A client brought in an ST2000DM001 hard drive from a desktop computer that had been dropped during a move. The drive was recognized as an unnamed device, and access to files was lost.
Problem and Solution
Diagnostics showed the heads parked, clicked, and the motor shut off. Upon opening the drive in a clean room, the read/write heads were found faulty and needed replacement. Scratches on the platters indicated that only data from undamaged sectors could be recovered. A donor drive was used to replace the heads, and data was read sector by sector, skipping damaged areas to avoid further issues.
Result
Despite significant platter damage, over 85% of the data, including most important files, was recovered. The client was satisfied with the outcome.