Blah I am mad. My laptop's main drive crashed. It was running 8.1 came home and it wouldn't start. It started clicking. Now I am trying to install windows onto a new hard drive. Just wanted to vent.
Meh hard drives break all the time. Should get an ssd, no mechanical parts to fail.
I'd recommend an SSD as a replacement.
You can get them relatively cheap and they are typically more reliable.
I just bought a new laptop with tax return money, but I also bought the SSD/HDD for it so I will have both.
If there's any data you want/need to salvage, try freezing the drive for 30 minutes. Doesn't always work, but it can sometimes save your bacon.