Clicking WD My Passport 1TB, Urgent Job: 400GB of Client Shoots Recovered in One Day

Published 13 October 2026. Updated 16 October 2026.

Can an urgent clicking WD My Passport be recovered quickly? In this urgent clicking WD My Passport data recovery case study, yes. A Newcastle photographer’s 1TB drive started clicking and the read/write heads had failed. We replaced them with heads from a matched donor drive in a laminar flow cabinet and recovered all 400GB of client shoots in one day.

Sound familiar?

• Your portable hard drive has started clicking.
• It holds client work you have promised to deliver.
• You need the files back fast, not in a few weeks.
• You have stopped using the drive and do not know what to do next.

Same problem? Call 1300 444 800 or request a free assessment.

A Photographer’s Client Shoots on a Drive That Started Clicking

This is a 1TB Western Digital My Passport belonging to a photographer in Newcastle. It held 400GB of client shoots.

Then it started clicking.

For a photographer, client shoots are not just personal files. They are work that has been paid for, or is waiting to be delivered, and often there is no second chance to take the photos again.

Why Was Stopping Straight Away the Right Call?

The customer stopped using the drive as soon as the clicking started. That was exactly the right thing to do.

Clicking usually means a mechanical fault. Every time a clicking drive is powered on, the damaged parts inside keep working against the platters where the photos are stored. Unplugging it and leaving it alone protects what is still there.

If your drive starts clicking, do the same. Do not keep plugging it in, do not try recovery software, and do not open it.

The Problem: What Was Making the WD My Passport Click?

Our data recovery engineer found that the read/write heads had failed. These are the tiny parts that float over the spinning platters, reading and writing the data.

When heads fail, the drive cannot read its platters properly, and the arm that carries the heads swings and taps as it tries again and again. That is the clicking sound.

The data itself was still on the platters. The job was to give the drive working heads so that data could be read.

The Urgent Clicking WD My Passport Data Recovery Process

The fix for failed heads is a head swap. It is done in a dust-free, anti-static laminar flow cabinet, a modern version of an old-style clean room.

The replacement heads came from a carefully matched donor drive. Payam Data Recovery holds over 30,000 donor parts in-house, for hard drives, SSDs, MacBooks, mobile phones and many other devices. Because the right donor was already on the shelf, work started and finished without any delays.

With the donor heads fitted, the drive went onto the PC-3000. Our data recovery engineer copied from the healthy heads first and left the unstable head until last. That way the bulk of the data was safe before the weakest head was asked to do any work.

Urgent Clicking WD My Passport Results: 400GB in One Day

All 400GB came back, with every file checked and working.

Because it was urgent, the whole job took just one day. From a clicking drive to the photographer’s complete set of client shoots, recovered and checked.

Why Does a Clicking Drive Need a Data Recovery Lab?

Three things made this job quick. The customer stopped using the drive straight away. The matched donor drive was already in-house, so there was no waiting for parts. And the imaging order, healthy heads first and the unstable head last, protected the data while it was being copied.

None of that can be done with software or at home. A head swap needs a laminar flow cabinet, the right donor and professional imaging tools.

If your drive is clicking, leave it unplugged and get in touch. The assessment and quote are free.

Why People Choose Payam Data Recovery

A failed hard drive needs an experienced data recovery engineer, and often a matching donor part. We work on 10 to 15 drives with failed heads every day.

• We are a specialist data recovery lab, not a computer repair shop. We have been recovering data since 1998, from over 300,000 devices.
• The best equipped data recovery lab in Australia: an ISO 5 certified laminar flow cabinet for head replacements, an anti-static lab, microscopes and microsoldering stations for circuit board work, the Ace Lab PC-3000, Atola Insight Forensic and DeepSpar Disk Imager, and over 30,000 donor parts, including around 20,000 donor hard drives. When your drive needs a matching part, it is usually already on our shelf.
• Over 2,000 IT companies and computer shops across Australia send us their customers’ complex cases, and data recovery labs and IT companies in more than 50 countries have sent us their difficult cases over the past ten years.
• Rated 4.9 from over 2,400 Google reviews.
• About 90% of our jobs are no fix, no fee. The hardest 10% carry an attempt fee.
• See your files before you pay. You tell us which files matter most. Before you pay for the recovery, we’ll send you a list of your recovered files so you can check them. If any of the files you listed are missing, tell us and we’ll search again.
• Pay by Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Link or PayPal, split the cost with Afterpay, Zip, Klarna or PayPal Pay in 4, or pay by bank deposit (EFT).
• Everything is done in our own labs in Australia and never outsourced overseas. Call or visit us, and you can speak with the data recovery engineers who do the work.

We are not the cheapest. We are the best in Australia at this work. We know what to do, how to do it, and we will do our very best for you. Your best chance of getting your data back is with us.

Hard Drive Data Recovery Pricing and Services

Every hard drive case starts with a free assessment and a written quote. We examine the drive, then email you the problem we found, how we can help, the cost and the time involved, for your approval before any chargeable work. Nothing is charged until you say yes.

The price depends on what we find, and current prices are on our hard drive data recovery page. Head replacements and other high risk work carry an attempt fee that forms part of the total price: you pay it to begin, and if we are successful, you pay the remaining balance. Where it applies, it is stated in the quote before you approve anything.

When the job is urgent, as this one was, Priority and Emergency service are faster and cost more. Your quote confirms the exact price and the timeframe. We can supply a destination drive, or you can send your own. If we recover your data and you pay, return delivery within Australia is free.

How Our Process Works for International Customers

International customers are always welcome. The easiest way to reach us from overseas is by email at help@payam.com.au, which works in every time zone. Start with the free quote form. If the indicative pricing suits you, we send job instructions and you post the drive to our main data recovery lab in Rhodes, NSW by tracked courier. Recovered data comes back on a new drive.

Frequently Asked Questions

My WD My Passport has started clicking. What should I do?
Stop using it straight away, as this photographer did. Clicking usually means a mechanical fault, and every time the drive powers on the damaged parts keep working against the platters. Unplug it, leave it alone, and get in touch for a free assessment and quote.

Can data be recovered from a clicking hard drive?
Often, yes. Here the read/write heads had failed. Our data recovery engineer replaced them with heads from a matched donor drive in a laminar flow cabinet, then imaged the drive on the PC-3000. All 400GB of client shoots came back, with every file checked and working.

How fast can a clicking drive be recovered?
This job was urgent, and the whole recovery took one day. That was possible because a matched donor drive was already in-house, so work started and finished without delays. Your written quote gives the timeframe for the service level you choose: Economy, Priority or Emergency.

What is a head swap?
A head swap replaces the failed read/write heads inside a hard drive with matched heads from a donor drive. It has to be done in a dust-free, anti-static laminar flow cabinet, because the drive is opened. Once working heads are fitted, the data can be read and copied off the platters.

Why do you need a donor drive, and do you have one for my drive?
Replacement heads must come from a carefully matched donor drive. Payam Data Recovery holds over 30,000 donor parts in-house, for hard drives, SSDs, MacBooks, mobile phones and many other devices. Having the right donor on the shelf means work can start without waiting for parts.

If you cannot recover my data, is there nothing to pay?
Yes. The assessment and quote are free, and for most faults there is nothing to pay unless we recover your data. See your files before you pay. You tell us which files matter most. Before you pay for the recovery, we’ll send you a list of your recovered files so you can check them. If any of the files you listed are missing, tell us and we’ll search again. The one exception is damaged heads and other high risk work, where part of the quoted price is a non-refundable attempt fee paid upfront so we can begin. That covers the data recovery engineer time and donor parts we commit whatever the outcome. If an attempt fee applies to your job, it will be stated clearly in your quote before you approve anything.

I am a photographer outside Sydney. Can I still use you?
Yes. This drive came from a photographer in Newcastle. We work with people all around Australia: post the drive to us by tracked courier, well packed in bubble wrap, or drop it at our Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane CBD office and we’ll start as quickly as possible.

Can I send my drive from overseas?
Yes. International customers are always welcome. Request a free quote first, then post the drive by tracked courier once the indicative pricing suits you. The easiest way to reach us from overseas is by email at help@payam.com.au, which works in every time zone. Recovered data comes back on a new drive.

About Payam Data Recovery

Payam Data Recovery has been recovering data since 1998, with more than 300,000 devices recovered. Apple lists us as one of three recommended data recovery providers. For hard drives the lab runs the Ace Lab PC-3000, Atola Insight Forensic and DeepSpar Disk Imager, and work inside a drive is done in an ISO 5 laminar flow cabinet. Everything is done in Australia and never outsourced overseas. Head office and full service lab in Sydney CBD, with our main data recovery lab for complex cases in Rhodes, NSW, full service labs in Melbourne and Brisbane, and secure drop-off offices in Adelaide and Perth with free overnight express delivery to Rhodes, NSW. You can read more about Payam Data Recovery.

Request a Free Hard Drive Data Recovery Assessment

Related Case Studies

• Clicking WD My Book with a torn off head and a failed PCB
• WD My Passport not spinning up, stuck heads released
• Dropped Seagate external, head replacement saved every file
• Emergency USB flash drive, files back the same day

Video Transcript

Hey, it’s Mike. Visiting Payam Data Recovery specialist lab in Sydney, Australia, following a real recovery from start to finish. This is a one terabyte Western Digital My Passport belonging to a photographer in Newcastle. It once held 400 gigabytes of client shoots, but then it started clicking. The customer stopped using it straight away, which was exactly the right thing to do. Our data recovery engineer found that head zero and head one had both failed. Those are the read/write heads inside the drive.

Clicking usually means a mechanical fault, so unplug the drive and leave it alone. The fix is a head swap done in a dust-free, anti-static laminar flow cabinet, a modern version of an old-style clean room. Payam Data Recovery holds over 30,000 donor parts in-house for hard drives, SSDs, MacBooks, mobile phones, and many other devices. So work starts and finishes without any delays. A carefully matched donor drive went onto the PC 3000.

Five of the six heads were healthy, so the engineer copied from those first, leaving the unstable head until last. The result? All 400 gigabytes recovered, with every file checked and working. Because it was urgent, the whole job took just one day. If you ever need our help, leave a comment or get in touch. Australian and international customers are always welcome, and the assessment and quote are free. Call 1300 444 800 today.