Solve : disk read error blues...?

1.	Solve : disk read error blues...?
Answer» Hi, I'm new here and obviously, in need of some help. Thank you in advance to those reading this... I have spent a great deal of the day scouring through help forums and threads to try and figure this out; I've come across some similar issues other users have had, but I lack their tools. Long story short: I had purchased a laptop a couple years ago, a Toshiba Satellite. I deployed for a long period of time LEAVING my laptop in the trusting hands of my parents. I return after 2 years to find that through their use of said laptop, I now can not get past the Toshiba logo start screen. The two options available are F2 and F12 for the set up options and boot select. I've checked both out and failed to learn anything new or make progress. I do not have a recovery disk or XP disk (bless my parents again for their watchful eagle eyes). So, I am left scratching my head trying to figure out what to do. I have a feeling the hard drive is just plain shot, but mainly I want to know if there is any way of recovering pictures and audio I had saved. Do I need to drop the big bucks on a new XP disk? Or perhaps would a search for "XP recovery" on an electronics site yield the adequate resulting software to remedy this situation? I fear that the only option is to wipe everything clean. Any ideas, thoughts? Kinda bummed but hopeful, OreoenatorWhat is your priority? 1. Get the Toshiba running again. 2. Get your pictures and music from the Toshiba hard drive. Have you checked Toshiba's website? http://www.csd.toshiba.com/cgi-bin/tais/support/jsp/home.jsp# What is the model number of the Toshiba Satellite? Is it still under warranty?My priority is to recover the pictures and music, if it is possible. Should that be too difficult to accomplish, I can abandon hope and just get the darn thing running. I did check Toshiba's website, and didn't find much help in the support bulletins and user's guide. As for the Downloads section, however, I was a bit overwhelmed and am unsure as to whether or not anything listed there would help me or not. The one thing in the DOWNLOAD section that looked like it may help was a ACPI Flash BIOS version 2.10 for TECRA A5/Satellite M55, but I tried that and got nothing. My laptop is a Toshiba Satellite M55-S3512, and is not under warranty, sadly.First try F12, and select hard drive to see if it will boot. Then, try to find all the CD's that came with the Toshiba or try to obtain copies from Toshiba. If the Toshiba won't boot, you can remove the hard drive and connect it to one of these. Then you can plug it in to any COMPUTER to retrieve you stuff. I have tried selecting the HDD from the boot menu, but it just pops up with the Disk Read Error. The disks that came with the laptop are long gone, and as for obtaining new ones from Toshiba, I am awaiting a response. I will, however, give that USB adapter a try. I thank you for that help and I will let you know how it goes.Quote from: oreoenator on September 27, 2009, 06:19:16 AM I have tried selecting the HDD from the boot menu, but it just pops up with the Disk Read Error... Wish you would have mentioned that first. Try the F2 option to see if the BIOS recognizes the existence of the hard drive. It probably won't with the error you see, but one never knows for sure. You do understand that even with the USB adapter, if the the hard drive is shot, you are SOL? Then you would need a new hard drive AND the Toshiba or Windows CD. The hard drive's about $50 and if you can get the Toshiba CD's for a nominal charge or nothing, you should be able to get the laptop running again. For reference, your Toshiba Satellite M55-S3512 Hard Drive: 120GB (5400 RPM) Enhanced IDE (ATA-6) hard disk drive; 9.5mm height

Answer»

Hi, I'm new here and obviously, in need of some help. Thank you in advance to those reading this... I have spent a great deal of the day scouring through help forums and threads to try and figure this out; I've come across some similar issues other users have had, but I lack their tools. Long story short: I had purchased a laptop a couple years ago, a Toshiba Satellite. I deployed for a long period of time LEAVING my laptop in the trusting hands of my parents. I return after 2 years to find that through their use of said laptop, I now can not get past the Toshiba logo start screen. The two options available are F2 and F12 for the set up options and boot select. I've checked both out and failed to learn anything new or make progress.

I do not have a recovery disk or XP disk (bless my parents again for their watchful eagle eyes). So, I am left scratching my head trying to figure out what to do. I have a feeling the hard drive is just plain shot, but mainly I want to know if there is any way of recovering pictures and audio I had saved. Do I need to drop the big bucks on a new XP disk? Or perhaps would a search for "XP recovery" on an electronics site yield the adequate resulting software to remedy this situation? I fear that the only option is to wipe everything clean. Any ideas, thoughts?

Kinda bummed but hopeful,
OreoenatorWhat is your priority?
1. Get the Toshiba running again.
2. Get your pictures and music from the Toshiba hard drive.

Have you checked Toshiba's website?
http://www.csd.toshiba.com/cgi-bin/tais/support/jsp/home.jsp#

What is the model number of the Toshiba Satellite?
Is it still under warranty?My priority is to recover the pictures and music, if it is possible. Should that be too difficult to accomplish, I can abandon hope and just get the darn thing running.

I did check Toshiba's website, and didn't find much help in the support bulletins and user's guide. As for the Downloads section, however, I was a bit overwhelmed and am unsure as to whether or not anything listed there would help me or not. The one thing in the DOWNLOAD section that looked like it may help was a ACPI Flash BIOS version 2.10 for TECRA A5/Satellite M55, but I tried that and got nothing.

My laptop is a Toshiba Satellite M55-S3512, and is not under warranty, sadly.First try F12, and select hard drive to see if it will boot. Then, try to find all the CD's that came with the Toshiba or try to obtain copies from Toshiba.

If the Toshiba won't boot, you can remove the hard drive and connect it to one of these. Then you can plug it in to any COMPUTER to retrieve you stuff.
I have tried selecting the HDD from the boot menu, but it just pops up with the Disk Read Error. The disks that came with the laptop are long gone, and as for obtaining new ones from Toshiba, I am awaiting a response. I will, however, give that USB adapter a try. I thank you for that help and I will let you know how it goes.Quote from: oreoenator on September 27, 2009, 06:19:16 AM

I have tried selecting the HDD from the boot menu, but it just pops up with the Disk Read Error...

Wish you would have mentioned that first.
Try the F2 option to see if the BIOS recognizes the existence of the hard drive. It probably won't with the error you see, but one never knows for sure.

You do understand that even with the USB adapter, if the the hard drive is shot, you are SOL? Then you would need a new hard drive AND the Toshiba or Windows CD. The hard drive's about $50 and if you can get the Toshiba CD's for a nominal charge or nothing, you should be able to get the laptop running again.

For reference, your Toshiba Satellite M55-S3512

Hard Drive: 120GB (5400 RPM) Enhanced IDE (ATA-6) hard disk drive; 9.5mm height

Solve : disk read error blues...?

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