Failing Lexar SSD - possibility of recovering data?

Hi everyone, first time poster here and really hoping someone may be able to help me out with this failing Lexar NQ100 2.5" SATA SSD.

I purchased it in October and installed it inside of my Alienware Aurora R16 without any issue. I formatted it as NTFS and in to two partitions - B: drive using it as a back up for my OS C: drive, and V: drive using it as storage.

I booted up my PC from sleep mode yesterday to find that the SSD was not recognised. I restarted my PC and found that it would not boot in to Windows, it just hung at the Alienware splash screen with the loading circle. I removed the Lexar SSD from my PC and tried to boot again, it then successfully booted in to Windows and this confirmed for me that the Lexar SSD was causing some sort of problem or conflict.

I have already reached out to Lexar tech support and after providing them with details and screenshots of the problem all they did was offer me a refund. I have a folder on the storage partition that contains gigabytes of my old university work (large video files, documents etc.) which I would very much like to at least attempt to recover. Although I would be sad to see it go I could make my peace with losing it, so I'm willing to try anything and see what happens.

So I put the Lexar SSD in to an external caddy and tried connecting it to my PC, and this is when the really strange behaviour started. There are a number of different variations of unexpected behaviour, but the main one is that when the SSD is connected to my PC it is causing the system to freeze up. For example, File Explorer windows no longer respond and program windows that are already open no longer respond until the SSD is disconnected.

The partitions also display under 'This PC' in a variety of different ways after the SSD is removed and plugged back in, as shown in these screenshots:



The first screenshot shows 'This PC' with both partitions displayed correctly as WIN11-BU (B:) and RAZORBACK (V:). However if I attempt to navigate to either of them file explorer will freeze up. Sometimes it allows me to navigate to the root of one of the drives, but if I attempt to copy any files the system won't register the correct amount of data to be copied and will eventually complete the copy as 100% without copying any data to the selected source.

I am not a data recovery expert nor an expert in dealing with the variety of issues that an SSD may have, but I have a gut feeling (that could be completely wrong) that the data is still there but for someone reason unknown to me my PC is being prevented from reading the drive properly. If it allows me to navigate to a folder on one of the partitions I can in fact open up files such as a PDF, so I am hopeful that most of if not all of the data is there. I just need to work out how to successfully get it all off of the drive in one go.

I found a post on tenforums.com by someone that had an SSD display as RAW file system (which mine also do when they display as 'Local Disk' as shown in a screenshot above), and I ended up downloading TestDisk 7.3 but if I'm honest I was a bit out of my depth and wasn't sure or confident in what I was doing with it. I have also tried using Disk Drill with no success, then I found a Reddit thread advising against using it so I got worried and stopped.

Can anyone advise me on the best way to diagnose the problem? ANY advice or guidance would be greatly appreciated at this stage

To confirm a failed drive > run Sea Tools bootable Long generic test



To potentially backup data > boot Ubuntu / Linux flash drive




To potentially backup data > bootable Windows MCT (iso)


If none of the above work then:

Want to add that two boot drives connected at the same time can cause strange behavior.

Hi @VJ4YK5
I would think that your Lexar NQ100 2.5" SATA SSD (240GB) had gotten corrupted very badly - File System corruption. First check the health of your SSD with Hard Disk Sentinel (works with SSDs also). Download, install and run the Trial version of HDS with only the faulty SSD plugged in and selected.The Overview tab will show its health status.. Post a screenshot. ( I would think that it is possible. Do not try to access the SSD. Just run HDS, select the SSD and try to take the screenshot)
Hard Disk Sentinel Trial version - HDD health and temperature monitoring

Sample Screenshot: (My good old 300GB Seagate external HDD selected). The Overview tab instantly shows its present condition.

Thank you @zbook , @steveg & @jumanji for your replies and advice - all of it is much appreciated!

I honestly do not know what happened, but right after writing my original post and submitting it I decided to try accessing the SSD one more time... and it somehow stayed connected and allowed me to copy the data off of it successfully. After trying for an entire day it simply worked at the drop of a hat, and it's infuriating not knowing why! But the positive is that I have salvaged what I wanted from it.

steveg said:

Want to add that two boot drives connected at the same time can cause strange behavior.

Click to expand...

Would you mind going in to a little more detail regarding this? Do you believe this is what may have caused the issue? I was using the partition named WIN11-BU as the destination for a System Image backup scheduled to run once a week via the Control Panel > System and Security > Backup and Restore (Windows 7). My intention was to do this again but with a more reliable brand SSD after receiving my refund for the Lexar SSD, but if this is not recommended it will likely influence my decision on what type of SSD to buy next i.e. an external SSD so that a second boot drive isn't permanently connected.

jumanji said:

Hi VJ4YK5
I would think that your Lexar NQ100 2.5" SATA SSD (240GB) had gotten corrupted very badly - File System corruption. First check the health of your SSD with Hard Disk Sentinel (works with SSDs also). Download, install and run the Trial version of HDS with only the faulty SSD plugged in and selected.The Overview tab will show its health status.. Post a screenshot. ( I would think that it is possible. Do not try to access the SSD. Just run HDS, select the SSD and try to take the screenshot)
Hard Disk Sentinel Trial version - HDD health and temperature monitoring

Click to expand...

Thanks for this recommendation! It was actually your post that I came across on tenforums.com as I managed to extract the data off of the SSD I decided to format it afterwards, but I am going to download Hard Disk Sentinel and post a screenshot of the health status of the SSD as I would still like to know whether the issue can be identified.

This link has 2 days remaining: (I've not used it)



SMART is an attempt to predict the future.

In our forums we see HDS reporting scores > 90% on failed drives

Now would be the perfect moment to develop a robust backup strategy. Important data should be backed up on a regular basis. At least get an external HDD or SSD and backup your important data onto that drive.

VJ4YK5 said:

.............Thanks for this recommendation! It was actually your post that I came across on tenforums.com as I managed to extract the data off of the SSD I decided to format it afterwards, but I am going to download Hard Disk Sentinel and post a screenshot of the health status of the SSD as I would still like to know whether the issue can be identified.

Click to expand...

Yes, I knew it instantly when in post #1 you said " I found a post on tenforums.com by someone that had an SSD display as RAW file system (which mine also do when they display as 'Local Disk' as shown in a screenshot above), and I ended up downloading TestDisk 7.3" (your post#1). As for TestDisk, it is very difficult for the first time user to decipher and navigate. It has a steep learning curve. Reason why, I give step by step instructions to the OP, holding him on leash to scrupulously execute only those without deviating..

For the purpose of monitoring the health of the HDDs and SSDs it is enough if you have the trial version of Hard Disk Sentinel.You need not buy the Pro version unless you want the other advanced features that come with it.

As for your Lexar SSD , I now believe there is an intermittent loose connection on the PCB holding the memory chips inside -perhaps a dry solder or even a finicky electronic component - making and breaking the connection randomly.

And yes, I would be interested in seeing the Hard Disk Sentinel Screenshot as well as the Windows Disk Management screenshot.

Note: Zbook has always been saying " In our forums we see HDS reporting scores > 90% on failed drives". Honestly I haven't seen any such user reports either in these forums or elsewhere on the internet or other technical forums. I have been using Hard Disk Sentinel for a long time and I believe in its excellence. One can always crosscheck the results with CrystalDiskInfo. User reports without any such double check should not be taken for granted as absolute truth. You can also check the health of your HDDs/SSDs both with Hard Disk Sentinel and CrystalDiskInfo. CrystalDiskInfo

Double checking my Seagate 320GB External disk: Screenshots

Hard Disk Sentinel:
1. Number of bad sectors reallocated 29. but remains the same even after a year.
2. SMART values.


CrystalDiskInfo:
CrystalDiskInfo also shows Reallocated Sector Counts as 29. Health Status: CAUTION.
Note:
1.By default CrystalDiskInfo will show the RAW values in Hexadecimal. To show it in Decimal go to Function in the Main Menu Bar> Advanced Functions > Raw Values and set it to 10[DEC]
2. By Default CrytalDiskInfo will show the CAUTION message even if there is just one Reallocated sector count. By clicking on the CAUTION tab one can set the Sector count to any higher number, say 100. Till that Reallocated Sector count is reached, CrytalDiskInfo will show the health Status as GOOD.

jumanji said:

I haven't seen any such user reports either in these forums or elsewhere on the internet or other technical forums.

Click to expand...

Please google search: "inaccuracy drive smart testing"




That means that 23.3% of failed drives showed no warning from the SMART stats we record.
Are these stats useful?
I’ll let you decide if you’d like to have a sign of impending drive failure 76.7% of the time.
But before you decide, read on.




All tests have:

True positives
True negatives
False positives
False negatives
Accuracy
Inaccuracy
Positive predictive value
Negative predictive value



The failure of SMART to find problems by producing high scores misleads computer users.


This is a recent EF thread where the OP reported freezing.


Sea Tools did not report a failed long generic test.

HDS using it's instantaneous SMART reported it's proprietary score 80 - 100% for multiple drives.

Many computer users with HDS scores at 80 - 100% could continue using the problematic drive(s) and be misled and at some date have data loss.

Drive screening is similar to Disease Screening - Statistics Teaching Tools

in any case, get a replacement SSD from a different manufacturer from either Crucial or Samsung