Need PC Expert Help (ahci port1 device error)

[RFX45]

I tried to turn my cpu on last night and I got the message: ahci port1 device error.

I googled it and it said that the harddrive might be loose or fried. Since the cpu is a desktop, it wasn't moved at all so I can't imagine it being loose at all. Does that leave with the option that my hardrive crashed and all my files are lost?

I'm just curious if anyone has experienced the same thing or have any opinions or ideas for a solution outside of getting a new HD? I'd love to recover the files in there too.

Googled gave me a couple of results from some PC forums but they might as well speak a different language in there.

Good thing I have an iPad, I can still go online albeit in limited way.

Any help/suggestions is appreciated.

 

[Bartolo]

First, don't dismiss out of hand the possibility that there is a bad physical connection between the hd and the motherboard. It's easy enough to open the case, unplug and replug the ribbon connectors.

A very easy solution to try to recover the data on that hd is to buy a usb enclosure for it. Then you can just plug it in to another computer and see what you can find and pull off.

Can you boot from a Windows cd/dvd?

The short answer is that if you can't make your hd bootable by playing with the connectors, you're going to have to either boot from another source (like a Windows cd, or a bootable Linux cd) and try to run some diagnostics on it, or just replace the hd and reinstall Windows. Hardware error messages like that are very generic and don't tell you exactly what is wrong or how to fix it. But clearly you can't boot right now from that hd and so need to proceed accordingly.

 

[RFX45]

Thanks for the help.

So right now the best solution to try is just insert the Windows CD the cpu came with and start it up? I haven't tried that yet but it seems like the easiest and fastest way to try and fix it. I'll give it a shot, thanks.