Booting from in infected drive

[Savion Kirby]

Hello fellow forum users, I recently removed an old disk drive from a laptop wanting to retrieve the data (the computer that i took it from can not start). Because it is an old computer, and the people using at that time weren't very technologically inclined, I can say in complete confidence that the drive is infected with some sort of virus. Not wanting to risk my pc, I need an alternative way to access the drive's content. The first thought that came to my head was to unplug all storage devices connected to my computer and booting from the drive. In theory, doing this should eliminate all risks of infecting my current pc. Although, I'm not quite sure, and I want to be 100% sure before plugging in the device. My fear is that in someway, the virus may be able to spread to the components of my pc; that being the ram, cpu, motherboard, and gpu; In turn, infecting my SSD and storage disks once plugging them back in. I did do some research before hand but I couldn't find a solid answer - one that is consistent throughout the internet. If any of you reading this message knows the results of booting from an infected drive, please let me know! Thank you in advance for your helpfulness answering my question.  

[da na]

Just put the drive in and boot, it'll be fine. Better would be getting a USB SATA caddy, boot into your normal OS, and move the files over.

[Savion Kirby]

Just now, Mel0n. said:

Just put the drive in and boot, it'll be fine. Better would be getting a USB SATA caddy, boot into your normal OS, and move the files over.

The problem is that the drive is infected. I do have a USB to SATA caddy, but plugging it into my pc puts me of risk of getting a virus. 

[OhioYJ]

My preferred method would be use a Linux live USB and boot up Linux, pull the file you need.

[da na]

1 minute ago, Savion Kirby said:

The problem is that the drive is infected. I do have a USB to SATA caddy, but plugging it into my pc puts me of risk of getting a virus. 

I do that very frequently and have had no issues with viruses. for normal bloatware and malware unless you double click the .exe it won't launch. Unless specifically designed to auto run from a USB stick or something (highly unlikely)

And if something sus starts happening, unplug the drive

[Savion Kirby]

5 minutes ago, Mel0n. said:

I do that very frequently and have had no issues with viruses. for normal bloatware and malware unless you double click the .exe it won't launch. Unless specifically designed to auto run from a USB stick or something (highly unlikely)

And if something sus starts happening, unplug the drive

So worms wouldn't be an issue?

[Electronics Wizardy]

2 minutes ago, Savion Kirby said:

So worms wouldn't be an issue?

If you unplug it from the network, it won't affect nearby systems.

 

Unplug all your other drives to protect them.

 

The change of the firmware or similar being infected is pretty low, esp if its from a older system, so those attacks would likely not work on newer hardware.

[Savion Kirby]

27 minutes ago, Electronics Wizardy said:

If you unplug it from the network, it won't affect nearby systems.

 

Unplug all your other drives to protect them.

 

The change of the firmware or similar being infected is pretty low, esp if its from a older system, so those attacks would likely not work on newer hardware.

So you can assure that the components in my newer computer?  

[Fasauceome]

1 hour ago, Savion Kirby said:

recently removed an old disk drive from a laptop wanting to retrieve the data

How old is the drive and what OS is it running? What are your current system specs?

 

If this is a windows 7 drive and you have a Ryzen system, you can't run the OS on your PC. Similar deal with a 12th gen Intel CPU, the USB drivers won't be available off the bat and you'll need a PS/2 port to use the system if the motherboard even allows it to boot.

[Savion Kirby]

2 hours ago, Fasauceome said:

How old is the drive and what OS is it running? What are your current system specs?

 

If this is a windows 7 drive and you have a Ryzen system, you can't run the OS on your PC. Similar deal with a 12th gen Intel CPU, the USB drivers won't be available off the bat and you'll need a PS/2 port to use the system if the motherboard even allows it to boot.

It's windows 10, i have a 12th gen intel cpu. 

[Fasauceome]

58 minutes ago, Savion Kirby said:

It's windows 10, i have a 12th gen intel cpu. 

In that case I would say proceed as planned. With one important step, get a USB drive and put an installer for some antivirus on it, I would go with Malwarebytes and let windows defender have a crack at the viruses too. Run those programs without connecting to your network, you should also format that USB drive when you're done with this machine to ensure it doesn't have anything on it as well (or use a USB you plan on discarding)

[RollyShed]

As MelOn and OhioYJ say, boot the computer from a USB stick with Linux on it. Plug the drive in via a SATA to USB adaptor. Now you can see what files are there and if you need any of them.

 

I always do that to transfer files and folders for other people to their new SSD with Linux on it. Any viruses, if any, won't upset the Linux installation.