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Doesn't ring a bell for me, but given the highly questionable tiering/marketing methods from HDD manufacturers these days and the fact that they have been reduc

Doesn't ring a bell for me, but given the highly questionable tiering/marketing methods from HDD manufacturers these days and the fact that they have been reducing warranty durations by some 50%, that type of planned obsolescence wouldn't surprise me. The drives are 3.5" 2TB WD Green purchased around 2012, and had been in use for about 1 year when they both died.

justinclift 3y ago
> 2012 If that's not a typo, then it seems like those drives have been powered off for about 10 years. I think powered off hard drives are commonly said to retain data for um... maybe 3 years (from rough memory). So, your drives have probably lost their magnetism (and thus the data). :(
- daneel_w 3y ago
  Not a typo, they've been powered off for around a decade. But HDDs (just like floppies) don't lose their magnetized property in just 3 years, or even 10 years, barring the very rare case of an extreme fluke or environmental exposure. Flash memory (memory cards, USB sticks, SSDs) loses electrical charge relatively fast, however. That might be what you're thinking of.
  - justinclift 3y ago
    Thanks. Yeah, I was probably thinking of SSD's then. :)
- jaclaz 3y ago
  Naah, that may apply to SSD's, not to good ol' (rotating platters) hard disks, the magnetism does not evaporate. The only issue that may happen on an unpowered for several years hard disk is so called bearing seizing, the (fluid) bearing of the motor/platter may become stuck, but it is relatively rare, though some particular make/models are more prone to this, and though (usually) fixable, in some cases it can be made to rotate freely again, but you need the services of a specialized service, as the disk needs to be opened, in some other cases the bearing can be replaced, and some specialized tools are needed: https://hddsurgery.com/blog/hdd-motor-bearings https://hddsurgery.com/blog/hdd-motor-bearings
  - justinclift 3y ago
    Thanks. :) That reminds me of a work colleague a few years ago. He got an ancient drive working again by tapping it on the side with a screwdriver while powering it on, to get it "unstuck".

justinclift 3y ago

> 2012 If that's not a typo, then it seems like those drives have been powered off for about 10 years. I think powered off hard drives are commonly said to retain data for um... maybe 3 years (from rough memory). So, your drives have probably lost their magnetism (and thus the data). :(

daneel_w 3y ago
Not a typo, they've been powered off for around a decade. But HDDs (just like floppies) don't lose their magnetized property in just 3 years, or even 10 years, barring the very rare case of an extreme fluke or environmental exposure. Flash memory (memory cards, USB sticks, SSDs) loses electrical charge relatively fast, however. That might be what you're thinking of.
- justinclift 3y ago
  Thanks. Yeah, I was probably thinking of SSD's then. :)
jaclaz 3y ago
Naah, that may apply to SSD's, not to good ol' (rotating platters) hard disks, the magnetism does not evaporate. The only issue that may happen on an unpowered for several years hard disk is so called bearing seizing, the (fluid) bearing of the motor/platter may become stuck, but it is relatively rare, though some particular make/models are more prone to this, and though (usually) fixable, in some cases it can be made to rotate freely again, but you need the services of a specialized service, as the disk needs to be opened, in some other cases the bearing can be replaced, and some specialized tools are needed: https://hddsurgery.com/blog/hdd-motor-bearings https://hddsurgery.com/blog/hdd-motor-bearings
- justinclift 3y ago
  Thanks. :) That reminds me of a work colleague a few years ago. He got an ancient drive working again by tapping it on the side with a screwdriver while powering it on, to get it "unstuck".