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I'll try to be as specific as possible here, so am going to make a bunch of statements to give as much information as possible.

I am using a MBP running OSX. I am very precious about the data on the drive, have looked into a data recovery service and will undertake it if I establish that I really shouldn't try anything.

I am competent enough to undertake the fixes I suggest, but first - the facts.

The Facts

  • The drive makes no noise when you plug it into a usb port.
  • The drive is not recognised in disk utility.
  • The problem is not the cable, i have tested it, and tested alternative cables.
  • The problem is not the usb sata controller, i have tried alternative drives on the controller, and have tried alternative controllers on the drive.
  • The drive is a toshiba MQ01ABD100
  • Spinning the drive in my hand does not make any audibly 'odd' noises, it sounds fairly normal, and sounds the platters are rotating freely.
  • I have not opened the case, and want to keep it that way.

My Conclusions

The above tests have led me to believe that the problem is the logic board on the drive.

I can't see any components that look problematic to the glance, and continuity testing (using a multimeter) says that all of the fuses on board are intact.

Voltage tests show extremely low voltage on the motor power points (a tenth of the power being sent by a 2.5" WD drive i have), which further implies logic board issues.

My Plan

I want to buy another drive as close as possible to being the same model. I'm confident I can buy the same model, but am also not kidding myself - lets face it, the revision is going to be different.

I want to use the new drive as a donor drive, and swap the logic boards.

Anyone see any problems with my logic, or my plan?

I have all the time in the world, its not mission critical.

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    Your plan is sound (though any backup strategy that may have led to it would not have been). There are many reports of people doing this. As you imply, chances of finding a donor board depend highly on age and popularity of device. Sep 10, 2014 at 10:02
  • You can't just buy any logic board. You have to find an exact duplicate ( same revision ) of the logic board. But you "turning" the disks manually likely has already caused permenant damage.
    – Ramhound
    Sep 10, 2014 at 11:02
  • I 'turned' the disks by twisting the drive and letting inertia do its job - to see if there was any audible issue. This would have damaged the disks?? Acknowledged about the revision number. Sep 10, 2014 at 11:21
  • @Ramhound, follow up question: will using a logic board that is a different revision DAMAGE the mechanical disk? Is it just the case that it probably wont be the same, so it wont work, or is it the case that it will actually harm the data? Sep 10, 2014 at 11:41
  • @stevesweets - It could. If you don't want to risk it a data recovery service likely is the better option. But understand what they will do cannot be done by you.
    – Ramhound
    Sep 10, 2014 at 11:43

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