Secondary internal HDD became uninitialized randomly after a Windows 10 update.

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zeromarusaur

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I apologize in advance for making this thread as I know there are many similar, but I've exhausted my options at this moment and so must ask for help. A few months ago my PC was restarted for what seemed a regular update, however when it came back on many settings(Desktop Background,ect.) were reverted to default. The biggest difference though was an internal HDD simply disappearing from the "This PC" devices menu. It can only be found in the "Disk Management" program and is listed as "Disk 2, Unknown, Not Initialized". The program prompts me to initialize the disk but I've been reluctant as I believe that would wipe the data from the disk.

The Windows 10 OS is running from a SSD, this HDD was one of two storage HDD's, although it's older and smaller, not used for anything important(salvaged from an older PC). As far as I know it's not possible for a Windows update to kill a HDD which is partly why I'm confused, was the update a factor or simply coincidental? Overall, I would like to either recover the drive or at least the data from it but I understand if that's not possible. I've included a screenshot of the Disk Management program and I'm willing to take screenshots of anything else relevant.

https://i.imgur.com/PNQ1Nj0.png
 
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SkyNetRising

Most likely the drive was already at the end of it's life.
I don't think windows update could finish it, because it operates only on OS drive. But some other service like windows defender, search indexer, windows defragmenter could have made the "last push".
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DR_Luke

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it is not uncommon for windows 10 updates to mess up extra drives connected to the system. Although, it could just be pure coincidence. If you value the data on the drive, it is probably best to seek professional data recovery assistance before further damage is caused. Otherwise you can try the following:

1. make a full sector-by-sector clone/image of the drive, partially to help ensure that the drive doesn't have bad sectors and mostly to make sure it is backed up before you move forward, using ddrescue (Guide to ddrescue)
2. using testdisk (there is a windows version, too), scan for lost partitions on the drive. If you find one that gives you access to the files from within testdisk, you can write the new partition table back to the drive. The changes don't usually show up until you reboot, but you might be able to just refresh the list in Disk Managment, too.
 
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zeromarusaur

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Thank you for the help. I may have not made it obvious in the OP but even programs like TestDisk seem to not recognize the HDD, only Device Manager. Here is a screenshot:

https://i.imgur.com/sAjDOF4.png

I'm unsure if I'm doing something wrong or if the drive is just far worse than I've explained.

EDIT: Sorry, I uploaded the wrong screenshot.
 
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SkyNetRising

SkyNetRising

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Initializing doesn't wipe data. It writes new boot record and partition table to the drive.
Uninitialized drive should still show correct capacity information in Disk Management. Your drive might just be dead.

If the data is important, then seek help from professional data recovery services.
But if you want to tinker yourself (be ready, that your actions might worsen data recovery chances):
1. Initialize drive first;
2. Use data recovery software to recover data to another drive. Use Getdataback - it's easy to use and gives rather good recovery results.
 
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zeromarusaur

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Thanks for the answer, I agree with you about the drive potentially just being dead. Would recovery(The type you talk about) still be possible with a dead HDD?

EDIT: Rereading both answers, I think I understand the situation better now. If I initalize the drive, provided it isn't dead, would it simply work like normal?

EDIT: When I tried to initialize the disk I got this error message:

https://i.imgur.com/a7J72MB.png

Does this mean my HDD is well and truly gone to God?
 
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DR_Luke

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yeah...the drive is only detecting in kernel mode. If it doesn't work on another connection (SATA or USB), it is likely a physical issue with the drive.

If it is a second Seagate DM series drive, it definitely has issues. If you value the data, seek professional data recovery assistance...otherwise, it is likely a better use of time and money to replace the drive.
 
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zeromarusaur

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When I attempt that, the program crashes.



When I initially investigated the issue I did notice the drive wasn't noticeably spinning or humming, but as I have little to compare it to, I couldn't say definitively if it was dead or not. Thanks to ye're help I can pretty safely say the drive is done. There was nothing really valuable or sentimental on the drive, just backups of files and films; that kind of stuff. So it's not a huge deal or anything, although I think it was a Seagate as it was salvaged from an old Dell Inspiron.

Do you think it just happened to die in the middle of a Windows update?

 
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SkyNetRising

SkyNetRising

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Most likely the drive was already at the end of it's life.
I don't think windows update could finish it, because it operates only on OS drive. But some other service like windows defender, search indexer, windows defragmenter could have made the "last push".
 
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