LaCie Rugged Mini external hard drives are commonly used by university students and professionals for storing important coursework, research data, and personal files. However, when the USB port becomes loose or broken, it prevents data access, leaving users unable to retrieve critical information.
This case study details how we successfully recovered academic files and research data for a university student in Guildford from a LaCie Rugged Mini 1TB external hard drive with a Seagate SATA disk, after a damaged USB port made the device inaccessible.
As Guildford Data Recovery, Surrey’s oldest and best data recovery company, we have 25 years of experience using hardware repair, direct SATA extraction, and forensic data recovery techniques to restore lost academic files securely.
LaCie Rugged Mini External Drive with a Broken USB Port
A Guildford-based university student contacted us after their LaCie Rugged Mini external drive stopped working, with the following issues:
- The USB port had become loose and eventually detached from the enclosure.
- The drive was no longer detected by any computer.
- The student attempted to use a different cable but found the port was completely damaged.
- The drive contained essential university coursework, research papers, and dissertation files.
Since continued use of a physically damaged USB port can cause electrical shorts, an immediate professional recovery solution was required.
Diagnosis & Evaluation
When the LaCie Rugged Mini (1TB Seagate SATA drive) arrived at our cleanroom facility, we conducted a full hardware and file system diagnostic. Our findings:
- USB port was completely detached, preventing direct access to the drive.
- No internal drive failure detected, meaning data was still fully intact on the SATA disk.
- The Seagate SATA disk inside was functional, but required a direct SATA connection for data extraction.
Since attempting to reattach the USB port could risk further damage, we prioritized removing the internal drive and connecting it directly via SATA.
The Recovery Process
1. Cleanroom Disassembly & USB Port Bypass
To restore access to the drive, we:
- Carefully disassembled the LaCie Rugged Mini enclosure in a controlled cleanroom environment.
- Removed the internal Seagate SATA hard drive without causing further damage.
- Connected the drive directly to our specialized SATA data recovery workstation.
2. Imaging & Cloning the Hard Drive to Prevent Data Loss
Once the drive was connected via SATA, we:
- Created a sector-by-sector forensic clone of the 1TB Seagate SATA disk.
- Used advanced data extraction tools to retrieve all accessible files.
3. Extracting & Verifying University Coursework & Research Files
Once the data was extracted, we:
- Recovered all Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, and Excel spreadsheets.
- Restored dissertation files, lecture notes, and university project data.
- Transferred the fully restored data to a secure external backup device.
The Results: 100% Data Recovery Success
Thanks to our cleanroom disassembly and direct SATA extraction techniques, we successfully recovered 100% of the student’s lost university files, including:
✅ Coursework, assignments, and lecture notes
✅ Dissertation, research files, and academic projects
✅ Organized file structures restored for easy access
The student was able to submit their coursework on time, preventing academic setbacks.
Why Choose Us?
With 25 years of experience and tens of thousands of successful hard drive recoveries, we are England’s leading external hard drive data recovery specialists. Our expertise includes:
✔ LaCie Rugged Mini USB port repair & data extraction
✔ Direct SATA connection for Seagate hard drive recovery
✔ University coursework, research papers, and dissertation retrieval
✔ Secure & confidential data recovery services
If your external hard drive has a broken USB port, is not recognised, or is preventing access to critical academic files, stop using it immediately and contact us for expert data recovery.