# [SOLVED] Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up



## fractalman93

I'm usually the one providing tech support, but I need it in this case. My wife has an external USB Seagate HDD that suddenly stopped powering up. To our knowledge, it wasn't dropped or otherwise mishandled. When I connect it to a PC, the top lights up for about a second and goes out again. I'm thinking it's bricked, but would like to know if there's anything that can be done to salvage the data.

Here's what I've tried:

1) Connecting it to 2 different PC's.

2) Connecting it to different USB ports on the PC's.

3) Tried using different USB cables.

It was working a few days ago. Then, she connected it to her laptop to save something on it and that's when it stopped working.

I haven't opened the casing. I'd like to exchange it for a working drive after I get the data off of it; assuming that's possible. The only support that the Seagate site provided for the symptoms was to exchange it if it's still under warranty.


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## raptor_pa

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

It may well be one of the seagate firmware issues, but without the actual HDDs serial number no way to be sure if it is susceptible. If it is one of the firmware errors, nop way to fix it in the enclosure, it needs a connection to a comport and access to the drives serial interface to fix.


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

The s/n is 2GE3CPLA. When you say COM port, are you saying I'm going to need a USB to DIN cable? Also, I have the part number, but not the model number. It's a 640GB drive.


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

I suppose you're implying that I should do some of my own homework. OK. I'll check the Seagate site. I just wish I had the model number and not just the part number on the label because Seagate seems to expect the model number in their support section.


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

Oh! This HDD comes with a cradle! I didn't know that. I never saw my wife use the cradle. Now things are starting to make a bit more sense. OK. Let me see if she can find the cradle, then I'll do more research into the firmware.


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## raptor_pa

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

The serial you need is on the hard drive itaself that is inside the USB enclosure. The only way to continue with DIY recovery is to remove the drive from the enclosure. The Serial connection is actually using the jumper pins on the bare drive and is a connection to a serial port on a PC. It requires building a cable. If this is a 2.5 inch drive, then it is likely not a firmware issue, but more likely physical.


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

I thought I read on the Seagate site that you can update the firmware via the cradle/stand. Is that not possible? Although it probably is, I hope it's not a physical problem.

[edit - nevermind. That was for the Theater]


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## raptor_pa

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

The drive must be functional to be able to update the firmware, if the drive is suffering from a firmware bug that caused it to brick ( BSY error, LBA0 error ) then you must fix the drive so it can be upgraded - the serial connection is required to fix the bug using Seagate specific vendor commands


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

I don't see where I can get the firmware anyway via Seagate's site. I think it is a hardware issue. I was reading through a lot of the 1 and 2 star comments for this model on Amazon. Many people have indicated that their HDD went bad after 2 to 7 months. In many cases, it was just sitting beside their PC as a backup drive. Thus, it wasn't dropped or anything. A couple of people talked about the USB connection on the circuit board being loose, but I don't think that's the problem I'm having because the light does come on for about a second. Also, I could push the connector (on the cable side) slightly up, down, left, or right and get the same result. The info on the drive isn't vital, but losing it is a major inconvenience. However, I'd hate to void the warranty without having a great deal of certainty that opening the case and checking connections, etc would fix the drive.


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## raptor_pa

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

Without knowing the drive inside, it is hard to say if the drive itself is the most likely culprit or not. My guess would be if it is a 2.5 inch drive it is probably a momentus drive inside, which is likely to be a head failure - but that is just speculation.


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

Well, the warranty is out the window. I took the drive out of the case. It's a SATA drive. I suppose I can hook it up in my PC and test it. If it works there, it's the circuit board for conversion to USB that's bad. That'll suck. How would I replace that?


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

Unfortunately, the test had to be aborted because I don't have a SATA cable. However, I can hear the drive beep when I hook it up via USB without the enclosure around it. It beeps about once a second or so continuously.


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## raptor_pa

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

What is the model number of the drive?


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

The model number of the SATA drive itself is ST9640322AS.


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## raptor_pa

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

The beeping sounds like a spindle failure... does it sound like any of these?
http://datacent.com/hard_drive_sounds.php


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

No. It doesn't sound like any of the Seagate sound samples. The drive doesn't even spin up. It sounds like a PC speaker beep during POST or a problem only much softer volume. I've attached a zipped mp3 of the sound. It starts this beep within a second of being connected to the PC. No spinup sound at all.


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## raptor_pa

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

That sounds like a bent spindle or stuck head.


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

I guess it's not likely that I can recover the data then without spending a bit of money. Like I said, the docs on it aren't of critical importance, but losing them does present a significant inconvenience.


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## raptor_pa

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

Yeah, a bit, probably somewhere in the $1200 - $2000 range unfortunately. This will require a platter swap, and those aren't easy drives to do it on.


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## fractalman93

*Re: Seagate FreeAgent Go won't power up*

raptor_pa, I got a new drive enclosure. I installed the drive in it. The LED blinks constantly and I initially hear the same beeping sound, but it goes away. The major difference is that WinXP now picks it up as a new USB Device, but it is unable to find the drivers. I looked for drivers on the Acomdata (enclosure manufacturer) site and they indicated that the drivers are a part of WinXP. I checked Seagate and all I could find is the management software. I installed it thinking the drivers were bundled, but they're not. I'll keep looking for a solution, but any suggestions would be appreciated.


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## fractalman93

As it turns out, WinXP was recognizing the USB converter board and not the HDD. Thus, it appears the the HDD is officially toast. Oh well. At least I can say that I did my due diligence. Thanks for the help.


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