External Drive turned to RAW

Perhaps other labs with fluid pricing, the price can creep up. With mine, the line is usually pretty clear, recover without a head/platter transplant, $350 CAD ($280 for resellers).

I sent the article for explanation of root causes of suddenly RAW file structures that most people tent to overlook.

I really want looking for an argument, was just trying to be informative and respond to comments that followed.

I do my best to be informative with technicians so that they can better serve their clients. I've provided resources showing the procedures and tools used by data recovery professionals.

With regards to the OP.

1. Confirm that the data isn't worth your recovery partner's base rate
2. Get a full sector-by-sector clone of the drive (take note that most WD drives are encrypted through the USB bridge or through SED for newer drives)
3. Use a recovery program against the clone and scan for the missing file structure, taking into consideration that any bad sectors you encountered when cloning will result in holes in the file structure and/or files.
 
This has happened to a few WD externals I always tell people not to buy them, get the Seagate comes with great backup software
I had a couple given they sounded healthy looked on youtube they are so proprietary you can't even reuse the casing
 
I have seen a few external drives go from NTFS to RAW. Windows can't read the file system so it creates a RAW partition. Like others have opined most of the time a client would unplug the drive without letting Windows logically dismount it via the "Safely Remove Hardware" icon. I either format the external drive as FAT or disable write caching to prevent this in the future.

I have had great success by doing what the general consensus here says. First clone the drive with your appl of choice. I bought Recover My Files years back and have been happy with the results. Then I run hardware diags and view the SMART data. I use multiple diags because I have seen HDD's pass one flavor of diag while failing another so test it for hours not minutes with multiple products.

If the drive passes and you have all the data saved then you can either run format or use the command prompt as an admin to fix the original drive. convert x: /fs:ntfs




 
Rough couple of days, so I apologize for the delay.

lcoughey said:
Perhaps other labs with fluid pricing, the price can creep up. With mine, the line is usually pretty clear, recover without a head/platter transplant, $350 CAD ($280 for resellers).

I sent the article for explanation of root causes of suddenly RAW file structures that most people tent to overlook.

I really want looking for an argument, was just trying to be informative and respond to comments that followed.

I do my best to be informative with technicians so that they can better serve their clients. I've provided resources showing the procedures and tools used by data recovery professionals.

With regards to the OP.

1. Confirm that the data isn't worth your recovery partner's base rate
2. Get a full sector-by-sector clone of the drive (take note that most WD drives are encrypted through the USB bridge or through SED for newer drives)
3. Use a recovery program against the clone and scan for the missing file structure, taking into consideration that any bad sectors you encountered when cloning will result in holes in the file structure and/or files.
Click to expand...

I wasn't necessarily referring prices creeping up. I was thinking of a fully informed customer who's not easily convinced to spend $300, learning after the drive has been sent out that the failure is worse than anticipated. The result is that the price of recovery increases because the failure is worse, not because of "fluid pricing." Again, the point is not to find fault but to convey the reality that residential customers nearly always balk at a $300 recovery, and completely choke if it turns out to be more than that. No professional technician will unnecessarily put a customer's data at risk for the sake of making a buck, rather than send the device out. We often don't get that option.

While I've been chiding you for not recognizing that reality, and that I had already had the discussion of recovery before I ever started this thread, I now must acknowledge that I did not make that abundantly clear in the beginning. I should have. That alone may have avoided this. Instead I skipped over all that I had done previously with the customer and jumped right into where I was going before the drive even came into my possession. Therefore, I will take responsibility for omitting that information, and then getting "huffy" when it wasn't assumed that I already had. I apologize to you Luke for that. It wasn't fair.

As for the drive, it's a 2TB My Passport Ultra (metal). I did not sell it to them so I don't have a purchase date for the 3-year warranty. It appears to spin up fine with no noises at all other than the normal whirring. I would prefer to send it out, but so far the customer has refused. They are currently on the road moving from Oregon to Texas.
 
UPDATE:

Most of the clients I have are great. Some (especially family members) can be more trouble than all others combined. In this case dealing with the client (my sister-in-law) is like being in a closet with a angry cat. While not specifically directed at me, the venting of anger, fear & frustration isn't pretty. I am constantly warning my clients about what can happen without a proper backup, but am seldom listened to. Then, when this happens they realize they could have spent the same money or less on a proper backup system and not have put their data at risk. In fact, that was an observation she made. Still, my experience has been that most residential clients just don't opt for the recovery. I don't believe I'm alone in that observation.

Nevertheless, she has finally agreed to let me send the drive out for recovery. If @lcoughey is willing, I'll send the drive to him.

PS: I use a CPAP and have since 2007. Mine died on 8/30 and I still don't have a replacement. I'm not sleeping well and am just dog tired. I apologize for not being myself, and especially to Luke.
 
Mike McCall said:
Still, my experience has been that most residential clients just don't opt for the recovery. I don't believe I'm alone in that observation.
Click to expand...
Same here.
Mike McCall said:
I am constantly warning my clients about what can happen without a proper backup, but am seldom listened to. Then, when this happens they realize they could have spent the same money or less on a proper backup system and not have put their data at risk.
Click to expand...
Don't you kinda enjoy saying "I told you so" down the road. :rolleyes:
 
Porthos said:
Don't you kinda enjoy saying "I told you so" down the road. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Not really. By this point I've had so many conversations about backups I'm mainly just tired of not being listened to. THEN comes the whole thing about sending it out, which is it's own hell as you know.

I'm so tired right now I don't want to work at all, and should probably be kept away from the public.
 
If you wish to send the drive my way, I'd be happy to help. Of course, I won't be offended if you were to choose a service closer to home. Send me a PM if you require any instruction.
 
I tell all my customers I will make money off of you in one of two ways through a backup solution which can see you quickly and easily recover your data or through data recovery which may or may not be able to recover your data.

It's not a matter of if I get your money it's a matter of when.

I follow that up with a cost explanation of a backup solution and data recovery.

As you said though some just don't get it you could offer them a free backup solution and they will still turn it down

Sent from my SM-G870W using Tapatalk
 
nerd2u said:
As you said though some just don't get it you could offer them a free backup solution and they will still turn it down
Click to expand...
Many belive "it wont happen to them" "there is nothing important on my computer" the list of excuses goes on.

Most home users don't see the value of paid automatic backup cloud or otherwise and even if you set them up with an external drive and the free Macrium they never use it and the only backup they have is the one I showed them how to make in the beginning.
I teach them that they should do a full image backup each month. I offer a discount on restoration if their backup is no more than 45 days old.
If older they full labor price as if I am clean installing Windows.

I tell them the best case is we never have to do a restore but it is an insurance policy that only costs them the cost of a drive and a few clicks each month.
 
Porthos said:
Many belive "it wont happen to them" "there is nothing important on my computer" the list of excuses goes on.

Most home users don't see the value of paid automatic backup cloud or otherwise and even if you set them up with an external drive and the free Macrium they never use it and the only backup they have is the one I showed them how to make in the beginning.
I teach them that they should do a full image backup each month. I offer a discount on restoration if their backup is no more than 45 days old.
If older they full labor price as if I am clean installing Windows.

I tell them the best case is we never have to do a restore but it is an insurance policy that only costs them the cost of a drive and a few clicks each month.
Click to expand...
I don't make mine do anything but leave their drive connected. I'll set them up with free automated backups and they still won't buy the drive. Those with important data I push toward a NAS & off-site storage. Can't convince them to until this happens. In this case she was good about watching that the backups were actually happening and telling me if they weren't. The drive just tanked unexpectedly on her. From what I read, an external drive changing from NTFS to RAW can happen for a myriad of reasons. Some having to do with a failure of the drive and some not.
 
Mike McCall said:
In this case she was good about watching that the backups were actually happening and telling me if they weren't. The drive just tanked unexpectedly on her.
Click to expand...
"Backup" should mean same data on the computer and external. So the external tanking should be a non-issue.
 
Porthos said:
"Backup" should mean same data on the computer and external. So the external tanking should be a non-issue.
Click to expand...
There you go again trying to make sense out of end user practices. The scheduled backups to the drive took place, but she spread her data onto both her main drive and the external. It's a constant fight ya know.
 
But that new SSD drive you sold me is new.
It's under warranty, so won't "they" make it right for me.
Including getting Grandma's photos back.
And the explaining goes on and on.
LOL!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

frase
[SOLVED] Samsung USB Partition issue
Replies
4
Views
251
frase
frase
Dr Tweak
Data Recovery from RAW
Replies
7
Views
1K
labtech
labtech
T
Local Staples wiped clients drive, any recourse for them?
2
Replies
21
Views
2K
Sky-Knight
Sky-Knight
thecomputerguy
Am I making a big mistake migrating this client to SP/Teams?
2
Replies
26
Views
7K
Sky-Knight
Sky-Knight
Appletax
[SOLVED] $300 Data Recovery - Trying to recover a book
2
Replies
29
Views
5K
britechguy
britechguy
Back
Top