External Hard Drive Data Recovery Services
WD My Passport, Seagate Backup Plus, LaCie Rugged & All Portable Drives
Your external hard drive is not showing up, clicking, or was dropped? We recover data from all portable drives including encrypted WD Passport models. Many "dead" external drives just have a failed enclosure; the data inside is often intact.
No Data, No Charge. External drive recovery: $300-$2,000 depending on failure type.
Why External Hard Drives Fail
External drives fail for the same reasons as internal drives, plus additional vulnerabilities from their portable nature and USB interface components.
USB Bridge/Enclosure Failure
The most common cause of "dead" external drives. The USB-to-SATA bridge chip in the enclosure fails, but the drive inside is perfectly fine.
Symptoms: Drive not recognized, no power light, or drive disconnects randomly.
Recovery: Remove drive from enclosure and recover directly. Often the cheapest fix.
Warning: WD My Passport drives encrypt through the bridge. Do not remove them from the enclosure without professional help.
Physical Drops and Impacts
Portable drives are vulnerable to drops. A fall while the drive is spinning can cause the read/write heads to crash into the platters.
Symptoms: Clicking sounds, grinding, or drive not spinning after a drop.
Recovery: Head swap using donor parts in our clean bench. Stop using the drive immediately after a drop.
Power Surge Damage
Using the wrong power adapter or experiencing a surge can blow the TVS diodes on the PCB. The drive may be silent but the protection circuit saved the data.
Symptoms: Drive completely dead, no spin, no lights, possibly burnt smell.
Recovery: PCB repair or replacement with ROM chip transfer. Usually $300-$800.
Firmware Corruption
Like internal drives, external drives can suffer firmware corruption in the Service Area. The drive may spin but not be recognized or show wrong capacity.
Symptoms: Drive not detected, shows as 0 bytes, or hangs during access.
Recovery: PC-3000 firmware repair, translator fix, or module patching.
Encrypted External Hard Drive Recovery
Many external drives, especially WD My Passport and My Book models, use hardware encryption through the USB bridge chip. This encryption happens automatically, even if you never set a password.
The mistake: If you remove the drive from its enclosure and connect it directly via SATA, you will see encrypted data, not your files. Many people think their data is gone when it is actually just encrypted.
Our approach: We repair or replace the failed USB bridge while preserving the encryption key relationship. Your data is recovered through the original encryption path.
If you set a password on your WD drive, you will need to provide it for recovery. We cannot bypass user-set passwords.
Encrypted Drive Brands
- ⚠WD My Passport - Hardware encrypted via USB bridge. Do not remove from enclosure.
- ⚠WD My Book - Same encryption as My Passport. Bridge replacement requires careful handling.
- ⚠WD Elements - Older models not encrypted, newer models may be. We check before proceeding.
- ✓Seagate Backup Plus - Not hardware encrypted. Can be removed from enclosure safely.
- ✓LaCie Rugged - Usually not encrypted unless software encryption was enabled.
External Hard Drive Brands We Recover
Western Digital
- • WD My Passport
- • WD My Passport Ultra
- • WD My Book
- • WD Elements
- • WD Easystore
Seagate
- • Seagate Backup Plus
- • Seagate Expansion
- • Seagate One Touch
- • Seagate Portable Drive
- • Seagate Game Drive
LaCie
- • LaCie Rugged
- • LaCie Rugged Mini
- • LaCie Porsche Design
- • LaCie d2
- • LaCie Mobile Drive
Other Brands
- • Toshiba Canvio
- • Samsung T5/T7 (SSD)
- • G-Technology G-Drive
- • Buffalo MiniStation
- • Transcend StoreJet
External Hard Drive Recovery Pricing
External hard drive recovery costs are similar to internal drives, with additional considerations for encrypted models and enclosure repairs.
| Failure Type | Price Range | What's Involved |
|---|---|---|
| Enclosure/Bridge Failure Only | $100-$300 | Drive is healthy, enclosure failed. Remove and image directly. |
| Encrypted Bridge Repair (WD) | $300-$600 | Repair or replace USB bridge while maintaining encryption key. |
| Logical / File System Issues | $100-$500 | Corrupted file system, deleted files, partition issues. |
| Firmware / Not Detected | $300-$1,200 | Drive spins but not recognized. ROM transfer, translator repair. |
| Dropped Drive / Head Swap | $1,000-$2,000 | Clicking or beeping after drop. Laminar flow bench head transplant. |
| External SSD Recovery | $300-$2,000 | Samsung T5/T7, SanDisk Extreme. SSD recovery techniques apply. |
We provide a firm quote after free evaluation. If the enclosure failed but the drive is healthy, you pay the lower price. See full pricing guide.
Hard Drive Data Recovery Standards & Verification
Our Austin lab operates on a transparency-first model. We use industry-standard recovery tools, including PC-3000 and DeepSpar, combined with strict environmental controls to make sure your hard drive is handled safely and properly. This approach allows us to serve clients nationwide with consistent technical standards.
Open-drive work is performed in a laminar-flow bench filtered to 0.02 µm, verified using TSI P-Trak instrumentation.
Transparent History
Serving clients nationwide via mail-in service since 2008.
Media Coverage
Our repair work has been covered by The Wall Street Journal and Business Insider, with CBC News reporting on our pricing transparency. Louis Rossmann has testified in Right to Repair hearings in multiple states and founded the Repair Preservation Group.
Aligned Incentives
Our "No Data, No Charge" policy means we assume the risk of the recovery attempt, not the client.
Technical Oversight
Louis Rossmann
Louis Rossmann's well trained staff review our lab protocols to ensure technical accuracy and honest service. Since 2008, his focus has been on clear technical communication and accurate diagnostics rather than sales-driven explanations.
We believe in proving standards rather than just stating them. We use TSI P-Trak instrumentation to verify that clean-air benchmarks are met before any drive is opened.
See our clean bench validation data and particle test videoWhat to Do When Your External Drive Fails
Safe First Steps
- ✓Stop using it immediately. The less you use a failing drive, the better your recovery chances.
- ✓Try a different USB cable. USB 3.0 Micro-B cables fail often. Try a known-good cable first.
- ✓Try a different USB port or computer. Rule out port or driver issues before assuming the drive is dead.
- ✓Listen for sounds. Clicking, beeping, or grinding tells us what is wrong. Note what you hear.
What NOT to Do
- ✗Do not remove WD Passport drives from their enclosure. They are hardware encrypted through the USB bridge.
- ✗Do not open the drive itself. The internal mechanism requires a clean bench environment to access.
- ✗Do not keep powering on a clicking drive. Each power cycle can cause more platter damage.
- ✗Do not use data recovery software on a failing drive. It forces the drive to work harder and can make recovery impossible.
External Hard Drive Recovery: Common Questions
Can data be recovered from a dead external hard drive?
Yes. External hard drives contain the same internal mechanisms as desktop/laptop drives. When the enclosure or USB bridge fails, we remove the drive and recover it directly. When the internal drive itself fails, we use the same head swap and firmware repair techniques as any other hard drive recovery.
Why is my external hard drive not showing up?
Common causes include: failed USB bridge/enclosure (drive is fine, interface is dead), USB cable failure, drive firmware corruption, mechanical failure (clicking/beeping), or PCB damage from power surge. Many "dead" external drives just have a failed enclosure; the internal drive is often fine.
Can you recover data from an encrypted WD My Passport?
Yes. WD My Passport drives use hardware encryption through the USB bridge chip. If the bridge fails, we can often repair or replace it to access your encrypted data. If you remove the drive from the enclosure and connect it directly, you will see encrypted data. We recover through the original encryption path.
My external hard drive was dropped. Can you recover it?
Usually yes. Dropped drives often suffer head crashes or stuck heads. We perform head swaps in our clean bench environment using donor parts. Success depends on platter condition. The sooner you stop using it after the drop, the better the recovery chances.
Should I try to open the external drive enclosure myself?
Opening the plastic enclosure is usually safe. Opening the internal hard drive mechanism is not; that requires clean bench conditions. However, if you have a WD My Passport or other encrypted drive, do not remove the drive from its enclosure. The encryption keys are tied to the USB bridge.
Related Data Recovery Services
External hard drive not working?
Free evaluation. No data, no charge. Mail-in from anywhere in the U.S.