul.
 

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