SpinRite and USB blues - does a solution exist?

Posted by Peter Mortensen on Server Fault See other posts from Server Fault or by Peter Mortensen
Published on 2009-07-20T22:39:22Z Indexed on 2012/08/28 3:40 UTC
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Filed under:

hard-drive

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usb

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recovery

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data-recovery

I use SpinRite to recover hard disks and their content, and to a lesser degree for preventive maintenance.

However, if a USB drive (USB thumb drive and/or external hard disk with a USB interface) is connected when SpinRite scans for devices, then SpinRite never finishes/hangs.

The work-around is of course to disconnect the drive, but there is value in being able to use SpinRite on USB drives. Some external drives have no screws and it is difficult to take out the hard disk without damaging the casing. And for those that have it would save the disassembling time.

Is there a way to fix this problem (e.g. BIOS changes or a modified SpinRite boot CD) without resorting to floppy disks?

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