Please Don't Let This Happen To You!!! Help!!! - Hard Disk Failure
 

:eek: I have something shocking to tell everyone.

Hopefully, someone can tell me what happened. I was downloading mp3's like I always do and I was downloading a song and my computer started clicking. I have a Compaq Presario and I could hear it clicking. I was like that cannot be good. So, I attempted to do a Norton Antivirus scan, and my computer froze.

I restarted my computer to be greeted with a black screen that said no hard drive found. :eek: System restoration cannot be done! My whole computer was erased! I couldn't even restore the comp. :bangh: Has this happened to anybody? Can you save your computer? Fortunately, I am still under warranty and I am sending my tower to be repaired. But, can someone tell me how this happened? I thought that you couldn't get viruses (especially ones this deadly) from downloading mp3 files?

The only thing that I could have think that could have done it is that I downloaded an mp3 file that said it was 1167 kb.

There are so many computer whizzes :cantseeyou:(I definitely am not one...*LOL*) that someone has got to know what happened. I am too frightened to download anything else. And I don't know if I can live without downloading.:shoot:

sounds more like your drive (HDD) up and died on you....there is a 'solution' to this but most likely you are best off letting warranty deal with it...the 'solution' is to take out the HDD, put it in a quality zip lock baggy and put it in the freezer...after a day put it back in your box and try to recover as much data as possible until it cr@ps out again, repeat the process until either the HDD totally croaks or you get all of the data off of it...then of course you have to replace the HDD...its dead Jim

This could happen on a new computer? I have only had this computer for a couple of months and it is brand new.

I appreciate you replying to me. :)

yep, it surely could happen on a new computer...that clicking sound you heard is a sign the drive is overheating....possibly a fan in the machine died, possibly a bad HDD...IMHO (and many others in the 'know') current HDDs are a bunch of junk made to die early so that you have to get another..

oh, and as a 'detail' your HDD is not erased, the data is still there, but because it has overheated it is wacked....you might even be successful in just letting it sit overnight and seeing if it will boot up then...

Wow. I had no idea. Thanks for your help. Is this something that happens a lot with Compaq Presarios?

well, I'm not a computer repairman so I have no clue as to the incidence rate for Compaq machines...but from having paid attention to the statements of those who are, I stand by my words about current HDDs being cr@p as compared to ones made about 4 years ago...

as far as your thoughts about this happening to a new machine..well, the best example I can give is a anecdotal comparison with my truck which is about 6 months old now...the check engine light came on before it reached 500 miles and I had to take it in for warranty work...I wanted to anyways because of a couple of other issues (like the headlights were set to point down which made driving at night on a windy, deer infested road a nightmare) anyways, but c'mon, the check engine light @ 430 miles????, sheeshus...

The_Point being sh!t happens (especially it seems in the current economic state of make as many as you can for the lowest cost and the highest profit margin)

Thanks for your help, Peerless. I appreciate it. :idea:


I am still a little worried about downloading though. I still can't help but think downloading the mp3 file that was 1,167kb had something to do with my computers untimely demise. :rip:

I hope you don't mind me picking your brain. Do you know what file size mp3 are usually viruses? :virusalert:

Also, I hear what you are saying about the truck. When my Mom bought her new car she had a couple of problems with it when she first got it. When she would get off the interstate ramp and let off her accelerator her car would cut off. And that happened when she had only had the car for a few months, they fixed it free of charge. They told her that when you get a new car sometimes that it has bugs that need to be fixed. But, you are right when you say they are making crap nowadays.

A clicking drive is definitely a hardware failure. MP3s can never do harm because
computers never attempt to execute code within them even if some was in there.

Some media files can get your computer to connect to bad websites which do
infect your computer, but if you avoid using the exploitable media players
(Windows Media Player, Apple Quicktime and Real Player) then that can never
happen.

@Aaron Walkhouse

Thanks. I have Roxio CD burner on my computer. Is that a non-exploitable media player? I really don't listen to the mp3's on my comp, I just burn them to CD's.

if you have a firewall that allows configuration of specific programs being allowed/disallowed to access the net, then simply block your media player from going online...this should prevent any exploits and will also prevent your player from reporting back home and telling them you just watched a movie on it that was released to theaters last week (or better yet, that hasn't even been in the theaters yet!..mwahahahahahaha! like a certain DVD kwality flick I watched 2 days before it saw the theaters!)

@ Peerless

I have Windows Firewall. How would I not allow my media player to access the net? Would I not add them to the exceptions on my firewall? Is that what you mean?

I don't think that the windows firewall will do what I describe...I know that Norton's, Kaspersky's and ZoneAlarm will though (I still use Norton's on this machine but am about to change over to Kaspersky's)..

I'm sure other 'commercial' firewalls will do this also, but the above listed one I know for a fact will...

Thanks a lot for your help, Peerless. :super:

I switched from Windows Firewall to Norton's firewall and I have it set like you mentioned. So, hopefully I am good to go!

I haven't downloaded any movies yet...now I don't know if I ever will. I'm too scared! *LOL* :eek::eek::eek::bangh:

The 'numbers' are amazing !

With portables a minimum of 15% of units fail within the first year... 22% in the first 4 years.

Desktops average 5% failure rate within first year and 12% in the first 4 years...

Mainboards and HDDs are the most common components to fail.

If we were discussing automobiles or even washing machines with failure rates such as these there would be people rioting in the streets !!!

You can learn some surprising things at Gartner
Takes a while to learn their site but it's worth the effort.

btw... You're hardly alone... Three weeks ago a musician friend of mine took a big virus hit... Managed to clean and save his C: drive using an external HDD case and another computer for cleaning... BUT, five years of virtual instrument collections and loops and mix sequences were lost from his internal auxiliary HDD - Truly zapped ! This is a guy with two external drives as well - so - he thought he was covered ! Now he knows.........

***cough*** that's why certain things of such value MUST be backed up to a CD/DVD, or even better yet a HDD that is used only for backup and is never connected to a machine unless data is being transferred to it or from it (and being nestled in a nice lead lined case would surely protect it from a lot of 'normal' things...I don't consider a fission/fusion bomb to be normal)

To partly paraphrase peerless, above...

If you are wise enough to have an external HDD,

NEVER allow it to be connected to your computer while you are on line.

Never.
No matter what.