How to remove password from HDD not BIOS access name?

Question

Hard disks

Hello. I have an hdd from a laptop on my hands, on which there is a password (I know it), but I don’t have access to the BIOS. Is it possible to unlock a disk?

Answer 1

To begin with, keep my utility for managing HDD passwords (it can use ATA and USB, admin rights are required)
But then the adventures begin. The HDD password is a 32-byte data set. And how the laptop converts your password into this data set depends on the laptop manufacturer. It is this data set, byte by byte, that must be entered in the unlock utility. Attention, disks are usually given 3 attempts to enter, then it is required to reset the power.
The simplest - laptops based on AMI, without modifications. It's just text. You enter "password", "password" is sent to disk. Spaces and so on are ignored. Can force into caps ("PASSWORD")
More complicated - proprietary from HP and Dell, they can send in Unicode. You enter "password", they send "p\x00a\x00\s\x00s\x00w\x00o\x00r\x00d\x00" which is a null byte after each letter
. On some it may be just converting letters to scancodes. Moreover, the sets of scancodes are different for everyone.
The hardest thing is Thinkpad, they drive the password through hashing, also using the disk passport. But all this is on the github, with due effort, you can still get the final "password data" for the disk.
Also, you can reset your password. You will need a person with a PC-3000 complex, usually there are data recovery offices. For Western Digital and old Seagate it is easier, there is information on the network to obtain a password.