External hard drive not powering on
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perrineB
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jeannets Posted messages 28329 Registration date Status Contributeur Last intervention -
jeannets Posted messages 28329 Registration date Status Contributeur Last intervention -
Hello community.
My external hard drive won't turn on anymore.
My power supply is working properly (blue light indicating it's connected to the mains). But when I plug the connector into the external hard drive, the blue light goes off. (and therefore my hard drive won't turn on).
I've done some digging here and there and read about either changing the PCB or opening the case and connecting the hard drive as a slave to my desktop computer. But this remains unclear to me.
I'm turning to your expertise to find out what I can do at a minimum to recover my data.
It's a WD My Book Essential 2TB that's already a few years old.
Thank you in advance,
Perrine
My external hard drive won't turn on anymore.
My power supply is working properly (blue light indicating it's connected to the mains). But when I plug the connector into the external hard drive, the blue light goes off. (and therefore my hard drive won't turn on).
I've done some digging here and there and read about either changing the PCB or opening the case and connecting the hard drive as a slave to my desktop computer. But this remains unclear to me.
I'm turning to your expertise to find out what I can do at a minimum to recover my data.
It's a WD My Book Essential 2TB that's already a few years old.
Thank you in advance,
Perrine
12 réponses
Good evening everyone,
"My food is working properly" You're talking about the blue light of the external drive, right?
"But when I plug the cable into the external HDD, the blue light goes out" It's the external drive's board that manages the platter motor that has a big issue (short circuit).
You're lucky, it's a 3.5" drive, so it has a separate power supply.
If your PC is a tower or a desktop, you could install it on the PC BUT at your own risk because it could damage the IDE or SATA ports or the motherboard. The power part works, but not the board that manages the platter motor of the external drive. Are you following me?
It would be a shame to "wreck" your PC for so little!
So take it to a repairman, he will have the opportunity to check the faulty components on your external HDD (if he's honest...).
Good luck (I had exactly the same issue, but for me, it was the power supply. Fixed but failed again afterwards.)
--
Happiness is the only thing that can be given without having it.
"My food is working properly" You're talking about the blue light of the external drive, right?
"But when I plug the cable into the external HDD, the blue light goes out" It's the external drive's board that manages the platter motor that has a big issue (short circuit).
You're lucky, it's a 3.5" drive, so it has a separate power supply.
If your PC is a tower or a desktop, you could install it on the PC BUT at your own risk because it could damage the IDE or SATA ports or the motherboard. The power part works, but not the board that manages the platter motor of the external drive. Are you following me?
It would be a shame to "wreck" your PC for so little!
So take it to a repairman, he will have the opportunity to check the faulty components on your external HDD (if he's honest...).
Good luck (I had exactly the same issue, but for me, it was the power supply. Fixed but failed again afterwards.)
--
Happiness is the only thing that can be given without having it.
jeannets
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It's often the tragedy of this type... I think buying a new hard drive would be the least costly solution...
Oh yes..! it's hard to apply the policy of repairing to consume less..
Here’s an example https://www.boulanger.com/c/disque-dur-externe/nouvelles_facettes_stockage_____capacite_de_stockage~220to
--Your old disk seems dead, but maybe not completely.. You could open it to extract the internal hard drive that's mounted inside.. which should be a "normal SATA" drive and find a friend who has a desktop PC; connect this drive as a secondary... see if it spins like that and ultimately recover the data inside...
... indeed... many external drives via USB no longer work due to the small USB <--> SATA interface that is mounted inside and is faulty (but not the drive itself)
It also happens that the drive consumes more power as it ages while the USB ports on laptops, limited in current, do not provide enough for the drive... and the PC freezes..
In short, I want to draw attention to the fact that there may still be possibilities... for someone who isn't afraid to take out the screwdriver...!!!
Oh yes..! it's hard to apply the policy of repairing to consume less..
Here’s an example https://www.boulanger.com/c/disque-dur-externe/nouvelles_facettes_stockage_____capacite_de_stockage~220to
--Your old disk seems dead, but maybe not completely.. You could open it to extract the internal hard drive that's mounted inside.. which should be a "normal SATA" drive and find a friend who has a desktop PC; connect this drive as a secondary... see if it spins like that and ultimately recover the data inside...
... indeed... many external drives via USB no longer work due to the small USB <--> SATA interface that is mounted inside and is faulty (but not the drive itself)
It also happens that the drive consumes more power as it ages while the USB ports on laptops, limited in current, do not provide enough for the drive... and the PC freezes..
In short, I want to draw attention to the fact that there may still be possibilities... for someone who isn't afraid to take out the screwdriver...!!!
jeannets
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Hello,
You’re talking about blue light...??? Is it the one from the computer..??
The brand and model of that computer would be useful for the discussion.. Brand and Model..??
-- If I understand blue light correctly...?? Your drive is a short circuit that brings your power supply to its knees..
-- Based on these initial observations, your drive seems guilty, without knowing more about its condition..
You’re talking about blue light...??? Is it the one from the computer..??
The brand and model of that computer would be useful for the discussion.. Brand and Model..??
-- If I understand blue light correctly...?? Your drive is a short circuit that brings your power supply to its knees..
-- Based on these initial observations, your drive seems guilty, without knowing more about its condition..
Hello
dismantle the drive from the case
is your PC a desktop or a laptop?
--
If my answer helped you, click on the Thank you button.
Mark as resolved if your issue is fixed.
dismantle the drive from the case
is your PC a desktop or a laptop?
--
If my answer helped you, click on the Thank you button.
Mark as resolved if your issue is fixed.
Hello, thank you for your responses.
Txiki's answer seems to be the closest to my concern.
It's about my external hard drive, not the PC. WD My Book Essential 2TB
The power supply of the external hard drive has a blue light. Indeed, it seems to be short-circuiting its power supply.
Now I just need to find an 'honest' repairman in Lyon.
P.S. After a first search for repair shops in Lyon and price estimations, I wonder if my computer (which I might break) isn't worth less than the expected repair... argh! Tough choice!
Thank you!
Perrine
Txiki's answer seems to be the closest to my concern.
It's about my external hard drive, not the PC. WD My Book Essential 2TB
The power supply of the external hard drive has a blue light. Indeed, it seems to be short-circuiting its power supply.
Now I just need to find an 'honest' repairman in Lyon.
P.S. After a first search for repair shops in Lyon and price estimations, I wonder if my computer (which I might break) isn't worth less than the expected repair... argh! Tough choice!
Thank you!
Perrine
Hello everyone,
If this is the one, it's a Western Digital, right? It should be powered by a power cable with probably a transformer. You can therefore open the case without any problem and also the drive.
But you say: "But when I plug the jack into the external HDD, the blue light goes out"
How is your external drive powered? (USB or USB + Power supply) and that's puzzling.
If you only have a USB cable, Jeannets is right in saying "Your drive is a short circuit that brings your power supply to its knees".
Waiting for more details on the connections... @+
--
Happiness is the only thing that can be given without having it.
If this is the one, it's a Western Digital, right? It should be powered by a power cable with probably a transformer. You can therefore open the case without any problem and also the drive.
But you say: "But when I plug the jack into the external HDD, the blue light goes out"
How is your external drive powered? (USB or USB + Power supply) and that's puzzling.
If you only have a USB cable, Jeannets is right in saying "Your drive is a short circuit that brings your power supply to its knees".
Waiting for more details on the connections... @+
--
Happiness is the only thing that can be given without having it.
Hello
First of all, you need to check the power supply; a lighting issue doesn’t tell us if the power supply provides the necessary amperage.
See you later
--
FC 25--- Debian 6.0-
The best things require patience. (JC ANGLADE)
First of all, you need to check the power supply; a lighting issue doesn’t tell us if the power supply provides the necessary amperage.
See you later
--
FC 25--- Debian 6.0-
The best things require patience. (JC ANGLADE)
Yes exactly... I've already seen USB drives that worked very well on a desktop, while they were non-existent on my friend’s laptop...
--- These drives consume around 500 mA... USB ports are limited in current, around 500 mA... it's just at the limit...
In practice, laptops are usually below that, closer to 450 mA, while desktops can go up to 550 mA
As drives age, their consumption increases, due to the mechanics of course, but especially because of the amount of files on them and their fragmentation, which causes random current spikes during head movements...
The older the drive gets, the harder it has to read weak sectors with low signal levels... So it tries to read them multiple times to get it right... this also increases head currents
All of this together makes a drive consume more than before... QED
--- These drives consume around 500 mA... USB ports are limited in current, around 500 mA... it's just at the limit...
In practice, laptops are usually below that, closer to 450 mA, while desktops can go up to 550 mA
As drives age, their consumption increases, due to the mechanics of course, but especially because of the amount of files on them and their fragmentation, which causes random current spikes during head movements...
The older the drive gets, the harder it has to read weak sectors with low signal levels... So it tries to read them multiple times to get it right... this also increases head currents
All of this together makes a drive consume more than before... QED
The external hard drive is equipped with a USB and power supply. Photo below.
The power supply (the transformer?) is failing (my little blue light goes out) even without plugging the USB into the computer,
Regarding power supply / amperage, it should be fine. I tested it on another equivalent device.
The power supply (the transformer?) is failing (my little blue light goes out) even without plugging the USB into the computer,
Regarding power supply / amperage, it should be fine. I tested it on another equivalent device.
jeannets
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This drive is made for USB-3... which has a higher current.. So..(???)
The external power supply is a 12 volts that plugs into the DCIN socket, it's this model.
https://mafianumerique.com/alimentations-electriques/12v/disque-dur-externe-western-digital-wdbacw0020hbk-01-chargeur-alimentation-12v-de-remplacement.html
Could you try with another 12 volts DC power supply..?
You say "my little blue light that goes out," so it was on before, on the drive...? powered by what then..?? Maybe thanks to the plugged-in USB..?? do you hear the drive spinning..?
If I understand correctly, drive only---> you plug in the power supply... the blue light does not turn on at all...?
That could mean that this power supply is the cause of the short circuit..? its cable, its plug..??
The external power supply is a 12 volts that plugs into the DCIN socket, it's this model.
https://mafianumerique.com/alimentations-electriques/12v/disque-dur-externe-western-digital-wdbacw0020hbk-01-chargeur-alimentation-12v-de-remplacement.html
Could you try with another 12 volts DC power supply..?
You say "my little blue light that goes out," so it was on before, on the drive...? powered by what then..?? Maybe thanks to the plugged-in USB..?? do you hear the drive spinning..?
If I understand correctly, drive only---> you plug in the power supply... the blue light does not turn on at all...?
That could mean that this power supply is the cause of the short circuit..? its cable, its plug..??
Well, in summary:
The blue light (power indicator) goes off (even without connecting USB): Your card (interface) power supply of the enclosure is dead (on the right in the image).
At some point, it will stop lighting up altogether.
This doesn't mean your drive is dead.
To check that, you need to open your enclosure and remove your hard drive. You will only have your enclosure left and the interface card between the HDD and the connectors of the enclosure.
https://www.futura-sciences.com/tech/comparatifs/meilleur-disque-dur-externe-comparatif/
This drive can be mounted on a non-portable computer.
WARNING however, if it’s an IDE ribbon (wide), you will need to move the disk's "jumper" to the "slave" position. See details here Windows XP and later it’s the same.
https://www.filtrenet.com/2011/07/installation-dun-second-disque-dur-sous.html
There you go, apparently your drive is not dead, I don't think so.
--
Happiness is the only thing that can be given without having it.
The blue light (power indicator) goes off (even without connecting USB): Your card (interface) power supply of the enclosure is dead (on the right in the image).
At some point, it will stop lighting up altogether.
This doesn't mean your drive is dead.
To check that, you need to open your enclosure and remove your hard drive. You will only have your enclosure left and the interface card between the HDD and the connectors of the enclosure.
https://www.futura-sciences.com/tech/comparatifs/meilleur-disque-dur-externe-comparatif/
This drive can be mounted on a non-portable computer.
WARNING however, if it’s an IDE ribbon (wide), you will need to move the disk's "jumper" to the "slave" position. See details here Windows XP and later it’s the same.
https://www.filtrenet.com/2011/07/installation-dun-second-disque-dur-sous.html
There you go, apparently your drive is not dead, I don't think so.
--
Happiness is the only thing that can be given without having it.
So great for all this advice, it's resolved for a dark power supply story
I found an old 12v power supply (from the good old turntable!) whose plug was compatible with my DC input.
The external hard drive powered on (yay) but was not recognized by my PC when I plugged in the USB 3 connector.
I then unplugged this power supply, and reconnected with my original power supply (the one with the flickering blue light). The indicator remained blue, the HDD powered on, and it started up, recognized by the PC.
Backups in progress :D
Thank you all for your help,
Perrine
I found an old 12v power supply (from the good old turntable!) whose plug was compatible with my DC input.
The external hard drive powered on (yay) but was not recognized by my PC when I plugged in the USB 3 connector.
I then unplugged this power supply, and reconnected with my original power supply (the one with the flickering blue light). The indicator remained blue, the HDD powered on, and it started up, recognized by the PC.
Backups in progress :D
Thank you all for your help,
Perrine
Hello everyone,
perrineB ==> Enjoy your backups. It's very important!
you say: "I then unplugged this power supply, then plugged it back in with my original power supply" it makes me think that since the beginning this connector was "poorly connected" because I don't see why it would work now.
In any case WELL DONE!
If the issue is resolved, don't forget:
1: to report it using the
2: to specify how this problem was solved, it will help others.
Thank you in advance!
--
Happiness is the only thing we can give without having it.
perrineB ==> Enjoy your backups. It's very important!
you say: "I then unplugged this power supply, then plugged it back in with my original power supply" it makes me think that since the beginning this connector was "poorly connected" because I don't see why it would work now.
In any case WELL DONE!
If the issue is resolved, don't forget:
1: to report it using the
●●●on the first question.
2: to specify how this problem was solved, it will help others.
Thank you in advance!
--
Happiness is the only thing we can give without having it.