Hard disk problem.

2008-09-02 11:24:26

#1

aerodynamic: FOCKING HELL; +241|6021|Roma

My friend has a macbook, and when she boots it a flashing question mark in a folder appears, which mean either the start up disk is not found or something else.
Now please do not start with the apple rant, i beg you, it is very important to my friend that she recovers the disk because if she cannot recover the contents in her HD she will lose every work, important essays and commentaries for the Ib that she was working on during the summer and the last year.
this is the Hd specifications:
120GB 5400-rpm Serial ATA hard disk drive.

Is it possible to take it out of the macbook and connect it to a regular pc to get the contents from the HD?
She is going to the Apple store but if they say "sorry, we will have to reinstall MAc os x" she is going to have a heart attack and have a nervous break down.

Last edited by aerodynamic (2008-09-02 11:27:22)

https://bf3s.com/sigs/8ea27f2d75b353b0a18b096ed75ec5e142da7cc2.png

2008-09-02 11:28:18

#2

TheDonkey: Eat my bearrrrrrrrrrr, Tonighttt; +163|5985|Vancouver, BC, Canada

Yeah, she can pull it out of the Mac and connect it to a PC, but I can forsee a problem as it's a Laptop harddrive so you;ll have to put it in there, but then it won't boot.

So I would find a SATA hard drive Laptop, pull the hard drives, put the Mac HD into the laptop, then burn a Ubuntu or Knoppix LiveCD,

Boot to the CD then use an Ethernet network to get all the important stuff off.

Or pay some guy at a computer shop $150 to do that for you

2008-09-02 11:32:43

#3

aerodynamic: FOCKING HELL; +241|6021|Roma

Well i'm gonna see what the guy in the apple store says to her.

2008-09-02 11:33:53

#4

Poseidon: Fudgepack DeQueef; +3,253|6805|Long Island, New York

aerodynamic wrote:
Well i'm gonna see what the guy in the apple store says to her.

Probably a good idea. They've got pretty good customer service.

2008-09-02 11:36:59

#5

aerodynamic: FOCKING HELL; +241|6021|Roma

Depends, most of the time yes.
But I cannot be sure 100%.

2008-09-02 11:40:23

#6

Agent_Dung_Bomb: Member; +302|7003|Salt Lake City

Mac uses a different file format than a PC, so you can't do it that way. However, if you have another Mac you should be able to connect it as a secondary device and access the drive.

Also, now is a really good time to teach your friend about the old axiom, "Never trust to your hard drive what you are not willing to lose!"

2008-09-02 11:42:31

#7

aerodynamic: FOCKING HELL; +241|6021|Roma

How do i do that?

2008-09-02 11:45:22

#8

jamiet757: Member; +138|6890

TheDonkey wrote:
Yeah, she can pull it out of the Mac and connect it to a PC, but I can forsee a problem as it's a Laptop harddrive so you;ll have to put it in there, but then it won't boot.

So I would find a SATA hard drive Laptop, pull the hard drives, put the Mac HD into the laptop, then burn a Ubuntu or Knoppix LiveCD,

Boot to the CD then use an Ethernet network to get all the important stuff off.

Or pay some guy at a computer shop $150 to do that for you

There is no difference between a laptop drive and a desktop drive that is SATA other than the physical dimensions of the outside, you can hook it up to a desktop and it will work just fine. However, like said above, Mac uses a different file system, so it won't be read by the PC.

How many times do people have to say it... Back up your fucking work, then you won't lose EVERYTHING when something goes wrong.

2008-09-02 11:47:03

#9

Agent_Dung_Bomb: Member; +302|7003|Salt Lake City

aerodynamic wrote:
How do i do that?

Connecting a hard drive to another Mac is really no different than adding it to a PC as a secondary drive. However, I still recommend that you go the route of the Mac store. I hate Macs, but we have a few in the art department that I have no choice but to support. However, my Mac knowledge is nowhere near complete, or even substantial. I've done a few repairs and upgrades, which is why I know you should be able to connect the drive as a secondary device and retrieve the files that way.

2008-09-02 11:48:36