Help...how to get files off dead Dell desktop hard drive? (PICS)?

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gdtrfb

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Oct 31, 2012
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I have this 7 year old Dell XPS desktop that recently died on me. I can get it to sort of power on, but nothing happens and the power light stays yellow when it should turn green.

Anyway, I removed the hard drive, which is a Seagate st3160023as model.


The middle 2 pics are the plugs from the dead computer, one of them is labeled "HDD 0"...the bottom right pic is the plug from a different desktop where I was trying to find a proper plug, but it wouldn't fit.

Pic:

i46.tinypic.com/2rnybdg.jpg



I also looked up this "sata to usb" thing but the plug looks totally different: http://www.amazon.com/C2G-Cables-30504-Serial-Adapter/dp/B000UO6C5S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1359570449&sr=8-1&keywords=dell+sata+usb

Could there be a plug specific to this brand or something? I've never attempted this before, so I'm sure I might be missing something obvious I just don't know how to go about it


Thanks.
 
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bdiddytampa

bdiddytampa

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Dec 2, 2012
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The only thing I can suggest is go to your local computer store and ask for an SATA hard drive enclosure. It will be a device you can plug you old hard drive into and use it as a USB drive. It doesn't look like your other computer supports SATA, which is what the drive is. This should enable you to hook it up to your other computer. BUT: your other, and I'm guessing older computer still may not be able to read the hard drive depending on formats and such. In that case, you could find a friend that would let you use their computer to pull the info off.

something like this should work tho

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817707153
 
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G

gdtrfb

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Oct 31, 2012
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Well, I have a brand new desktop, but I'm too paranoid to go messing around with it willy nilly. I guess at this point i'm trying to figure out if there's a simple cable that will let me plug it into a USB or something?

Going to a local computer store is out of the question, really. I don't drive and the nearest one is probably 40 miles from me.

Also, I have no idea what I would do with that thing you showed me on newegg. Why do you think it would work with the HD that I have?
 
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faalin

faalin

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Feb 22, 2012
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when the light stays oranage on the front and wont power up its most likly a powersupply problem.

If you have a spare computer with sata ports and plugs you can add the old drive in as a second hard drive.


Im guessing from the picture that the drive has a sata power port, signal port, and a molex port. plug in the signal cable and choice between the sata or molex power port, do not plug both in.
 
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gdtrfb

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Oct 31, 2012
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No it's from a Desktop XPS 600. THere were only 2 plugs in it...the 2 plugs pictured in the middle row. The one labeled "HDD 0" is less than an inch wide, and the blue one is about a half inch wide. I am looking at cables on amazon but can't find one that looks like the one I have. This isn't making much sense.
 
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gdtrfb

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Oct 31, 2012
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Here... this is the only other plug except the even smaller blue one. I'm in the united states, but, there is no 3.5" anything to do with these plugs

sl5guf.jpg
 
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spat55

spat55

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one should go to your power supply, which is the thick one and the thinner one to your motherboard, the thin one sends the data and the thick the power, just tell me the country you're in and I will link you to something to put it in so you can use a USB to your new pc.
 
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faalin

faalin

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Feb 22, 2012
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that is your harddrive power cable the other one ( smaller one) is the signal cable. does your other computer have a spare sata power plug ing it? You can use the signal cable off the old computer to plug the harddrive into the motherboard.

If you were able to get the old drive out of the computer then just follow those steps plugging it back into the new computer.
 
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spat55

spat55

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2BH I think the OP would be to worried to take his/her new PC apart so should just get a encloser and use it as a External HDD.
 
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gdtrfb

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Oct 31, 2012
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Yea I have a new XPS, but I'm quite paranoid about tooling around inside it. I have 2 other Dell Inspirons, but the power plugs inside are different: see here:
2rpbs7s.jpg



I don't suppose in the off chance this could have anything to do with it?

ej0a1.jpg
 
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G

gdtrfb

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Oct 31, 2012
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As I said, I did find a place in one of my Inspiron's for the blue cable. But, just not the other one. Am I right in believing it's just a matter of not being able to power the hard drive at this point?

If so, I'm wondering if there might be some sort of adapter to covert this plug into what I need?

2rpbs7s.jpg


Then again, if my HD is a SATA why does the plug not look like the sata to usb on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/C2G-Cables-30504-Serial-Adapter/dp/B000UO6C5S/ref=sr_1_2?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1359573950&sr=1-2&keywords=sata+usb
 
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