Imaging removed hard drive from laptop
I want to "Image Backup" or even just "file backup" the hard drive in a laptop computer running Windows Vista whose video board is not working -- i.e. I cannot "see" what's going on in the laptop or even if it's booting (I'm pretty sure it IS.)
I can remove the laptop hard drive, put it in an external hard drive enclosure with USB output, and connect it to an operating 64 bit desktop, also running Windows Vista. While the operating desktop "mounts" the removed laptop hard drive, it doesn't display its "file tree," and disk "Properties" reports only about 136MB as Used Space, and 159GB as Free Space (a 160GB hard drive), even though the removed hard drive has a full Vista Home Premium operating system on it, along with a bunch of applications, data files, etc. "Properties" says it has a Master Boot Record Partition, and that the device is working properly. The Device Manager also shows the disk model correctly and reports that it is working properly.
I'll give specifics below. While I HAVE Acronis True Image Home 2010 on the working desktop, and have earlier used it to Image Backup the desktop's hard drive, I'd LIKE to know what I need to get and do to Image Backup and save critical files from the laptop's removed hard drive -- before I send the laptop in for video board repairs -- or simply retrieve the critical files to another external hard drive in the event I just dump the (fairly new) laptop.
SHOULD I be able to see a "file tree" on the removed laptop hard drive, or does the fact that it's the laptop's operating system drive make it "unreadable" as just another external disk? I'm afraid to test-write to it for fear I might overwrite some system files.
Specifics:
The laptop with the bad video board is a HP Pavilion dv9730nr running Windows Vista Home Premium, Ver. 6.0.6000, Build 6000, BIOS Ver F.42. The laptop hard drive is a Western Digital WD1600BEVS, 160GB, SATA drive. When removed from the laptop, I put it into a Kingwin TL-202U-BK external enclosure with SATA internal interface, and USB 2.0 output (from NewEgg.com).
The working destop computer to which the removed laptop hard drive is connected as an external USB disk is a HP m9500y 64bit computer running Windows Vista Home Premium.
I have also connected the removed laptop hard drive to a DIFFERENT HP laptop (working) running Windows XP, with identical results (not seeing a "file tree" and only 134MB reported as Used Space, and 159GB reported as Free Space).
Can you tell me how to "see" and copy critical files from the laptop's removed hard drive, and also how to Image Backup the drive in the event I return the laptop for repair of the video board?
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Arthur Kotz
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I am afraid that your disk is corrupted. You should be able to see the files on the disk if you connect it to another computer.
Do this:
- connect the disk to another computer,
- run chkdsk /r from an elevated disk prompt on the disk.
If chkdsk /r doesn't find/fix any problem, try to recover the information on the disk with some disk recovery utility.
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