Data Recovery Case File · Portable Drives · What Did They Share?
Simultaneous Failure Is Rarely Coincidence
His enquiry reports two failures as one problem, and that framing turns out to be the right one. "Two external drives, both stopped responding. Issue is not the main computer, as other drives and USB sticks are responding." He has eliminated the machine properly, which is the correct first move. But two independent devices failing at the same time is not two coincidences — something they had in common is the most likely explanation, and identifying it matters more urgently than the recovery does, because whatever it was is still there.
| Media | Two external hard drives of different makes — both ceasing to respond; host machine eliminated by testing other devices successfully |
| Reported situation | Two separate external drives no longer responding · other drives and USB devices working normally on the same computer · both drives required · urgent turnaround sought |
| Fault class | Concurrent failure of independent devices — shared cause to be established before replacement media is exposed |
| Equipment used | Shared exposure established before assessment · each drive assessed independently on a native connection · current draw measured on a controlled bench supply · imaging sequenced by stated priority |
The decode: the question to answer first, and what express handling buys
Why the elimination he did was the right one: testing other drives and sticks on the same computer rules out the port, the operating system, the drivers and the machine in one step. That is worth doing and most people do not.
Why two at once is a signal: the failure rate of any individual drive in a given week is low. Two failing in the same week, on the same setup, is far more likely to have a shared cause than to be two independent events. So the useful question is not what is wrong with each drive but what did they have in common.
The candidates, in order of likelihood. A hub or dock both were connected through — an unpowered one splits current between everything attached and can starve devices into a brown-out condition, and a powered one with a failing supply can deliver out-of-specification voltage into whatever is plugged in. A mains event — a surge, a spike or a cut that reached both, particularly if they shared an extension lead. A single failing port on the machine, which is worth testing separately even though other devices work, since ports fail individually. And the mundane one: both were in the same bag and both took the same knock.
Why this matters more than the recovery: he wants the data on a new drive. If a hub, a lead or a port damaged these two, plugging a replacement into the same arrangement exposes it to the same thing — with fresh data on it. The shared component should be identified and retired before anything new is connected, and if a hub is involved it should be tested with something disposable rather than trusted.
On the urgency, briefly: he asks about standard, next-day and same-day handling. What speed genuinely buys is queue position — assessment the day the drives arrive rather than after a wait — and delivery of results as they emerge rather than at the end. What it cannot compress is the reading itself, because recovering difficult sectors depends on repeated later passes, and shortening that simply recovers less. Naming which material matters most is worth more than any of the three options, because it lets imaging be sequenced to reach it first.
What not to do meanwhile: not keep reconnecting either drive to find the combination that works, and not connect either to the suspect hub again.
On the bench
Shared exposure was established before assessment — hubs, docks, leads, ports and mains arrangements the two drives had in common — since a component that damaged two devices will damage a third, and a replacement drive was already being purchased. Each drive was then assessed independently on a native connection rather than through any accessory, with current draw measured on a controlled bench supply to distinguish an overvoltage event from an ordinary failure. Imaging was sequenced by stated priority.
The outcome
The shared exposure identified first, each drive assessed independently and imaging sequenced by priority. Free assessment, one fixed written figure including VAT; where a drive has to be opened, 50% of parts and labour is payable upfront with the balance only on success — otherwise no recovery, no fee. The decode, for anyone who has lost two devices together: that is rarely two coincidences. Work out what they shared — a hub or dock, an extension lead during a surge, a single port, or the same bag — because whatever it was is still in your setup and the replacement drive will meet it too. Retire the suspect component before connecting anything new.
Two drives that failed at the same time
Work out what they had in common before you connect a replacement — that's more urgent than the recovery. Two independent drives failing in the same week is far more likely to have a shared cause than to be two separate accidents, and whatever it was is still in your setup. The usual suspects: a hub or dock both were plugged into, since unpowered ones starve devices of current and powered ones with failing supplies push out-of-specification voltage; an extension lead during a mains surge; a single failing port, which is worth testing separately even if other devices work on the machine; or the same bag and the same knock. Test any suspect hub with something you don't care about. And don't keep reconnecting the failed drives hunting for a combination that works.
Find what they shared first — call Newcastle Data Recovery on 0191 406 1051; shared exposure established before assessment, each drive assessed independently, current draw measured on a controlled supply.
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Our case files are drawn from genuine enquiries received by our laboratory over the past ten years, anonymised to protect client confidentiality. Each one describes the diagnostic and recovery procedure our engineers apply to that fault, using the equipment listed.