Member Avatar for word9smith

HI, the hard drive on my IBM thinkpad was very noisy. Now it doesn't seem to be working. When I try to boot up I get the IBM screen but nothing past that. Eventually I get a black screen with a small square then a lock then xxx (three x's) and then a hand in a circle with a slash through it (like those signs no this no that). Does anyone know what this is telling me?
Thanks!

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Quick diagnostic checklist and safe next steps (builds on and ):

Start by narrowing the cause before doing anything risky. On a ThinkPad T20 press F1 at the IBM splash to try to enter BIOS/Setup. If a power‑on password is requested before you can reach Setup, that points at a firmware/password lock. If you can get into Setup but the drive does not appear in the devices list, that points at a hardware failure.

Non‑destructive tests to run next:

  • Remove the T20 hard disk, then try booting from known good external media (a rescue CD or USB boot disk). If the machine proceeds further, the internal drive is the likely culprit.
  • Connect the removed 2.5" PATA drive to another computer with a PATA‑to‑USB adapter or IDE enclosure. Check whether the host OS detects the disk and whether SMART reports errors.

If the disk is mechanically noisy or not detected:

  • Stop powering it repeatedly. Repeated spinups can make head/disk damage worse.
  • If data matters, image the drive once (preferably with a tool that handles bad sectors, e.g., GNU ddrescue) to another drive and attempt file recovery from that image. If the drive won’t enumerate or clicks loudly, consult a professional data‑recovery service.

If the problem is a password/lock:

  • Avoid repeated password guesses. Some drives implement ATA security counters and too many failures can permanently lock the disk.
  • For password issues an authorized service center may be required to unlock or replace components; proof of ownership is normally required. If data is not required, replacing the drive with a compatible 2.5" unit (or using a CF/PATA adapter) and reinstalling the OS is the fastest fix.

Order of operations: verify BIOS behavior, test with the drive removed, attach the drive externally, image if possible, then decide between replacement or professional recovery.

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Member Avatar for coolraj003

If the harddrive is failing then that would not let your pc to beet up cos obviously the files necessary for booting up the system would not be read or accessed by the system. Can you try to boot up with a different hard drive? see if you can. If u are able to then you know the hard drive is crashed.

Raj

Member Avatar for jbennet

get a black screen with a small square then a lock then xxx (three x's) and then a hand in a circle with a slash through

that means someone has put a password on the hard disk or motherboard, get it wrong 3 times and you will need a new motherboard and disk

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