[phyrrus9]

If you pop the seal on the drive, consider it a lost cause. They are vaccuum sealed for a reason, break that, and yer fuckd to say the least.

[pizzaguy541]

Mechanical hard drives CANNOT be vacuum sealed. They use a tiny hole that has a micron-level filter in order to equalize the pressure inside the HD to the outside.

Here is a great quote that explains this:

Repeat, it is not true that a disk drive contains a vacuum, as the system relies on air pressure inside the drive to support the heads at a designed height while the disk is in operation. A hard disk drive requires a certain range of air pressures in order to operate properly. The distance between the read head and platter is around 90 nanometers. If the air pressure is too low, the air will not exert enough force on the flying head, the head will not be at the correct height, and there is an increased risk of head crashes and data loss. There are specially sealed and pressurized hard drives which are needed for reliable high-altitude and space operations, above about 10,000 feet. Some newer drives include flying height sensors to detect if the air pressure is too low or high, and temperature sensors to alert the system to heat problems.

Now in creating these drives, extreme lengths has to be performed when making and assembling these drives so small dust sized particles do not get inside these drives and become lodged between the read head and platter. This can cause contact which disrupts the magnetic platter and can lead to crashes.

If you want to read further on how hard drives are made then check out this link: http://www.tomshardware.com/picturestory...-tour.html