Solve : Hard disk click noise?

1.	Solve : Hard disk click noise?
Answer» Hi everyone, I have a Seagate 500 GB SATA hard disk bought in September 2012. I had replaced it once in the warranty period sometime in May. It had 1 year warranty, so now the warranty has expired. It has started to make that clicking noise where the arm just keeps on moving from one end to other. Can this be repaired? I know I require an extremely dust free clean room. Is this because of some adjustment to the arm which has gone lose or something which can be fixed? or Can I change the arm by some method (taking out of another bad hard disk with PCB problem) or can this actually be a problem with the PCB which is making the arm just move and make weird noise or is this a firmware problem? Btw, the hard disk runs fine if I hold it or keep it in a certain position. And I am currently using it. I have backed up all important data to my external drive. Is there any method to fix this on my own?Effectively this disk is junk. If you have important data that you are prepared to pay to recover, go to a recovery COMPANY. Mechanical repairs of the the type you describe are beyond the scope of the ordinary person. You would need a clean room costing half a million dollars and also the technical expertise necessary. Normally rebuilding a hard drive in this way is only done if it is very important to get the data off the platters, e.g. desperately important financial information, evidence for a criminal case, or issues of national security. Also, the reason for head seeks hitting up against the stops and causing a clicking SOUND need not necessarily be purely mechanical. Circuit board failure or serious platter surface damage could be making head positioning impossible. In the case of a circuit board failure you could try swapping the board with an identical item, but you have no assurance that this would fix the problem, and if it doesn't you have butchered a good drive for nothing. I have already backed up data. I was just wondering what causes this and what steps can be taken to avoid this with future drives. If the clicking happens randomly, can this be the PCB? Hunting for a same PCB seems difficult as this is one of the recent drives still sold in the market. But I may keep it with me, some time in the future if such a drive comes, I can try with it's PCB Quote Btw, the hard disk runs fine if I hold it or keep it in a certain position. That suggests to me that the drive has poor connections between the circuit board and the head/servo connector on most drives this is a pressure connection, with the circuit board having tinned pads that oxidise. If you live in a humid climate this happens easily. You can clean the board contacts with an eraser. Also try the drive on new cables sata cables and power connectors can become loose if swapped often. Some tips to get the longest life from a hard drive. Don't rotate or move the computer when the drive is on Insure that the hard drive temperature is always within the ideal range Use anti static prosecutions when touching or installing the hard drive Always install with the power direct from the power supply don't use adapters or tap in other power outputs like for fans etc Replace your hard drive every 3 years before it gives trouble and keep the old drive as a backup of your system Locate the computer somewhere where you have access to the drives and ports and won't be knocked Wow! Thanks Lisa, this is a lot of information, I will try your suggestions and post back results. Thanks Also, don't use your PC at altitudes above 5,000 meters. And do no use in an environment with less than 0C temperature. And never when humidity is over 90%. Quote Also, don't use your PC at altitudes above 5,000 meters Curious as to this statement? As for never heard of this and google is also at a loss at ... https://www.google.com/#q=hard+drive+5000+meters Is this related to air bearing and thin air causing problems of gap between head and platters? Quote from: DaveLembke on December 11, 2013, 09:44:23 PM Curious as to this statement? As for never heard of this and google is also at a loss at ... https://www.google.com/#q=hard+drive+5000+meters Is this related to air bearing and thin air causing problems of gap between head and platters? YES, the drive has to have normal air to WORK. It will not work if the head is banging into the platter. When the drive stops, the head will rest on the surface of the platter. That is normal when is stops running. You hear the head whine when the drive spins down. EDIT: Major makers document the limits of the hard drives they make. A few are for very hash environment. You will look hard to find any the work above 5,000 meters. I know of none. Maybe the military has some. What I posted about 0C and 5,000m are real limits. Don't push them. The drive must be back at normal temp and pressure before you use it. It may take HOURS for a hard drive to recover from a deep freeze. (Some techs do that to free a stuck spindle.) I cleaned the conducting points on the circuit board with an eraser. Its did not seem to help. I swapped SATA cables (was not using an adapter or converter, the PSU has the appropriate SATA power connector). I powered on my comp and the HDD started clicking. I held it in my hands in a certain position where it stopped clicking. I kept it inside the computer case, it started clicking again. Right now I have kept it flat on the surface inside the casing and it is not clicking. Left it like that. The computer is working fine. With very minor lags for a second in between that too randomly. If I mount it properly, it clicks. Ok, I think Lisa is right there. If I increase pressure on the circuit board at certain point (right side corner of the connector which is in the middle of the drive, actually there's a leg IC at the other side of the circuit board), the clicking stops. If I remove my thumb, the clicking starts.Hi You said actually there's a leg IC That is the connection between the heads / actuator and the circuit board it's the pads on the circuit board that connect to that I meant you to clean . I think you cleaned the motor connections perhaps. Anyway you should not re use the drive even when you get it going.An update: The two large IC's get real hot when I hear the hdd making noise. Its cold in here, so if I put my dry but cold hand on the board, it stops??!! I wonder what it makes so hot? Quote from: PCdoc on December 14, 2013, 12:45:15 AM An update: The two large IC's get real hot when I hear the hdd making noise. Its cold in here, so if I put my dry but cold hand on the board, it stops??!! I wonder what it makes so hot? What did I say? Oh yes.... Reply #1 on: December 11, 2013, 09:10:56 AM » Effectively this disk is junk. Oh m sorry, forgot to mention, the update was basically for Lisa, who lit a hope for this drive. Though she suggested I should not use this drive. But when she said I should try clean the pads on the circuit board, that added to some learning. I am hoping lisa would tell why would those IC 's be over heating?? Quote from: PCdoc on December 14, 2013, 11:48:27 AM why would those IC 's be over heating?? It's usually a sign of failure.

Answer»

Hi everyone,

I have a Seagate 500 GB SATA hard disk bought in September 2012. I had replaced it once in the warranty period sometime in May. It had 1 year warranty, so now the warranty has expired. It has started to make that clicking noise where the arm just keeps on moving from one end to other. Can this be repaired? I know I require an extremely dust free clean room. Is this because of some adjustment to the arm which has gone lose or something which can be fixed? or Can I change the arm by some method (taking out of another bad hard disk with PCB problem) or can this actually be a problem with the PCB which is making the arm just move and make weird noise or is this a firmware problem?
Btw, the hard disk runs fine if I hold it or keep it in a certain position. And I am currently using it. I have backed up all important data to my external drive. Is there any method to fix this on my own?Effectively this disk is junk. If you have important data that you are prepared to pay to recover, go to a recovery COMPANY. Mechanical repairs of the the type you describe are beyond the scope of the ordinary person. You would need a clean room costing half a million dollars and also the technical expertise necessary. Normally rebuilding a hard drive in this way is only done if it is very important to get the data off the platters, e.g. desperately important financial information, evidence for a criminal case, or issues of national security. Also, the reason for head seeks hitting up against the stops and causing a clicking SOUND need not necessarily be purely mechanical. Circuit board failure or serious platter surface damage could be making head positioning impossible. In the case of a circuit board failure you could try swapping the board with an identical item, but you have no assurance that this would fix the problem, and if it doesn't you have butchered a good drive for nothing.
I have already backed up data. I was just wondering what causes this and what steps can be taken to avoid this with future drives. If the clicking happens randomly, can this be the PCB? Hunting for a same PCB seems difficult as this is one of the recent drives still sold in the market. But I may keep it with me, some time in the future if such a drive comes, I can try with it's PCB
Quote
Btw, the hard disk runs fine if I hold it or keep it in a certain position.

That suggests to me that the drive has poor connections between the circuit board and the head/servo connector on most drives this is a pressure connection, with the circuit board having tinned pads that oxidise. If you live in a humid climate this happens easily. You can clean the board contacts with an eraser. Also try the drive on new cables sata cables and power connectors can become loose if swapped often.

Some tips to get the longest life from a hard drive.

Don't rotate or move the computer when the drive is on

Insure that the hard drive temperature is always within the ideal range

Use anti static prosecutions when touching or installing the hard drive

Always install with the power direct from the power supply don't use adapters or tap in other power outputs like for fans etc

Replace your hard drive every 3 years before it gives trouble and keep the old drive as a backup of your system

Locate the computer somewhere where you have access to the drives and ports and won't be knocked Wow! Thanks Lisa, this is a lot of information, I will try your suggestions and post back results. Thanks Also, don't use your PC at altitudes above 5,000 meters. And do no use in an environment with less than 0C temperature. And never when humidity is over 90%. Quote

Also, don't use your PC at altitudes above 5,000 meters

Curious as to this statement? As for never heard of this and google is also at a loss at ... https://www.google.com/#q=hard+drive+5000+meters

Is this related to air bearing and thin air causing problems of gap between head and platters? Quote from: DaveLembke on December 11, 2013, 09:44:23 PM

Curious as to this statement? As for never heard of this and google is also at a loss at ... https://www.google.com/#q=hard+drive+5000+meters

Is this related to air bearing and thin air causing problems of gap between head and platters?

YES, the drive has to have normal air to WORK. It will not work if the head is banging into the platter. When the drive stops, the head will rest on the surface of the platter. That is normal when is stops running. You hear the head whine when the drive spins down.
EDIT: Major makers document the limits of the hard drives they make. A few are for very hash environment. You will look hard to find any the work above 5,000 meters. I know of none. Maybe the military has some. What I posted about 0C and 5,000m are real limits. Don't push them. The drive must be back at normal temp and pressure before you use it. It may take HOURS for a hard drive to recover from a deep freeze. (Some techs do that to free a stuck spindle.)
I cleaned the conducting points on the circuit board with an eraser. Its did not seem to help. I swapped SATA cables (was not using an adapter or converter, the PSU has the appropriate SATA power connector). I powered on my comp and the HDD started clicking. I held it in my hands in a certain position where it stopped clicking. I kept it inside the computer case, it started clicking again. Right now I have kept it flat on the surface inside the casing and it is not clicking. Left it like that. The computer is working fine. With very minor lags for a second in between that too randomly.
If I mount it properly, it clicks. Ok, I think Lisa is right there. If I increase pressure on the circuit board at certain point (right side corner of the connector which is in the middle of the drive, actually there's a leg IC at the other side of the circuit board), the clicking stops. If I remove my thumb, the clicking starts.Hi

You said actually there's a leg IC

That is the connection between the heads / actuator and the circuit board it's the pads on the circuit board that connect to that I meant you to clean . I think you cleaned the motor connections perhaps. Anyway you should not re use the drive even when you get it going.An update: The two large IC's get real hot when I hear the hdd making noise. Its cold in here, so if I put my dry but cold hand on the board, it stops??!! I wonder what it makes so hot? Quote from: PCdoc on December 14, 2013, 12:45:15 AM

An update: The two large IC's get real hot when I hear the hdd making noise. Its cold in here, so if I put my dry but cold hand on the board, it stops??!! I wonder what it makes so hot?

What did I say? Oh yes....

Reply #1 on: December 11, 2013, 09:10:56 AM »

Effectively this disk is junk.

Oh m sorry, forgot to mention, the update was basically for Lisa, who lit a hope for this drive. Though she suggested I should not use this drive. But when she said I should try clean the pads on the circuit board, that added to some learning. I am hoping lisa would tell why would those IC 's be over heating?? Quote from: PCdoc on December 14, 2013, 11:48:27 AM

Solve : Hard disk click noise?

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