Hard Disk Password

It is not a very well known fact, but all hard disks have a very strong hardware password capability build in. This password is usually stored both in a chip on the HD controller (the printed circuit board on the hard disk) and on the hard disk itself in a special hidden sector.

Setting this password will make the hard disk completely unusable to anyone that doesn’t know it. And not only on your computer, but on any computer.

A lot of newer laptops will set the HD password together with the BIOS password, completely locking all the hardware.

The hard disk manufacturers are unable to unlock a password protected hard disk, as there aren’t any “secret” master passwords build into the firmware. Even swapping the controller of the password-protected hard disk with exactly the same controller from an unprotected HD will not remove the protection on most disks, as the password (together with most of the firmware) is also stored on the hard disk itself.

The only way of retrieving any files from a password protected hard disk without knowing the password is to send it to a data recovery company for unlocking, but not all data recovery companies could or would unlock a password protected HD.

In this time of rising identity theft, protecting your personal data by locking your hard disk with a password is indeed a good idea. The downside is that when the HD eventually malfunctions it will be harder or even impossible to retrieve any files from it. So, the first rule of using a computer applies here in full strength – “Your data is only as good as your latest backup”!

337 Comments

  • #337 by kautuver May 23, 2013 at: 1:07 am

    my Laptop Hard Drive has locked
    Hard Drive is an Fujitsu MHV2080BH
    Any advise or help will be welcomed .

  • #336 by phil April 25, 2013 at: 5:26 pm

    my emachine e528 500gb hdd hasfrozen pass word i can not access main screen can u help.

  • #335 by bala April 11, 2013 at: 8:18 am

    sir! my hard disk is locked need hdd unlock code, has a t HCL p/n: 442867-ABC hard drive. can anyone help me, thanks

  • #334 by DAVE LIVINGSTONE April 1, 2013 at: 12:32 pm

    DELL INSPIRON 6000 SERIE: 36PF881 STAG: 6935844961
    HDD LOCKED

  • #333 by suresh January 8, 2013 at: 2:13 am

    my asus X54H laptop local dick locked.forget posward. please telme solution

  • #332 by Krysta December 15, 2012 at: 1:38 pm

    Dell inspirion2200 hard drive somehow locked itself please help

  • #331 by ahmad November 26, 2012 at: 1:20 am

    i cannot retrieve my data from the 320 hard disk on my lap top. what to do

  • #330 by sonny September 14, 2012 at: 6:01 pm

    my hard disk is locked and ican access it serial wdc wd1600bevs-22vat lock 160 GB centurion CA-8281

  • #329 by ivan June 4, 2012 at: 4:20 pm

    hello well i am a little stuck i know the password for my hard drive but the lap top it was in is dead so i can not use that to enter the password
    i do have the laptop hard drive mounted in my main pc for data recovery but am not sure how to enter the password or unlock the drive with the password i have for the drive
    so i can use it on usb and recover my data

  • #328 by saghafi May 18, 2012 at: 4:37 am

    hello, my hdd is blocked, help me pls.
    dell n5110
    service tag: GS5FDR1
    hard-disk s/n : E81WNK91