I lost an SD card and may have older backups stored on a 1TB WD Elements external hard drive. Unfortunately, the drive no longer stays connected. When I plug it in, Windows detects the USB device, the platters spin up, and then it disconnects. I can sometimes hear a faint scraping sound followed by a sequence of clicks. The clicking repeats a few times, then the drive spins down completely. It does not appear in Disk Management. Is there anything safe I can try to determine whether the enclosure or the drive itself has failed, or should I send it straight to a professional data-recovery service?
2 Answers
This sounds much more like a hardware or mechanical failure than malware. A failing drive can disconnect before Windows has time to assign it a drive letter or show it in Disk Management. Do not run repair tools, format it, or keep reconnecting it in the hope that it suddenly works. If the files are irreplaceable, the safest option is to contact a reputable data-recovery company and explain the clicking and possible scraping noises.
The enclosure or its USB interface could be the problem, so you can try a different powered USB connection or another compatible enclosure first. If the enclosure contains a standard SATA drive, it may be possible to remove the drive and connect it directly to a desktop or a replacement SATA-to-USB adapter. Avoid repeatedly powering it on, though, especially if the scraping sound is real. The clicking usually means the heads cannot initialize or locate the drive's service tracks, so the drive retries and then shuts down. If the heads or platters are damaged, recovery generally requires a professional lab with clean-room equipment and possibly donor parts.
A different enclosure can help if only the USB bridge board failed, but it will not fix mechanical clicking inside the drive. If the data is important, stop testing it and do not open the drive outside a proper clean environment.