# External Hard Drive - Not Intialized - Can't Initialize - 'Incorrect Function' Error



## Richard0600 (Jun 12, 2008)

My OS: Windows 7 64-bit SP1
External Hard Drive: LaCie Hard Disk Quadra 2TB http://www.lacie.com/au/support/support_manifest.htm?id=10456

Problem:

I have 2, 2TB HDD Both LaCie (Different Models). I share a USB cable between them, when I need to use one I unplug the cable and plug it into the other HDD.

I went on holiday, my computer was off for 3 weeks. Came back and now one of my HDD is not working (Model listed above).
I went to computer management and checked device manager:
- Disk Drives : LaCie Hard Drive USB Device
- Universal Serial Bus controllers : USB Mass Storage Device is plugged in.










Storage/Disk Management:
Disk 5 - Unknown - Not Initialized when I try to initialize it. Incorrect Function error appears.


















This isn't a new HDD, I've used it for roughly 3 years it serves as a Backup Device. 
It is very worrying that my backup device would crash or fail or whatever the problem is.

I have looked at other threads on the forum with similar problems:
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/winservermanager/thread/7810bd05-c7e8-4964-a67f-c7f27cd55e5b
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en/itprovistahardware/thread/c243ea98-9f77-43d0-8103-206b910cb9ac
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en/w7itprovirt/thread/bf44a62c-7f90-4eb7-b2bb-90a038bb3ddd
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/w7itprohardware/thread/22ba2014-3fb9-4290-b3a0-8fef6dda2ffb

Following the troubleshooting of this thread: 
http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/w7itprohardware/thread/22ba2014-3fb9-4290-b3a0-8fef6dda2ffb

My results:










Also I've tried plugging it into my laptop doesn't work on there either. So the problem is definitely with the HDD.

*Question:*

Does anyone know how to fix this problem?
Will formatting the HDD fix the problem or is this a hardware issue? If so is there even a way to format it?
Because the only way I know how to format a HDD is through computer management and that is even working in this situation...
Needless to say formatting the HDD is kind of a last resort. I have around 500+GB of data on this HDD that I would rather not losing.

The disk hasn't moved in months. I don't see what would have caused this. Thanks in advance


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## Oddba11 (May 13, 2011)

Hardware is just prone to failure. Doesn't matter if it's moved or even disconnected. With that in mind, you should have at least one backup copy of any data that you don't want to lose.

On to your problem. Based on what you are seeing, I'd say the drive is faulty and not responding properly. If it's under warranty, you may want to have it replaced. Aside from that, you can attempt opening the enclosure, removing the drive, and connecting the HDD internally, via another external enclosure, or via an external adapter. That will confirm if the actual HDD is faulty, or just the enclosure.


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## Richard0600 (Jun 12, 2008)

Disassembled it.. plugged it into another desktop and it practically froze the machine.. the HDD still won't read and it doesn't sound like it is spinning. The computer guy at the store said I just got myself a very expensive paper weight... Is this true?


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## Richard0600 (Jun 12, 2008)

can anyone confirm his diagnosis? before I throw this paperweight away?


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## Elvandil (Aug 1, 2003)

You're most likely out of luck with that one. Unfortunately, external drives are the most unreliable of all storage media. They die easily and are damaged by relatively minor bumps sometimes. It sounds dead to me, and unless you need to do some very expensive file recovery, it will be most reliable as a paperweight. If it's a 2.5" drive, it could be destroyed just by holding it with your fingers on the flat sides a bit too firmly.


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## Richard0600 (Jun 12, 2008)

What is the safest way to dispose of it? Can I just throw it in the trash?

Also.. How can I safely guarantee that no ones gonna be able to extract information from it? It is after all my backup. Has a lot of sensitive data on it. Do i soak it in water? XD


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## Triple6 (Dec 26, 2002)

You can take the drive apart and then smash the platters with a hammer or bend/crack the platters. Some people also drill holes through them or just smash the entire drive with a large hammer without taking them apart.


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## dustyjay (Jan 24, 2003)

Taking a hammer or drill to a dead hard drive is somehow oddly satisfying and good for your blood pressure


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## Richard0600 (Jun 12, 2008)

Sigh... such a shame I would have expected more from buying a top brand like LaCie.. My unknown 250gb random chinese brand hard drive is still kicking it after 5 years..


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## Triple6 (Dec 26, 2002)

Hard drives fail all the time, its a fact of life, 3 years isn't a bad run. The actual hard drive inside the enclosure is not made by Lacie anyway, it's made by one of the few hard drive manufacturer's left such as Western Digital or Seagate.


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