Thinkpad T30 hard drive not found

[BiffTannon]

I dug out my old T30 and tried to boot it. I received an operating system not found, and when I went into the BIOS, I could not find any hard drive listed.

I pulled the hard drive and put another in, but this was also not recognized.

I put a Linux boot cd in the drive, and that worked just fine. However, I could not save the Linux OS because there is no hard drive detected.

So, it seems the connection to the har drive is toast. How can I test this and/or troubleshoot it? And if anyone has seen this problem, is this an easy fix, or is the computer done? I suspect the computer may not be worth saving if this is an expensive fix.

Any suggestions/info appreciated. If anyone needs any info to help troubleshoot this, let me know.

Thanks

[BillMorrow]

hello..
first, welcome to the forum..
next, that T30, if it is a working T30 has more value than other legacy thinkpads.. they were used by Daimler Benz with their service system..
AND, i have seen HDD's disappear from the bios etc usually due to a bad HDD..
your T30 might be defective, now..
thinking on this it could be a bad connector of IDE to the main board IF it was stored in a damp basement or the like..
i would check that..
also, can you verify the HDD is good..?

[BiffTannon]

Thanks for the reply.

Just for some background, the computer was stored in a laptop bag inside a closet. It was operating perfectly when it was stored, and it was never exposed to any harsh environmental conditions. It is a pristine T30, so if I can get it to work, I'd love to keep it.

As to your comment about checking the drive. That is a great suggestion, and I should have done that before posting. I assumed when I stuck the spare hdd in and it wasn't recognized, the T30 was the issue. I should have verified the hdd is alive or dead first... I thought the spare hdd was good, but I guess it could also be dead. Both hdd's worked the last time I used them. For them both to be dead would be a surprise, but it is a possibility that I should have checked first.

Thanks! I'll get back to the board when I have the answer. I hope the hdd is the problem, because that would be a simple fix.