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Hi all. My wife's iBook G3 is showing the small folder icon with a flashing ? on it. She has not backed up the HD for some time and reeeealllly needs documents off it. Listening closely at start up, I do not hear the HD spin, but rather hear two sets of 10 click/click, which sounds closely to that of a wrist watch. I get the startup chime after the two sets of clicks. Then shortly the ? on folder flashes.

Is there any hope of getting the HD working again? Is there any hope in getting the data recovered? Is the drive dead, never to spin again?? (if so, she won't be a happy camper.)

Any advise out there?

Thanks!
e2brute

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Dani AI

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— the pattern you describe (two sets of regular clicks, then the flashing folder) is a classic sign the hard disk is failing mechanically: the head assembly or spindle is stalling and the drive is not being recognized. This follows from what started to outline with software/alternate-boot ideas; below are complementary, hardware-focused, data-preservation steps that are safe to try next.

First, stop powering and rebooting the iBook repeatedly. Each spin-up attempt can make physical damage worse. If the files are important, the safest immediate move is to power down and either have a technician remove the drive or remove it yourself only if comfortable. Most clamshell iBook G3s use a 2.5" PATA/IDE laptop drive; that drive can usually be connected to another computer with a 2.5" IDE-to-USB adapter or an appropriate enclosure so you can attempt a non-destructive image. Do not try “freeze” or shock tricks — they risk irreversible damage.

If comfortable with a Linux box and a USB adapter, create a bit-for-bit image with GNU ddrescue (it handles errors better than plain dd). Basic workflow: attach the failing drive, mount a large destination drive for the image, do a first pass to copy good sectors, then retry bad areas. Example commands:

# first pass: copy good sectors only
sudo ddrescue -n /dev/sdX /mnt/backup/ibook.img /mnt/backup/ibook.log

# retry bad sectors (3 retries, direct disc access)
sudo ddrescue -d -r3 /dev/sdX /mnt/backup/ibook.img /mnt/backup/ibook.log

Replace /dev/sdX with the actual device name and ensure the destination has enough free space. If the drive refuses to spin, or ddrescue shows many I/O errors, stop and consult a reputable data-recovery lab — clicking from a drive usually means clean-room work may be required to recover data. If unsure about removal or imaging, professional recovery is the safest choice.

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Member Avatar for John A

Hi, and welcome to DaniWeb.

If you have another Mac and a firewire cable, you might be able to use Target Disk Mode. Connect the Macs with the firewire cable, start the Mac that works, and once that's booted up, start the dead iBook, holding down the 'T' key. If all goes well, its hard drive should show up on the other Mac, in which case you can transfer your files off of it.

I've also heard numerous success stories with DiskWarrior, you might want to try that if Target Disk Mode doesn't work. Finally, if the data is really, really critical (and you've got some extra cash) you can get your data professionally recovered. But, as I said, it costs lots of money.

Member Avatar for e2brute

Target Disk Mode is a good idea...however, the G3 iBook my wife uses is one of those green 'clam shell' iBooks of a few years back...no firewire. Only USB, and network.

I'll look into DiscWarrior. Still hoping the disc is not unusable.

Thank you for responding.

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