You’ve spent hours working on your computer, plus it has loads of precious memories stored on it, when suddenly one day, your hard drive seems to be broken.
Unless you thought ahead and did backups (which we recommend everyone does!), you may start panicking that everything is completely lost and begin looking for options to save your files. In this blog, we answer the question, can a hard drive be repaired?
Is It Actually Broken?
The first step to finding out if your hard drive can be repaired is to confirm the status of the hard drive. If it’s making a loud clicking noise, this means it’s definitely broken.
The long and short of this situation is that yes, it can be repaired, but this will be a much lengthier and more costly route. If it isn’t making a sound, there may be a simple fix you can make at home that will save you unnecessary stress before any actual repairs need to be considered.
Check The Hard Drive
Check all of the hardware connections, such as making sure that the computer’s power cables haven’t been disconnected or damaged. If this is all how it should be, the next step is to turn the hard drive over and look at its printed circuit board (PCB) for obvious signs of damage, like scorch marks.
These indicate that there was a power surge that caused the hard drive to stop, but this can be easily fixed by replacing the PCB. You can buy these online and do it yourself or hire a professional to do it for you if you’re not confident.
That didn’t help… what now?
If you tried this and still can’t access your data, or your hard drive is making the dreaded clicking noise, it sounds like your hard drive has truly given up.
However, you don’t have to give up just yet. You have a few options at this point: attempt to fix it yourself, hire a professional, or get rid of the hard drive altogether.
Making Your Decision
Consider the importance of the files you may lose. Are they vitally important for work or legal reasons? If so, you should consider taking the hard drive to a repair shop as a first option. Attempting a DIY fix may be more appealing for cost reasons, but any wrong move (such as plugging in the hard drive, attempting to open it or even just tilting it the wrong way) could result in all of the data being corrupted and lost.
There are guides on the web about fixing a hard drive, but unless you’re a tech wizard, it’s a difficult and risky job. This is why we recommend taking it to a qualified, professional tech wizard if the hard drive was expensive and has invaluable data on it that needs saving. If the files aren’t too important, consider weighing the cost of repair against the cost of buying a new hard drive, and make your decision based on which would benefit you the most.
Contact Our Hard Drive Repair Professionals
So, yes, a hard drive can be repaired by someone who knows what they are doing, like the computer repair specialists at Affordable Geeks. If your hard drive needs fixing and you need urgent help, we will do our best to ensure your data survives at a reasonable cost. Contact us by phone at 0412 389 017 today.
