Seagate Expansion Hard Drive (Portable) is not recognized By Windows!

Question

My Seagate Expansion Hard Drive is not recognized by windows. When I connect it to the computer I do not see "Mass Storage Device" Under "Universal Serial Bus Controller". I already check the troubleshoot and test for everything (Cable is OK, I checked in another computer, etc)

It happen after I connect the Hard Drive to another computer which then I realized it's USB Port was corrupted and problematic.

Is there a way I can fix this Hard Drive? Or any utility which can access this hard disk? When I connect Hard Disk, it turned On (The Light become green) and it start vibrating.

P.S: I check my drive again SeaTools, but SeaTools cannot recognize it too.

Solution 1

You can always crack the enclosure and yank the hard drive to place it inside the actual tower (they're just ide/sata drives connected to an adapter connected to usb).

From Mani: Actually it is not SATA hard drive. It's a completely Laptop external Hard Drive. It's lot smaller and there is no easy way to open it.

Then it's a laptop hard-drive. Not really a weird form factor. I have done this personally as well. Laptop IDE and SATA adapters are commercially available in comments direct experience

Multiple instances as data recovery for various owners. This is where I go first (it isn't worth the time to half-way try it...if the drive is truly failing jumping to the last step first is more effective and safer. i have had a drive read one and the heads refuse to un-park on the next mount...this is even more the case on laptop form factor. disassembly of desktop hd's is simple enough, but i tend to fatfinger the laptop HDs). I appreciate your concern, but it's just an HD dude. Slave it, copy it, fix it.

Solution 2

Some manufacturers do use proprietary hard drive connectors, here is a WD proprietary drive out of a usb enclosure on the left, standard is on the right.

So don't open it unless it is a last resort.

Do you see the device in Disk Management when it is connected?

.

Comments

[Xantec]

is the drive not accessible when connected to another computer or another USB port?

[bman]

@Xante: Yes! It's not accessible, when I connect it to another computer or using another cable which I'm sure is working properly. I have two external drive and the other drive, just work properly with this cable.

[uxout]

@Mani he's still probably right that internally it has standard SATA logic, but if it's a weird enough form factor it might not be standard connections. Not worth the risk of breaking it open unless you're sure IMO.

[RobotHumans]

Then it's a laptop hard-drive. Not really a weird form factor. I have done this personally as well. Laptop IDE and SATA adapters are commercially available: google.com/… and google.com/…, direct experience

[RJFalconer]

Wow. How evil. +1 interesting

[RobotHumans]

The one on the right is a standard laptop sata connector, the one on the left is the way they make that particular one, but if you remove the entire tray that sits in, there should be an adapter that makes it mate to something like the hitachi socket(when it's inside a laptop anyway, I save these dongles out of dead laptops).

[Moab]

It came out of a USB enclosure, no adapter like in a laptop, if the enclosure electronics die you have a unusable proprietary notebook drive, unless someone starts making after market adapters.