The mechanical fault was followed by a series of further missteps. The drive was repeatedly powered on and tested, and then opened at home. Fortunately, the tinkerer was careful while removing the top cover; after a look inside he recognized that there was nothing he could do himself and closed the drive again. A hard drive often does not survive such treatment, though—without the right knowledge, equipment and, above all, a cleanroom environment, do not attempt experiments like this with important data. The drive then went to a competing company, which did not complete the job, and only afterward did it come to us.
What the diagnostics revealed
Our diagnostics confirmed damage in the area of the read heads. With this type of fault, work on the service data at several levels has to be expected as well—replacing the heads alone, without correctly handling the firmware, would not be enough to reach the data.
The ST5000LM000 is also one of the highest-capacity 2.5" drives of its era. It stores data using SMR (shingled magnetic recording), in which adjacent recording tracks partially overlap like roof shingles. This density increases capacity, but managing the service data and firmware on such drives is more delicate, and every step has to be chosen with particular caution. We cover the specifics of Seagate data recovery in more detail on our Seagate drives page.
Working with the read heads and the risk of platter damage
Work on the read heads is among the most delicate operations there is. If a deformed head (or several heads) scratches a platter, it can be fatal for the user’s data. The worn recording layer also spreads further—damage migrates from one platter to neighboring heads and platters, gradually degrading the whole drive. With Seagate drives, especially these high-capacity models, we therefore take this risk seriously and choose every step deliberately. If the platters are in acceptable condition, we proceed to replace the damaged heads and other components.
Service-data modification
The second pillar of the recovery was the work on the service data. First, the service data on the drive’s electronics (PCB) had to be modified, and then the service data stored in the reserved area on the platters. The goal was to gain the best possible control over the read process. Under normal operation the drive performs a range of optimizations during writing and reading; on a damaged drive, however, these automatic routines tend to get in the way, so it is advisable to suppress or modify them. Successful data recovery from a mechanically damaged Seagate therefore takes more than specialized hardware and software—it also takes the experience and judgment of a technician who knows which step to take and which to avoid.
Media: Seagate ST5000LM000 (2.5" hard drive)
Capacity: 5 TB
Problem: Mechanical damage to the read heads (likely after a drop), worsened by earlier inexpert handling
Solution: Replacement of the damaged read heads, modification of the service data at both the electronics and platter level
Result: Approximately 90% of the data recovered—more than 3 TB of files
The result ultimately exceeded our initial expectations. Roughly 90% of the recovered data amounted to more than 3 TB of files—work and memories that were given a second chance. Situations like this can be prevented by backing up regularly. But once a drive or other medium holding irreplaceable data does fail, do not attempt recovery on your own—get in touch with us. Diagnostics and a consultation are free of charge.
→ More on this topic: Data recovery from a hard drive after a drop or mechanical damage
Technical terms in more detail
Service data (service area)—a reserved region on the platters where the internal information essential to the drive’s operation is stored: calibration data, defect maps, read-head configuration and other firmware modules. Without correct service data, the drive cannot communicate properly with the computer or make the user data accessible.
SMR (Shingled Magnetic Recording)—a recording method in which adjacent data tracks partially overlap, much like roof shingles. It allows higher capacity in the same area, but writing and internal data management are more complex than with conventional recording (CMR), which raises the demands on data recovery as well.
