Opinions before I open it up?

Seeking Advice: Troubleshooting an Old Hard Drive with Precious Footage

As technology evolves, we often find ourselves faced with the challenge of preserving cherished memories stored on outdated media. Recently, my mother-in-law had her old camcorder tapes converted into DVDs and stored on a hard drive. Given that I have access to the data, I’ve decided to take on the project of attempting a DIY repair. However, before I dive into this endeavor, I’m eager to gather some insights and opinions from fellow tech enthusiasts.

Firstly, I want to apologize for the background noise in the accompanying video. It’s a bit distracting, but it’s relevant to the issue at hand. The old hard drive seems to function reasonably well; I can recognize and mount it roughly 75% of the time and have even managed to begin extracting some of the data. Unfortunately, an intermittent noise interrupts this process, significantly hindering my ability to download and extract larger video files.

My instinct tells me that there might be a slight obstruction—perhaps a small bump or dust particle—affecting a specific part of the drive’s platter, or possibly a stubborn speck of dust on the read/write head. It’s worth noting that my mother-in-law has assured me that the hard drive was never dropped, and given her meticulous nature, I trust this information.

This situation doesn’t seem to align with the typical “click of death” issues often associated with hard drive failures, which is why I’m reaching out to the community. I’m curious to hear any thoughts or suggestions regarding my predicament. Have you encountered similar problems? What steps might you recommend before I proceed with opening the hard drive? Your insights would be greatly appreciated as I navigate this sentimental recovery project. Thank you!