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I dont know whether I can ask this question here or not. Please consider this if it not a proper place.

Here is my problem, I was using Windows XP previously and I changed it with Windows 8. After installation of Windows 8 when I booted it up, I found my HDD behavior changed. Sometimes it is running and sometimes it is not.

My system specification is :

Intel Motherboard (945 Express Chipset)
Processor (Core 2 duo)
RAM (2 GB)
HDD(500 GB)

When I open my HDD for getting the cause of problem (I open that casing and check head and disk). I did not find any hardware visible problem. Just it is stop rotating, before it can boot OS.

Can someone help me to fix this problem or recover data in this case.

NOTE : Warranty period expired, and I have my 5 projects in that and some important documents.

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    When I open my HDD for getting the cause of problem. I did not find any hardware visible problem. Just it is stop rotating, before it can boot OS. Could you clarify what this means? In any event, it is not advisable to opening the hard drive itself as it's very fragile, as well as sensitive parts that are susceptible to damage when it's introduced to normal, out-of-the-lab kind of environment.
    – happy_soil
    Aug 5, 2013 at 9:37
  • @happy_soil... I open the screws of that assembly. and check Head and Disk. That is how I came to know that after (Max 15 seconds) disk stop rotating.
    – someone
    Aug 5, 2013 at 9:48
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    You most likely have ruined the disk, then. For future reference, most HDD problems can be solved through software, i.e. using recovery programs. You can easily tell if you've got a hardware problem, for example, if you're hearing an abnormal clicking noise.
    – happy_soil
    Aug 5, 2013 at 9:52
  • @happy_soil... So there is no way to recover data? Can I go for change of head assembly, Because when I power up the machine it start rotating and after 15-20 seconds it stop rotating.
    – someone
    Aug 5, 2013 at 10:06

2 Answers 2

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When I open my HDD for getting the cause of problem (I open that casing and check head and disk).

I open the screws of that assembly. and check Head and Disk. That is how I came to know that after (Max 15 seconds) disk stop rotating.

Please, please tell us this is a bad joke or, failing that, an exceptionally tragic misunderstanding of terminology.

If you opened up the physical drive assembly and thus exposed the disk platters and read/write head assembly to ordinary, unfiltered air, and then attempted to start the disk (even after reassembling), the disk is most likely now damaged beyond repair. The operating tolerances of a modern hard disk drive are in the tens of nanometers range, and the drive head relies on the air turbulence around the platters inside the casing to lift above the platter. For comparison, 1 mm is 1,000,000 nm, and the size of dust particles generally measures in the micrometer range (where 1 µm = 1,000 nm), so the size of most dust particles is on the order of ten to a hundred times the normal operating distance between the disk's read/write head and the disk platter itself. A nanometer is to a millimeter as a millimeter is to a kilometer.

There might have been some chance of data recovery (if nothing else through specialized firms; their services are expensive for a reason) before you opened the drive assembly or at least before you subsequently powered up the drive; keep in mind that the outer edge of a disk platter on a 7200 rpm 3.5" drive is moving at around 35 m/s, which is slightly more than low hurricane wind speed. At this point, however, I'd say the chance of any data being recoverable is slim to none.

I'm sorry to disappoint you, but as the text tends to go, no user-servicable components inside. A hard disk is not a trivial piece of electromechanics; it is an extremely delicate piece of equipment that, without exaggeration, requires the utmost care when handling its internals and even when properly assembled should be handled with great care.

Your best bet would be to restore from a recent backup onto a new drive and simply toss the old drive. If you don't have a backup, pretty much your only hope likely is a data recovery firm, but don't expect them to be able to dig much if anything off that drive. My guess is if you were to ask, they'd just tell you to not bother; unless the data is extremely valuable (in which case you definitely should have had backups), it's almost certainly not worth the effort to even try.

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Getting your data back may prove very difficult, especially on your case. Recovery software relies on the user not doing any further interactions, i.e. downloading or moving files around, as it may cause it to overwrite the [undeleted] files (in your case, installing Windows 8).

For what it's worth, you can try running programs such as GetDataBack, Recuva, and FreeUndelete. Make sure you read each program's manual and F.A.Q. before attempting any recovery for any specific instructions.

When I open my HDD for getting the cause of problem (I open that casing and check head and disk). I did not find any hardware visible problem. Just it is stop rotating, before it can boot OS.

It's not advisable to physically open your hard drive to diagnose problems. They contain fragile and sensitive components that are susceptible to damage when mishandled. Opening them also introduces "dirty" air into the disk, unless you're working in a tightly-controlled lab where air is filtered and any airborne particles are zero to none.

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