Hard drive password - how to get around?

  • Thread starter Thread starter tforms1
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tforms1

I have an old laptop that I got from work.
My company has always been security conscious, so we had both a bios
and harddrive password.
We had to enter both before the laptop would start booting.

Now the laptop has died, so I took the hard drive out and put it into a
hard drive enclosure, and plugged it into my computer's USB port.

But windows XP does not see the hard drive.
I am assuming because I did not enter the password.

Is there a place to enter the password so I can access the harddrive?

Thanks
 
tforms1 said:
I have an old laptop that I got from work.
My company has always been security conscious, so we had both a bios
and harddrive password.
We had to enter both before the laptop would start booting.

Now the laptop has died, so I took the hard drive out and put it
into a hard drive enclosure, and plugged it into my computer's USB
port.

But windows XP does not see the hard drive.
I am assuming because I did not enter the password.

Is there a place to enter the password so I can access the
harddrive?
Click to expand...

Doubtful that it has anything to do with the password. More likely it just
needs to be initialized by Windows XP.
Does it show up in Disk Manager?
 
I have an old laptop that I got from work.
My company has always been security conscious, so we had both a bios
and harddrive password.
We had to enter both before the laptop would start booting.

Now the laptop has died, so I took the hard drive out and put it into a
hard drive enclosure, and plugged it into my computer's USB port.

But windows XP does not see the hard drive.
I am assuming because I did not enter the password.

Is there a place to enter the password so I can access the harddrive?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Get an IDE rig ($7) and make sure the jumpers are right
 
I have an old laptop that I got from work.
My company has always been security conscious, so we had both a bios
and harddrive password.
We had to enter both before the laptop would start booting.

Now the laptop has died, so I took the hard drive out and put it into a
hard drive enclosure, and plugged it into my computer's USB port.

But windows XP does not see the hard drive.
I am assuming because I did not enter the password.

Is there a place to enter the password so I can access the harddrive?

Thanks
Click to expand...

If the hard drive was locked with a bios password then you are shyte out of
luck. Do you think it should be easy? This system is to keep people who
steal laptops from getting at the info on the drive.
 
If the hard drive was locked with a bios password then you are shyte out of
luck. Do you think it should be easy? This system is to keep people who
steal laptops from getting at the info on the drive.
Click to expand...

But I HAVE the password.
I just dont see a place to enter it, now that the drive is a slave
drive on my computer.

The drive does not show up in disk manager, or My Computer.

But it is listed under Device Manager -> Disk Drives.

The weird thing is, when I booted up my computer, it recognized the new
drive and asked for Drivers (which I dont have and the manufactorer
Fujitsu does not have).

Im running XP, why would it ask for drivers for a harddrive?
 
I have an old laptop that I got from work.
My company has always been security conscious, so we had both a bios
and harddrive password.
We had to enter both before the laptop would start booting.

Now the laptop has died, so I took the hard drive out and put it into a
hard drive enclosure, and plugged it into my computer's USB port.

But windows XP does not see the hard drive.
I am assuming because I did not enter the password.

Is there a place to enter the password so I can access the harddrive?
Click to expand...

You need another laptop or a desktop computer that is
able to handle ATA passwords... Or the right tool :-)

http://www.rockbox.org/lock.html


Greetings from Germany

Uwe
 
But I HAVE the password.
I just dont see a place to enter it, now that the drive is a slave
drive on my computer.

The drive does not show up in disk manager, or My Computer.

But it is listed under Device Manager -> Disk Drives.

The weird thing is, when I booted up my computer, it recognized the new
drive and asked for Drivers (which I dont have and the manufactorer
Fujitsu does not have).

Im running XP, why would it ask for drivers for a harddrive?
Click to expand...

The least complicated way is probably asking someone with a laptop
with a BIOS that supports the HD-password feature if you can put in
your HD there to remove the protection - Thinkpads are recommendable
there, for the HD can easily be switched (or if the owner has the
required adapter it could be put into the media bay)

....not of much help though if you don't know anybody with a suitable
laptop at hand...

T.C.
 
Because it is now a hard drive in a USB enclosure and consequently a
different beast.
Do you have drivers for the enclosure?
 
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