Short answer: Almost always. Files are stored on the internal hard disk or SSD and most often survive with the rest of the laptop being dead. Here is how to know which components have died, what not to do, and how we perform file recovery in Belfast.
When a laptop becomes "dead" in many cases the data contained within remains alive. Most times the motherboard, screen or charge circuit may fail while the storage device containing your files remain intact and fully operational.
They appear very similar externally, however they could not possibly be further apart for your information/data.
A laptop can go “dead” due to a multitude of failures that affect little to no part of your data. There is a failing motherboard, dying screen, failing charging circuit, bad RAM memory, or damage caused by a spill or leak into the keyboard. In all these cases the drive/SSD that contains all of your personal data such as documents, pictures, emails etc. is completely independent and will continue to store your data once we remove it from the laptop and connect it to another computer/device.
While your data may be at risk, it will generally only truly be at risk if the storage itself has failed (i.e., you’ve got a bad mechanical hard drive that makes clicking noises, or you’ve got an SSD where its controller has gone away). It’s often still possible to recover your data even after this type of failure but typically it takes a lot more effort than before. So the very first thing that needs to happen here at the lab is determining whether or not you’ve got one or both types of failures. And a free diagnostic will give you the exact answer.
We’re not going to attempt to fix a dead laptop: that’s a repair. What we do instead is open the laptop, remove the media, and we’ll image all of the blocks off of the media using specialised recovery equipment that doesn’t write anything back to the original device. If you have a standard 2.5 inch SATA drive or an M.2 SSD, etc. then it is straightforward and we are going to build the file system from that image and deliver your files back to you. The state of your laptop doesn’t matter. It was simply a housing unit for your data.
Many new ultrabook computers and all MacBooks since the introduction of Apple’s silicon processor have connected their internal hard drives using solder to the motherboard (main circuit board) or with a custom made controller provided by Apple. While the data stored on these computer systems remains accessible, the storage cannot be removed from the computer. Instead they require specialised, highly technical skills (chip level or board level repair) to read the information contained within them. This type of repair requires additional time and may involve specialised tools. However, even though the hard drive may be “soldered” into place, it does not mean your hard drive is beyond being recovered. We will provide you with an honest assessment as to what is required to recover your data prior to performing any work on your system.
When the laptop turns on, but only displays a black screen, a rotating circle, auto-repair loop or “no bootable device detected,” there is typically nothing wrong with your hardware. What has failed is either Windows or the file system associated with the drive. In many cases this is the simplest type of recovery because the drive itself continues to function correctly and the files remain intact; they can be transferred directly to another media source. Please see our explanation of what ‘no bootable device found’ really means to learn why you might receive this particular error message when attempting to access your laptop’s operating system.
Do not continue to force power-cycle the drive. This may cause additional damage to the failing drive, such as a weak head or a dying cell. An otherwise functional drive that would give up 100% of its data on the first read could lose some of its data after ten attempts to read from it. Avoid freezing it and running recovery programs against an unstable disk. Avoid repeatedly reinstalling the operating system to ‘fix’ the issue. Reinstalling the OS can potentially rewrite over the exact files you are trying to recover. Anytime there is any doubt about how to proceed, turn the drive off and allow one single clean read pass by professionals who perform this process daily.
After you receive a quote, please bring the entire laptop into our Belfast office (no appointment required). We will then remove the drive, thereby avoiding the need for disassembly. Alternatively, you can post the laptop with full insurance and tracking. All jobs begin with a complimentary 48 hour diagnostic followed by a written, fixed price quote. In most cases, you only pay if we recover your data. If your recovered data is encrypted using either BitLocker or FileVault, please ensure that you provide us with your recovery key/encryption password prior to decryption of the recovered images.
Almost certainly not. The parts of a laptop that typically fail due to catastrophic failure (i.e., complete death) include all of the major components including the motherboard, power supply circuitry and display; however, these parts do not contain your data. Data storage devices (hard drives, SSDs etc.) are self-contained and often removable. Therefore, in nearly all cases we can simply remove the hard drive and read it independently.
With regard to the actual recovery process, no. We access the device at a low-level prior to the point where a user logs in. However, if the drive is encrypted with BitLocker or FileVault we require access to your encryption key/password to decrypt your recovered files.
Generally speaking, yes. If the device is powering on then most likely the issue lies with either the operating system (Windows) or the file structure as opposed to the physical hard drive itself; therefore the data should generally be recoverable without much hassle.
Yes, however this method requires far more involvement. In the case of a soldered SSD or solid state storage medium you are unable to physically unplug the unit so it would fall into the category of working at the board level, or even component level. Please contact us to arrange for a no charge diagnostic evaluation for this item. We will provide a detailed explanation of our process prior to beginning any work.
We offer a complimentary 48 hour diagnostic evaluation on our Belfast bench. We remove the drive from your computer, connect it directly to the bench, and provide a written quote before doing any work on your drive.