Hard Dive Failure: What Is A Head Crash?

No one likes the thought of losing all of their valuable data, but a hard drive head crash is a definite data destroyer. While a recovery is possible in most cases, sometimes destruction of the platters is so severe that the magnetic material is actually wiped clean. There are cases every so often where the highly reflective, mirror type finish, of a platter is completely destroyed leaving what appears to be a clear piece of glass behind.

A head crash occurs when the read-write head of a hard disk drive touches its rotating platter. The head normally rides on a thin film of moving air entrapped at the surface of the platter (some drives of the mid-1990s used a thin fluid layer instead). Higher capacity drives (using the same size and number of platters) are obtained by running the head closer to the platter. A tiny particle of dirt or other debris can cause the head to bounce against the disk, destroying the thin magnetic coating on the disk. Since most modern drives spin at rates between 5,000 and 15,000 revolutions per minute, the damage caused to the magnetic coating can be extensive, as the crashed head drags over the platter surface.

Depending on the extent of the damage, your data may be unrecoverable. Regardless, it's important to leave the recovery to a data recovery professional, or you may risk losing what data is still available.

One thing to remember, if you feel that you have suffered a hard drive crash, shut the computer off immediately. Do not reapply power to the hard drive. The longer the drive operates with a head crash, the more damage that is occuring and the more data you are losing.

Greg Duffield is the founder of ACS Data Recovery,
a premier provider of hard drive data recovery services. You can reach them toll
free at 1-877-646-0546 or on the web at http://www.acsdata.com