Got the same message before. Check your connections. What I did was completely shutdown the laptop and rebooted. I did not install the software that came with the tool. Then I plugged in the power source to the socket than to the hdd. Then connect the USB sata/ide bridge adapter to the HDD, then plug in the usb connection to the laptop.
Photo of product:
ACW ONLINE
Where I purchased it from:
FRYS.com*|*Kingwin