My old computer was put out of commission due to a power surge which fried the Motherboard. I just got a new PC and would like to know what is the best way to access my working files from the hard drive of the old computer. PS: wasn't sure where to post this question. Thanks in advance.

You should be able to just plug the hard drive in to the new PC without any issues. Is it IDE or SATA? I'd assume SATA, since that has been mainstream for the past 6 years at least.

Hey Tarun,

Excuse my ignorance but what type of connection do I need to buy to do that? Please provide details. Thank you.

Just a SATA cable should suffice.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA

The hard drive is a Seagate Ultra ATA Barracuda 7200.7.

Then you'll have no problems swapping files over using a SATA cable. :)

Then you'll have no problems swapping files over using a SATA cable.

Thanks!

Hi Tarun,

I got the sata cable and connected it to old hard drive. I plugged in the power and then the usb to the new PC. I can't seem to access the files on the old drive. What am I doing wrong? please help. Thanks.

This is my old hard drive with the sata cable attached. The cable on the right side has the usb which I connected to my new PC. This cable had a small red cable attached to the end where it connects to the hard drive. Not sure if I should be using that. There doesn't seem to be any place to plug it in. The other cable is the power. Still no access to the drive.

This is the end of the small red cable.

when I connect my old drive to my new PC it does seem to recognize it. Under devices it is listed as "USB to ATA/ATAPI Bridge". Not sure what that means but I cannot accesss any of the files or "see the drive in Windows Explorer. For this device under properties it says USB Mass Storage Device".

Left to right:

SATA power, SATA data, jumpers.

Same basic setup here.

You'll need to connect the SATA cable to the motherboard on the inside of the new PC.

I haven't been able to access the files on the old hard drive. Under disk managment I can see the drive. I wasn't able to see it in windows explorer but named it "J" in Disk Management. I could then see the drive but not my working files. They are there but not accessible.

Try changing the drive letter again to something like Q.

Also, please post a screenshot of the drive's properties. We're basically looking for this to see if it reports any file system.

Thanks

I am going to try and connect the old drive directly to my new PC's motherboard. Should I turn of the PC before connecting? Also, is there a specific slot on the MB that I should connect to? Thanks

Yes, I would turn the PC off before connecting. Post 4 will also show you what the SATA connections on the motherboard will look like.

Thanks. My memory does not serve me well.

Glad to help. :)

Well, I hate to ruin the party, especially as the question was asked over a month ago, but:

... a Seagate Ultra ATA Barracuda 7200.7

is an IDE drive, not SATA.

The picture in post#8 (sata cable 005.jpg) even though very blurred, shows a Seagate Barracuda IDE hard drive connected to what looks like a universal IDE/SATA to USB adapter. Like this:

In which case, the SATA cable goes nowhere because the other end of the USB cable should be plugged-in to a USB port somewhere and the drive appears as an external hard drive.

.

I believe you are right. I had borrowed that item from work, but i had to return it. I need to buy one. Maybe ebay. What exactly should I buy? I just want to access my old files on my old hard drive.

Is this the item I need to buy?

http://cgi.ebay.com/USB-2-0-IDE-SATA-S-ATA-2-5-3-5-HD-HDD-Adapter-Cable-/260776023019?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3cb77653eb

Yes, it certainly looks like the same thing. Mine, however, was from Amazon (in the UK).

There will be small differences depending on the exact model supplied. For example, the power supply on that one looks like it goes straight to a SATA power plug/socket, with a short cable to adapt to the old IDE (4-pin "molex") power plug/socket. My older one has it the other way round.

.

Thanks a million!

Yes, it certainly looks like the same thing. Mine, however, was from Amazon (in the UK).

There will be small differences depending on the exact model supplied. For example, the power supply on that one looks like it goes straight to a SATA power plug/socket, with a short cable to adapt to the old IDE (4-pin "molex") power plug/socket. My older one has it the other way round.

.

I got my USB 2.0 to SATA/IDE Cable today. I connected it to my PC and it said it had recognized the new hardware and was installing the driver for it. I opened Windows Explorer, bit I couldn't see the drive. I then went to "Disk management" and i could see the drive there and named it the "M Drive". I can now see the "M" drive in windows explorer, but I can't see any folders or files. When I was in "Disk Management I could see the size of the drive and available space. Any ideas on what I need to do to access my old working files? Thanks.

Yes, I would turn the PC off before connecting. Post 4 will also show you what the SATA connections on the motherboard will look like.

I've been trying to attach a copy of the screenshot of the new drives properties but I can't seem to get the file to upload into the post. I get this message when I try to upload the file "Error This upload failed". The screenshot is saved in MS Paint. What am I doing wrong. Thanks

Eddie, try our post a screenshot guide. It may be very helpful. :)

here is the printscreen you asked for some time back. sorry it took so long.

Hopefully you'll be able to determine what is the problem.

Thanks

File system is NTFS. Wondering if files/folders in there are hidden. It's really hard to say without being able to physically interact with the drive.