Xbox Issues....help Greatly Appreciated., PC not reading hard drive but xbox apparently can, needing options and Options

[ShirakoDX]

Sorry for posting this in two places, but I was told to start a new thread in this section..so here goes..

Hello, I think my Xbox hard drive is dead...because I really cannot do anything with it now...i was trying to get my dashboard working again and right now my pc will not read the drive.. I have hotswapped it correctly and everything, it just doesnt read...I have decided it may be best to just start with a new drive. I have the original Xbox with an xecuter2 modchip... I am seeking one of three things, information on whether or not this modchip supports unlocked drives, a tool which i can get the code from my Xbox motherboard and then use it for the drive I choose to use, or a CD that can be run off the XBOX to hopefully fix this hard drive and get xbmc running again...or at least backup the stuff on it.. I understand there is a such tool, but I am no good with making circuits so I was wondering if there was a place you can purchase the tools. If the xecuter2 modchip can handle unlocked drives...can someone point me in the correct direction toward getting to that...then I may just...somehow...format this hard drive currently in my Xbox and use it again..if that will get rid of the lock and all the files i have been unable to delete with xplorer360. I am not seeking tools to get this hard drive to read...I want to either ditch it or format it completely and start new, unless there is a way to format it and still keep the little lock thing. I am also willing to send the Xbox off for repairs, if anyone is willing to do that...and can pay them to do it....its not really my favorite option, but if it means this overhauled Xbox gets back up and running, I'll do it. This Xbox has already gone through a hard drive upgrade, i believe, because its a 160 gig drive, and if I remember right, the stock drive is only 8 gigs. if it comes down to it, I have an 80 gig I can use instead..I would rather the 160, but any is better than nothing.

Thanks in advance, any information would be appreciated and again, sorry for the second post.