2.5" to 3.5" laptop to desktop problems

[myka316]

Ok, I have this unknown laptop hard drive (it is from my Lyra 2780 mp3 player). I want to format it so I can reinstall the system files to make it operational again as an mp3 player. I purchased a 2.5" to 3.5" adapter. I connected everything as I normally would would connecting two hard drives. However, the laptop drive is not being detected in both the BIOS and 'My Computer.'

At first I had the drive adapter > laptop hdd on the same IDE cable as the master HDD (the desktop hdd) and didn't get any detection. I then decided to put the adapter > laptop HDD on the IDE that is used to connect the CD-Drive. Still no detection.

Running Windows XP Home Edition btw.

 

[micker377]

Unless you have one of the rare adapters that has jumpers (master/slave), you have to hook the 2.5 as master on IDE 1 (IDE 0 is the master boot hard drive). Also, the board that plugs into the 2.5 can go on either way. Make sure pin 1 on adapter, matches pin 1 on hard drive.

 

[wolluf]

And the drive is functional?

 

[micker377]

Yeah wolluf, I forgot that one minor point! <grin>

 

[myka316]

Hmm..

Is the drive functional. Good point, it doesn't seem to be detected when put in my laptop. It doesn't show up in bios/windows either =/

Yet the mp3 player does recognize the drive. Odd

 

[micker377]

I wonder if this drive is formatted in a non-standard way (Fat 12, or something). Can you contact the manufacturer to find out?

 

[edfair]

Partitioning and formatting will not affect the identification, which comes at a lower level, hardware wise.

There is code that can be written to the boot sector that will prevent identification. There is a debug based series of steps that will physically overwrite the the beginning sectors of a drive, but I don't have the code or a location for it. But possibly a google search will turn it up. That is one possibility , but it might also make the drive unusable.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[wolluf]

the mp3 player recognises it - in what way? You said
'I want to format it so I can reinstall the system files to make it operational again as an mp3 player'

So I presumed the mp3 player is NOT happy with it as is.

you could try something like killdisk (google will find it) with it attached to the adapter. As that's designed to wipe drives whatever's on them, it might sort it out (if it can see the drive in the first place).

If not, I'd suggest writing it off and buying a replacement (its not under warranty by any chance?)