Hi guys,

I was installing my 500GB 7,200RPM Seagate HDD that contained about 400 GB worth of stuff on it onto my new NZXT Zero2 case, but I accidentally bumped the underside while driving the drive into its slot. As a result, a tiny but noticeable part came off (and so did part of my heart)!

Now when the computer is turned on, the drive does a "clock-ticking" sound for a bit then goes silent. Also, the BIOS does not detect it. I have my wedding pics on it!!

I am in desperate need of help.
Anyone have any suggestions what I can do to at least recover the pictures and files?

You have damaged the electronics of the hard drive. Unless you can find another board from the same model hard drive and have it installed, you will have to take it in to a hard drive recovery facility and let them recover your data. From now on back up your precious stuff on a DVD or CD and file them away

The board is easy to replace, the trick is finding the right board. You'll need to find the exact drive (eBay is a good place to look) and match up the board revision. Sometimes you can see it in screen shots, other times you can ask the seller about the specifics. The Rev # is printed on the PCB.

The control board may be easy to replace by people like us, but if you have never done somrthing like this before, You could do more damage than good. By the way, there is no guarantee that a replacement board would make the drive useful again

Oh my god! Thank you so much guys; I feel sooo relieved!
I was starting to think my data was lost for good. Fortunately there is a way out, and this time I won't take any chances - I will back up HDD more often than not.

I have never replaced a HDD board before; I will take it to a repair facility this time, but meanwhile, I will learn more about doing that kind of work for any future mishaps of this kind!

In you opinion, what other kind of tools would I need beside the exact make of the board that is damaged?

"In your opinion, what other kind of tools would I need beside the exact make of the board that is damaged?"...

It takes a small hex bit driver to remove the screws holding the board in place, but sometimes a small flat blade screwdriver will work. You can see these screws if you look closely at the bottom of the drive. There are flat ribbon cables that have to be removed from their connection sockets in order to remove the board from the drive housing

UPDATE:

I am going to the repair centre to get my recovery of the data / HDD tonight. I will keep you posted with anything different they may throw at me other than the invaluable info you guys gave me here!