When your computer, laptop or Mac powers up a drive but doesn’t recognise it, your files are probably fine. Whether the problem lies in the drive’s firmware, its electronics or its file system, our engineers will find the cause and retrieve your data here on site.
A drive that shows as RAW, “needs formatting” or “not initialised” is almost always still holding all of your files. Formatting or initialising it may overwrite information we would otherwise be able to recover. Keep repair software that writes to the drive well away, and don’t keep reconnecting a drive whose hardware is failing. An error such as “file record segment is unreadable” during a chkdsk scan is another good indication that a drive is starting to fail. Turn it off and contact us.
Hardware, firmware and logical faults can each make a drive disappear from your computer. Below are the faults we diagnose, and fix, most often.
Since 2002, we have recovered undetected hard drives from all the major brands. If your data is on spinning platters, there is a very high probability we can help.
SATA, SAS, IDE/PATA and SCSI · internal and external · 3.5" desktop and 2.5" laptop · from 40 GB legacy drives up to today’s 24 TB helium models.
Bringing a drive back into view may require firmware, hardware or file-system repair. We identify exactly what has gone wrong and correct it, then read your data back off the drive carefully and in a set order.
Drop off or post your drive. We identify whether the problem lies in the firmware, the hardware, the board or the file system, and send a written quote, usually within 48 hours.
We rule out the cable, port and bridge first, and with external drives we bypass the enclosure entirely and test the bare drive on its own.
When a drive fails to initialise, specialist tools let us access its internal service area and carry out the repair that allows the drive to be recognised again.
When a drive can no longer read its own setup data, we take matched heads or a board straight from our stock, so you don’t lose weeks waiting for a donor to arrive.
Once it is detected, the drive is copied to stable storage sector by sector, working patiently around any weak areas.
Corrupt partitions or file systems are reconstructed, your files are rebuilt, and your data is returned on new media.
Your recovered data will be returned to you on an external drive via insured postal service or for up to 75GB it will be provided to you as a free download.
With matched heads and boards on site and specialist firmware tools, most undetected drives go straight into recovery, with little or no delay finding a donor.
Tell us about your drive and we will get back to you, usually within 30 minutes during the day.
We will be in touch shortly. For anything urgent, call 01483 901310.
There are no surprise costs and no pressure: a free diagnostic and a written quote come before any work starts.
Recent recoveries of drives that were not being recognised, each handled completely in-house, with identifying details removed and every result confirmed. Full write-ups: a failing Fujitsu Lifebook imaged in passes and a Toshiba bricked by its own firmware.
Corrupted service-area firmware was the cause of the problem. Using specialist tools, we reached and repaired it, the drive initialised again, and it imaged cleanly on the first pass.
It wasn’t the drive but the enclosure’s dead USB bridge. We bypassed the case, connected the bare drive directly and confirmed it was perfectly healthy.
A bad shutdown had damaged the partition and file system. We created an image of the drive, then rebuilt the volume to retrieve the data intact.
Send us your device for a free diagnostic and give us as much information as you can about what happened. One of our engineers will review it and confirm your exact quote in writing before any work is carried out.
The first step to getting your data back is sending the device to us. Pack it safely, put your contact details inside the package and send it in. Once we have completed the free diagnostic, we will confirm the exact cost in writing before any work starts.
Sending it by post? We’d recommend a tracked, insured service. Dropping it in? No problem: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5:30pm. Please package the device as described above first.
Would you like more information first? Complete the form with further details about your issue, and one of our engineers will review it and send you a tailored quote.
We’ll be in touch shortly. For anything urgent, call 01483 901310.
The questions we are asked most about drives the computer won’t detect or recognise.
There are several possible causes: a corrupt partition, weak heads, a dead external bridge, corrupted firmware or a failed board. The good news is that the data itself is typically intact and recoverable; what has failed is the drive’s ability to report itself, not your files.
When a drive powers up and spins but the computer cannot see it, this is normally caused by a corrupted firmware or service area, or by heads too weak to read the drive’s own setup data. Using specialist tools, we access that area, correct the problem and get the drive initialising again.
No, do not format it. “Needs formatting”, RAW or “not initialised” almost always indicates that the drive’s partition or file system has become corrupted, with your data still present. Formatting or initialising the drive could overwrite that data, so instead we rebuild the file system and recover your files.
In many cases, it is the enclosure that is faulty, not the drive inside. If a USB-to-SATA bridge fails, your computer will not recognise the drive, even though the drive inside is perfectly healthy. To check, we bypass the enclosure and connect the bare drive directly.
Usually, yes. Whether the fault is in the firmware, the hardware or a corrupted file system, we carry out the repair it needs and get your data back. To us, a drive that simply won’t show up is just another day at work.
The flat price is £300 + VAT. You get a free written diagnostic first, and in most cases you only pay if we recover your data. Straightforward firmware or file-system fixes can cost less, and anything more involved is always put in writing for you to approve before work begins.
Once you approve the quote, most jobs on drives that aren’t recognised are completed within three to four working days, and the diagnostic is usually done within 48 hours. Urgent cases can often be moved forward, so just let us know.
All the major makers, from Seagate and WD through Toshiba, Samsung, HGST and Hitachi to Maxtor, Fujitsu, IBM, Quantum, LaCie, SanDisk, Buffalo, G-Technology, Iomega, Verbatim, Transcend, ADATA, Silicon Power, Intenso, UnionSine and ModusTech, in 3.5-inch desktop, 2.5-inch laptop and external formats.
Either bring it to our Guildford office on a weekday between 9am and 5:30pm, or post it to us fully insured. Package it securely and enclose your contact details (name, address, phone number and email) so we can book it in. Your free diagnostic begins as soon as it arrives, and you receive a written quote before any work is done.
Every recovery is backed by a 10,000-part inventory and starts with a free written diagnostic, and in most cases you only pay if we recover your data. Start your data recovery today.