5150 inspiron laptop issue

I have a laptop that appears to be dead possibly a bad motherboard My question is if I want to try to salvage the data provided the hard drive is still good. Can I swap out the drive from this model and load it into a working 5100 inspiron model, is the hardware the same in each model that i could still salvage the data at least. let me know thanks

If you have ready access to another Inspiron 5100 I would definitely give that a try. Otherwise, I would buy a 2.5" USB enclosure. Cost is about $20+. Just make it isn't one meant for a SATA drive. Put your hard drive in it. Plug it into another PC's USB port.

Yes you can use the HD in 5100 it is compatible or you can do what ieee488 suggested.

good luck:emotion-21:

 Hey, one of my friends found it in their trash can. A lot of the pieces are intact and the service tag, computer model, operating system, and a lot of writing are all on the the computer it wasn't hard to trace it here. ***, I'm just wondering if I can keep it. I would, of course, still have to get it fixed. If I do somehow fix it I'll drop by and let you retrieve your files. If I can not fix it then I'll dispose of it properly. As of now I'm not sure what's wrong with it so if someone with some computer repair skills can offer up some suggestions I'd be more than grateful.

Current status:

*When I plug an AC Adapter in I get lights in the front. From left to right; power symbol light appears green, the next light has a what could be a cylinder or an i symbol and it shines yellow, and the last light shines yellow with a battery symbol next to it.

*Power button does not work

*Keyboard seems to make a hill as if someone tried to break it before they threw it away

*I took it apart and examined the pieces to see if anything was damaged. They all appear to be undamaged. It all went back together quite well too.

 I'm not professionally trained to fix computers so I have no idea what to do. I'm planning on taking it to a professional once I have the owners permission. If I do get it fixed and the owner wants to keep it, I have no qualms about returning it. I will charge for expenses though and I'll show receits to verify the costs. I'll also add a 2% fee for my troubles. Should you decide that you don't want it then I'll wipe it' memory and set it back to factory settings.

thanks

I will also look into an enclosure as well.

Which one do you recommend?