12-02-2009, 04:53 AM
Yes, put it into Target Disk mode and hook it up to a good Mac. Copy off her data as quickly as possible, starting with the most important stuff. If it is indeed a bad hard drive it might take multiple attempts to get all she needs. Do not use Diskwarrior, while it is great for directory damage it is worthless if the hard drive is failing, in fact, it will make it harder to get the data off. A good software tool for recovering data is Data Rescue II, I've had great luck using that to recover data. It can take a very long time depending on how badly damaged the hard drive is. I've had some go weeks before getting everything.
Once you get all her data you need backed up, format the drive writing zeros. This will let the drive map out bad blocks. If it makes it past this the drive is likely ok, install an OS on it. Then install Smart Utility and have it check the health of the drive. If it comes back as failed then replace it.
Once you get all her data you need backed up, format the drive writing zeros. This will let the drive map out bad blocks. If it makes it past this the drive is likely ok, install an OS on it. Then install Smart Utility and have it check the health of the drive. If it comes back as failed then replace it.