[TheGreatButcher]

So I just moved, and now one of my external Firewire hard disks won't work. When I plug it in, it tries to start up then just makes clicking noises. I'm not surprised, it always seemed a bit shady, but there's some stuff on there that is irreplacable.

I checked with drivesavers.com and they estimated a 90% chance of data recovery, but they're a bit pricey - about $1000+ for a 120GB hard disk.

Anyone have any recommendations? I'm looking for something not so expensive if possible

[schalliol]

I'm not sure who number two is, but though expensive as you noted, Drive Savers is in fact the best. Sorry not to provide more info.

[OreoCookie]

Information recovery is expensive. But just think how much the information means to you … (and how much money it would be to redo everything).

[schalliol]

Yeah, that's how you have to do it. It sounds like the mechanism is hosed, so you really won't be able to fix it except through replacing components or checking those that are there. If it's not something like a Ph.D. dissertation, perhaps you might try it yourself. Risky, but better than nothing.

[TheGreatButcher]

What do you think of this?

http://www.gillware.com/

[schalliol]

Sounds pretty good to me.