Electronics Repair (sci.electronics.repair) Discussion of repairing electronic equipment. Topics include requests for assistance, where to obtain servicing information and parts, techniques for diagnosis and repair, and annecdotes about success, failures and problems.

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Default USB Flash drive repair

I have a Sandisk 32G USB flash drive that someone has given me in the
hope that I might be able to salvage some data off it. Looks like it
was in a laptop and jammed against a wall, resulting in broken solder
joints. My PC wasn't detecting it when it was plugged in at all.

I cut the drive open and attempted to re-seat the pins and then reflow
the solder using a heat gun on a low setting moving rapidly over the
joints. It seemed to work but it's very difficult to tell if all the
pins are making good connections with the pads.

Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in, but
is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error. Is it possible that this
is due to a poor electrical connection, or is it likely that the
controller electronics is somehow damaged as well? At this point I'm
thinking of removing the USB connector completely and using jumper wires
to ensure that all the pads are connected properly to the respective
pins and have continuity Suggestions?
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Default USB Flash drive repair

On 10/1/2015 1:39 PM, bitrex wrote:
I have a Sandisk 32G USB flash drive that someone has given me in the
hope that I might be able to salvage some data off it. Looks like it
was in a laptop and jammed against a wall, resulting in broken solder
joints. My PC wasn't detecting it when it was plugged in at all.

I cut the drive open and attempted to re-seat the pins and then reflow
the solder using a heat gun on a low setting moving rapidly over the
joints. It seemed to work but it's very difficult to tell if all the
pins are making good connections with the pads.

Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in, but
is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error. Is it possible that this
is due to a poor electrical connection, or is it likely that the
controller electronics is somehow damaged as well? At this point I'm
thinking of removing the USB connector completely and using jumper wires
to ensure that all the pads are connected properly to the respective
pins and have continuity Suggestions?


My guess is your connections are not all there. if anything else were
damaged I think you'd be able to see it. What are you going to connect
the jumper wires to? Do you have a spare connector? I think I would
solder the end of a cable to the board so you have a USB connector on
the end of the cable. I'd like to have that on flash drives anyway.
They stick out too much from the laptop and are prone to damaging the
machine when bumped. My previous laptop lost two of its four USB
connectors that way.

--

Rick
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Default USB Flash drive repair

On Thu, 1 Oct 2015 13:39:50 -0400, bitrex
Gave us:

I have a Sandisk 32G USB flash drive that someone has given me in the
hope that I might be able to salvage some data off it. Looks like it
was in a laptop and jammed against a wall, resulting in broken solder
joints. My PC wasn't detecting it when it was plugged in at all.

I cut the drive open and attempted to re-seat the pins and then reflow
the solder using a heat gun on a low setting moving rapidly over the
joints. It seemed to work but it's very difficult to tell if all the
pins are making good connections with the pads.

Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in, but
is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error. Is it possible that this
is due to a poor electrical connection, or is it likely that the
controller electronics is somehow damaged as well? At this point I'm
thinking of removing the USB connector completely and using jumper wires
to ensure that all the pads are connected properly to the respective
pins and have continuity Suggestions?


You can also try booting a Linux Live CD or DVD.

But it still sounds like one of the connections is not yet
re-established.

The heat gun method is bad.. You don't have a soldering iron?
You can also remove the connector and solder on the wires of a cut off
USB cable to it, permitting better access to said connections after the
typically shrouded connector has been removed. Wires are usually easier
as then they can be attached individually.
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Default USB Flash drive repair

On 10/1/2015 1:48 PM, DecadentLinuxUserNumeroUno wrote:
On Thu, 1 Oct 2015 13:39:50 -0400, bitrex
Gave us:

I have a Sandisk 32G USB flash drive that someone has given me in the
hope that I might be able to salvage some data off it. Looks like it
was in a laptop and jammed against a wall, resulting in broken solder
joints. My PC wasn't detecting it when it was plugged in at all.

I cut the drive open and attempted to re-seat the pins and then reflow
the solder using a heat gun on a low setting moving rapidly over the
joints. It seemed to work but it's very difficult to tell if all the
pins are making good connections with the pads.

Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in, but
is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error. Is it possible that this
is due to a poor electrical connection, or is it likely that the
controller electronics is somehow damaged as well? At this point I'm
thinking of removing the USB connector completely and using jumper wires
to ensure that all the pads are connected properly to the respective
pins and have continuity Suggestions?


You can also try booting a Linux Live CD or DVD.

But it still sounds like one of the connections is not yet
re-established.

The heat gun method is bad.. You don't have a soldering iron?
You can also remove the connector and solder on the wires of a cut off
USB cable to it, permitting better access to said connections after the
typically shrouded connector has been removed. Wires are usually easier
as then they can be attached individually.


I do have a soldering iron... But the only thing is that there is so
little space that it's nearly impossible to get in there and resolder
the pads, even with the finest tip, and ensure I'm not creating bridges
while the plug is still in place. I think I'm going to follow your
suggestion (and what I was thinking) and just remove the connector
completely and use a spare USB cable as the header.
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Default USB Flash drive repair

On Thu, 1 Oct 2015 13:45:20 -0400, rickman Gave us:

My previous laptop lost two of its four USB
connectors that way.


Another indicator that you ain't too bright.

Nice copycat job too.


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Default USB Flash drive repair

rickman Wrote in message:
On 10/1/2015 1:39 PM, bitrex wrote:
I have a Sandisk 32G USB flash drive that someone has given me in the
hope that I might be able to salvage some data off it. Looks like it
was in a laptop and jammed against a wall, resulting in broken solder
joints. My PC wasn't detecting it when it was plugged in at all.

I cut the drive open and attempted to re-seat the pins and then reflow
the solder using a heat gun on a low setting moving rapidly over the
joints. It seemed to work but it's very difficult to tell if all the
pins are making good connections with the pads.

Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in, but
is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error. Is it possible that this
is due to a poor electrical connection, or is it likely that the
controller electronics is somehow damaged as well? At this point I'm
thinking of removing the USB connector completely and using jumper wires
to ensure that all the pads are connected properly to the respective
pins and have continuity Suggestions?


My guess is your connections are not all there. if anything else were
damaged I think you'd be able to see it. What are you going to connect
the jumper wires to? Do you have a spare connector? I think I would
solder the end of a cable to the board so you have a USB connector on
the end of the cable. I'd like to have that on flash drives anyway.
They stick out too much from the laptop and are prone to damaging the
machine when bumped. My previous laptop lost two of its four USB
connectors that way.

--

Rick


I've detached the USB header completely and the pads on the data
lines appear to be completely lifted. Do the data lines on flash
drives usually have resistor pull ups or resistors inline? There
are what looks like two 0402 resistors on the underside that I
think might be connected to the data lines that I might be able
to attach wires to.


--


----Android NewsGroup Reader----
http://usenet.sinaapp.com/
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Default USB Flash drive repair

bitrex wrote:


I do have a soldering iron... But the only thing is that there is so
little space that it's nearly impossible to get in there and resolder
the pads, even with the finest tip, and ensure I'm not creating bridges
while the plug is still in place. I think I'm going to follow your
suggestion (and what I was thinking) and just remove the connector
completely and use a spare USB cable as the header.

When the board is all chewed up, this is the most likely way to fix it.
Absolutely not worth it to just make it useable, but you may be able to get
the data off it this way, with careful handling. it is likely to be real
fragile with the cable soldered on to it.

Jon
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Default USB Flash drive repair

In sci.electronics.repair bitrex wrote:
Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in,
but is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error.


Keep working on the idea of getting a better USB connection, but also
take a close look, under magnification if you have it, at the flash
memory chip itself. At least on some older flash drives I have taken
apart (1GB-4GB or so), there was a small controller chip that spoke USB,
and then a standard-ish flash chip for the storage. If the controller
chip is there, but the connections to the flash chip are damaged, you
could well get the problem you describe: the controller wakes up enough
to convice the OS that something is there, but the controller is unable
to come up all the way because it can't get at the flash memory.

I have held in my hand a drive that was damaged this way; it was whacked
hard enough that many pins on the flash chip lifted from the board. The
owner decided to start with (older) backup copies of the documents that
were on the failed flash drive.

Matt Roberds

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Default USB Flash drive repair

In sci.electronics.repair bitrex wrote:
I have a Sandisk 32G USB flash drive that someone has given me in the
hope that I might be able to salvage some data off it. Looks like it
was in a laptop and jammed against a wall, resulting in broken solder
joints. My PC wasn't detecting it when it was plugged in at all.

I cut the drive open and attempted to re-seat the pins and then reflow
the solder using a heat gun on a low setting moving rapidly over the
joints. It seemed to work but it's very difficult to tell if all the
pins are making good connections with the pads.


I suggest getting a flux pen and name-brand solder braid and trying what's
called "drag soldering". There are videos on youtube of the process. It's
as magic as it looks, but the flux and clean solder is mandatory.


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"bitrex" wrote in message
...
I have a Sandisk 32G USB flash drive that someone has given me in the hope
that I might be able to salvage some data off it. Looks like it was in a
laptop and jammed against a wall, resulting in broken solder joints. My
PC wasn't detecting it when it was plugged in at all.

I cut the drive open and attempted to re-seat the pins and then reflow the
solder using a heat gun on a low setting moving rapidly over the joints.
It seemed to work but it's very difficult to tell if all the pins are
making good connections with the pads.

Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in, but
is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error. Is it possible that this is
due to a poor electrical connection, or is it likely that the controller
electronics is somehow damaged as well? At this point I'm thinking of
removing the USB connector completely and using jumper wires to ensure
that all the pads are connected properly to the respective pins and have
continuity Suggestions?


I'd carefully dismantle what's left of the USB plug and clean up the solder
pads for its pins. Next - wade in with an illuminated strong magnifier and
try to identify whether any tracks leading away from those pads are broken.

Its probably easier to cut the plug end from a USB extension lead and wire
that onto the flash drive PCB. Cutting the lead from a scrap item like a
printer that runs from a separate supply probably won't work - they usually
don't have the supply pin wired in the USB plug/lead.



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Default USB Flash drive repair

In article , Jon Elson
wrote:

bitrex wrote:


I do have a soldering iron... But the only thing is that there is so
little space that it's nearly impossible to get in there and resolder
the pads, even with the finest tip, and ensure I'm not creating bridges
while the plug is still in place. I think I'm going to follow your
suggestion (and what I was thinking) and just remove the connector
completely and use a spare USB cable as the header.

When the board is all chewed up, this is the most likely way to fix it.
Absolutely not worth it to just make it useable, but you may be able to get
the data off it this way, with careful handling. it is likely to be real
fragile with the cable soldered on to it.


I'd glue the busted thumb drive and the cable to a piece of wood, to
protect the cobbled connections.

Joe Gwinn
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On Fri, 02 Oct 2015 16:32:30 -0400, Joe Gwinn
Gave us:
..snip

I'd glue the busted thumb drive and the cable to a piece of wood, to
protect the cobbled connections.


Tie wraps.
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Default USB Flash drive repair

On 2015-10-01, bitrex wrote:
[thumb drive repair]

Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in, but
is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error. Is it possible that this
is due to a poor electrical connection, or is it likely that the
controller electronics is somehow damaged as well? At this point I'm
thinking of removing the USB connector completely and using jumper wires
to ensure that all the pads are connected properly to the respective
pins and have continuity Suggestions?


Drives of this type often have separate storage and usb-interface
chips. the symptoms you describe could be explained by a USB
connection that's working and storage that isn't.

Could be a solder joint, pcb trace, wire bond or die failure.

--
\_(ツ)_
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On 3 Oct 2015 09:28:25 GMT, Jasen Betts Gave us:

On 2015-10-01, bitrex wrote:
[thumb drive repair]

Windows now recognizes that a USB device of some type is plugged in, but
is giving me a "Device Not Recognized" error. Is it possible that this
is due to a poor electrical connection, or is it likely that the
controller electronics is somehow damaged as well? At this point I'm
thinking of removing the USB connector completely and using jumper wires
to ensure that all the pads are connected properly to the respective
pins and have continuity Suggestions?


Drives of this type often have separate storage and usb-interface
chips. the symptoms you describe could be explained by a USB
connection that's working and storage that isn't.

Could be a solder joint, pcb trace, wire bond or die failure.


Except that the entire initial failure was simply the connector.

How is it suddenly that you think connections elsewhere are severed?
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