Is your hard drive damaged? Can you no longer access your data? What should you do? Replacing its electronic board is the right solution. In what situations can this drive become damaged? What are the main steps for replacing it? Are there any contraindications? Can this repair be outsourced? Chronodisk tells you everything.
The hard drive and the PCB in brief
Before going any further, let’s take a look at the composition of these two elements.
The composition of a hard drive
This type of drive includes a PCB, or electronic board, and mechanical components such as a platter or a motor. Generally speaking, the hard drive is made up of the following elements:
- A spindle
- Platters
- Read/write heads
- An integrated electronic system
The PCB in a few words
First of all, the abbreviation PCB stands for printed circuit board. This board goes by several possible names: hard drive board, drive electronic board, or controller board. The PCB is the printed circuit on the back of the drive. The PCB is a component that can be changed or repaired depending on the situation.
Faulty hard drive electronic board: what is the cause?
This board can be damaged in the event of an electronic failure. But what causes it? At the root of these electronic failures is either a short circuit or a power surge. These electronic malfunctions can result from a lightning strike, water damage, or an abnormal fluctuation in the power supply. In every case, the outcome is the same: your electronic board is affected. More precisely, the electronic components on the PCB are damaged. Even worse, you lose access to your data. Replacing the PCB seems to be the ultimate solution. But how do you go about it? Let’s discover the key steps for replacing this electronic component.
Replacing the PCB: eligible models
Replacing my hard drive’s board is not something to take lightly. One wrong move with this electronic component and your data will be lost. Before starting, first check the feasibility of this operation based on the model. PCBs on the following models are eligible for this board replacement:
- Western Digital
- Seagate
- IBM
- Fujitsu
- Maxtor
- Samsung
Another criterion concerns the manufacturing date. This must be earlier than 2010.
Changing the PCB: the key steps
To change your PCB without any trouble, we invite you to follow these key steps.
The main steps
Your electronic board has the characteristics needed to be changed, but you’re wondering how to proceed. Follow these steps to replace this electronic component:
- Identify your PCB’s number.
- Select a replacement model with an identical PCB number.
- Transfer the BIOS chip.
Transferring the BIOS in 3 steps
To transfer the BIOS from the PCB, you must first desolder the chip from the old controller board. Do the same with the new board. Finally, attach the old chip to the new PCB. You can then connect your now-repaired hard drive to your computer. That’s it, you can now recover your data.
The exceptions
While replacing your electronic board may seem simple, this operation is nevertheless not recommended on certain models due to a risk of corruption and data loss. But which brands or PCB models are at risk? Here they are:
- Toshiba
- Hitachi
- Hybrid hard drives
- Hard drives with load/unload head technology
For these hard drives, it is therefore best not to attempt this operation. The PCB cannot be changed in these cases by an individual. Taking Toshiba as an example, the ROM is included on the controller board. You cannot intervene on your own.
The last resort
If your hard drive is one of the exceptions, or if you’re having difficulty replacing this electronic system, another solution exists for changing the board. You can simply turn to a professional data recovery service to replace this board. They have the ideal conditions (a cleanroom) for this procedure. Outsourcing the board replacement is therefore a possible alternative. This solution is all the more worthwhile if the data to be recovered is valuable. In that case, you cannot afford to risk losing it.
You can now decide whether to replace the faulty board yourself or to outsource this task. You now have all the keys you need to recover your data from the board, so it’s up to you.