Access to Files on NVME Optane Hard Drive

[Psyclist]

I recently had a laptop die on me (HP Spectre). It suddenly stopped booting. I'm hoping that the data on the hard drive is still available. I've removed the NVME Optane drive and I've been trying to use a docking station to access the files without success. I'm on my 4th docking station. The computer seems to recognize the docking station when I plug into the PC but it doesn't access the drive/display the files/folders, etc.

I've read that it's not possible to access the files without being connected to the computer that it came from. That computer no longer boots so that isn't an option, I don't think.

The fourth docking station I've purchased (Mokin M.2 NVMe & NGFF Enclosure) didn't work either but I have read that some people have been able to make it work. One suggestion was to get EaseUS Recovery. I downloaded the free version and it does appear to read the drive during scan for "Lost" files or folders. That's not really what I'm looking for but it does appear to be reading /scanning the drive which is more than I've been able to accomplish so far. The light blinks throughout the scan and it did identify a few lost folders.

I'm wondering if there is another method to try? I'm about to give up but this scanning software makes me think there's hope?

[n_scott_pearson]

You cannot use a USB adapter (or docking station) to recover data from an Optane SSD unless the cache has been cleared. If the machine failed suddenly, this cache will NOT be clear. In this case, you need to install the drive in another PC/Laptop that both supports Optane SSDs and has Optane support enabled.

Just so you understand, the issue is that the USB adapter can only expose the SSD portion of the drive and cannot use the Optane cache data (the cache itself will appear as a raw SSD itself). If the cache has not been cleared, a portion of the SSD's file system and data files will be current in the cache and accessing the SSD portion without the cache being active (and this data available) will appear corrupted (and could easily be permanently corrupted further)
Hope this helps,
...S

[AdamJ99]

Hi n_scott_pearson,

I stumbled on this thread searching for answers to a similar issue.

You mentioned that the drive needs to installed in a nother PC that supports SSD and Optane.

In my case, my PC already supports this but the drive appears to be fault. The  driver doesn't boot but is recognized in the BIOS.
How do I install the SSD driver and access my data.

Any help will be appreciated. Thanks

[Azeem_Intel]

Hi Psyclist,

Greetings for the day!

Hope you are doing well. Could you please share a snapshot of the defective part with the serial number visible? Additionally please let us know if this product was purchased separately or with the machine.

Best Regards,

Azeem_Intel

[Azeem_Intel]

Hi Psyclist,

Greetings for the day!

This is the first follow-up regarding the issue (Access to Files on NVME Optane Hard Drive) you reported to us.

We wanted to inquire whether you had the opportunity to review the plan of action (POA) we provided.

Best Regards,

Azeem_Intel

[n_scott_pearson]

This PC has RST/RAID/Optane (or whatever gobbledygook name the system BIOS has assigned to it) enabled in the BIOS? If not, it's a horrible uphill battle as enabling it will cause GP fault while trying to boot your existing OS image. This can be gotten around with some artful use of Safe Mode, however. Once you have it booting in RAID mode, you can install the RST package and get the drivers running.

Now, that's a simple little paragraph, but pretty complex executing. It gets worse

Next, let's talk next about how Optane SSDs work. It has two portions, a standard - but slow - NVMe SSD and a fast NVMe cache that is used to speed up the overall performance of the device. As you perform your various operations, portions of the files - and chunks of the file system - that are being read/written may reside in the cache. That is, the most recent version of the portions of the files or file system may be in the cache and not written to the SSD portion. This means that, if you blindly access the SSD portion (as you would if you plugged the device into a non-Optane system), the SSD of files on it, with having the pieces that are in the cache, may look corrupted. This is why you must have an Optane compliant PC and have RST/RAID/Optane enabled. Only then will the file system appear intact and only then can you see your files (and file system) appear as they are supposed to.

Hope this helps,

...S

[AdamJ99]

Thank you for the speedy response !. I wasn't expecting seeing how old this thread is.
I am currently on in transit. I will send a screenshot of the settings once I get home.

[AdamJ99]

@n_scott_pearson 

I want to give some information about the genesis of the problem.

I turned on my PC a few days a ago and it took a long time to boot up. After which I get a BSOD with the error:

`DRIVER_PNP WATCHDOG`

All efforts to boot into recovery failed. I also tried using a bootable USB but the drivers for the SSD failed to install so I couldn't access it. 
As a result, I had to change my SSD. Which brings me to the point where I want to restore my data from the old SSD.

I have attached some images here showing the BIOS info for the Intel Optane SSD and the newer Samsung SSD.

Intel
Optane Mode Detail Intel SSD.jpeg :  showing that it's an Intel Optane Volume.

Optane Mode Intel SSD.jpeg: showing the Optane Volume Info

Intel SSD NVME Main: The SSD portion of the Optane Volume

Intel SSD Cache: The cache portion of the Optane Volume

Samsung

Samsung SSD Mode: Showing overview of the SSD

Samsung SSD: Showing the volume info

Samsung SSD Details: Showing the SSD portion of the volume.

From the above, I can tell the PC is Optane compliant, but I am not sure how to get the PC to see the old SSD when connected via USB.

[n_scott_pearson]

From the BIOS, I would use that DISABLE selection and disable the cache. This will write everything in the cache to the SSD portion. Once that is done (and presuming it works; it may fail if it is the SSD itself that is the failing component), you should be able to access the SSD portion from Windows and extract your files.

Hope this helps,

...S

[AdamJ99]

Thanks a lot! @n_scott_pearson 

The solution worked.

I disabled the cache on the old SSD using the BIOS, and the laptop booted normally.

I am not sure what went wrong initially. Probably the cache was corrupted.

Before the crash, I had plugged in my backup HDD via USB to copy some files. 

In any case, the SSD is working fine now.

Thanks a lot. I really appreciate it.

[n_scott_pearson]

Good - but understand that what you've done is pushed the cache out of the way and left the slower SSD portion running.

First thing you should do is an integrity check on the SSD. Run a "chkdsk x: /f", where 'x' is the drive letter assigned to the SSD. If you are booting from this SSD, this may need a reboot before the scan will be performed (it should ask for this).

Once everything looks good, you could go back into BIOS and try reenabling the cache. If this is successful, you may be able to get back to where you were before the incident occurred.

Hope this helps,

...S