Error code 0146 - trying to recover files

Maybe.  If the system still sees a hard drive (check the BIOS, F2 at powerup), purchase a 2.5" USB drive case (EIDE or SATA as appropriate) and mount the drive in it.  Attach to a working system by USB and see what you can still read.

If the drive isn't readable or the BIOS won't see it, data recovery is your only option - it is expensive (easily a couple of thousand dollars + ) but probably the only way.

I just want to make sure I understand: Under System, Device Info it shows "Primary Hard Drive = 120 GB HDD"

Is that sufficient to say the system still sees the hard drive?

Thank you very much.

Yes.

Couple of other things you could try.

Try running Windows in debugging mode, it should bypass BSD & load Windows. After you log into windows, run the system check disk, then go to: Start > Run > type: msconfig

Go to Boot.INI and you should see an option that says SAFEboot. Click that and click Minimal. Now restart your computer. Now you should boot right into windows.  If Windows loads, try resetting SAFEboot and rebooting to see if it will boot. If it does, grab your data because your hard drive is failing.

You could try booting a DOS program called SpinRite (which you download and burn to a floppy or CD). It repaired a couple of hard drives that had been failing in the past (when drives failed more frequenty).  I still keep a copy and run it about twice a year (takes a while to go through a 100 gig drive, so I run it & go home for the night).

SpinRite 6

Very fast and easy way. http://www.apricorn.com/products.php?cat_id=52 

If you are a novice at repairing or upgrading your computer I highly suggest this product. Even the pros use this.

Herb L.

Buying the external enclosure just worked for me!!!  Nothing else was working Windows Recovery Console, Knoppix Live CDs, restore disks, 98 disk.  My work's tech support wrote it off as dead but I couldn't and didn't give up.  I can see the entire file structure of the drive and have started copying over everything.  I may be able to fix it so it can boot up but probably won't trust it for my work laptop.

Disk enclosure: $40

Saved files: Priceless!

You gotta love these forums! I don't know what I would have had to pay the local computer shop for all the problem solving I have gotten around here..... But I think I couldn't have afforded it!!

You can always stick a good drive in that enclosure and with a clone program such as Acronis True Image you can always have a bootable, uptodate clone of your main drive.

Jeff:emotion-22:

Very fast and easy way. http://www.apricorn.com/products.php?cat_id=52  If you are a novice at repairing or upgrading your computer I highly suggest this product. Even the pros use this. Herb L.

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Bev.