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Hard Drive Data Recovery Questions

Why Is My Seagate External Hard Drive Beeping?

A 2.5″ Seagate external hard drive beeps (usually after a drop or bump) because the heads are stuck on the platters. The beeping comes from the motor that is not able to turn. This happens when the drive had power going through it when the drop/bump occurred, either causing the heads to move onto the platters from the parked position or when the drive is actively reading the drive, thus moving the heads across the platter resulting in stuck heads.

There are three possible solutions for stuck heads data recovery but as you read through them, we are sure you will agree that the last option is the best solution for your data recovery:

  1. Move the heads carefully off the platters over to the parked position and running PC-3000 express to check the drive is functioning properly. This is not recommended as the process of moving the heads across the platters can damage the heads. The heads may even be damaged due them getting stuck on the platters and may end up needing a replacement anyway. Platter damage can yield no recovery so we do not preform this type of data recovery.
  2. Use a head comb to gently lift and and move the stuck heads back to the parked position. This will not scrape the heads along the platters and does not create bad sectors in the process. It’s important to note that the heads still may be damaged after being stuck down on the platters and running the drive in this state could do damaged to the platters creating bad sectors in the process. Once again, Platter damage can yield no recovery so we always go for option three.
  3. Use a head comb to gently lift the heads back to the parked the position just like number 2 and straight away replace the heads from a donor drive. Running through PC-3000 to check the Seagate drive is running correctly is a must, just like in option 1. This is the best solution for data recovery on beeping Seagate external hard drive and is the option we perform in this case.