for some time now my phd has not been going well,i am struggling to come to terms with all the theoretical work,as much as i am enjoying the experiments i just feel constantly drained and unhappy.I had trouble making constructs so i could explore the more novel side of my project,and todayi spoke to my supervisor and i asked him what should happen if he thinks the phd is not going to work out. He tells me that he doesnt feel i have enough data at this point to write up for a masters,particularly as there is no novel data results, and id only have until 1st october to do so and leave, failing that i then have to carry on into my 2nd year as an official phd student with no option of then leaving with a masters,only to leave or carry on and make up a lot of lost ground in the hope that it comes together and i can pass.could you tell me if there are any other options open to me such as even writing up and getting a diploma? my friend suggested this to me, i just feel like im in a catch 22 where either way what i do the outcome may not be good.

Are you absolutely sure that you have to upgrade from MPhil to PhD status on 1st October? Most places I know of the ideal is about a year, but the reality is that the student upgrades when they have enough data that they can write a report on - this might not be until 2 years in, if your department is flexible.

It is very common not to have any data at the one year point. Make sure that you've checked your departmental policy on timing of upgrades before making any decisions.

I've heard of people who leave PhDs after upgrading to PhD student status, but still leave with a Masters because they left before completing the PhD. I'm not sure what your supervisor is saying is right. Don't rush into a decision.

i think this is quite common really, one year isn't a lot of time to get to grips with anything, your supervisor sounds a bit negative, but may buck up a bit once he is back in uni mode, I expect he is still in holiday mode at the moment, in theory if not in actuality. I would keep going if I were you, sometime it will all click into place (I'm telling myself that too!). I'm not sure if all unis have the same regulations about the masters/PhD thing, so I would check with yours to be sure, but don't rush into anything, if you like the experimental side of things that is a good start,  your big break could be just around the corner

Joyce is right - it'll be in the second year (or sometimes even third) that the novelty aspect will come in. You are rushing into a decision and I suppose the real question is not whether you have novelty but whether you yourself want to do the PhD. At this stage, you shouldn't be concentrating on your own work, but rather where do you think there is a gap in literature and then getting your experimentation to work. Remember, you aren't reinventing the wheel, so as a practical exercise, maybe it might be good to even dedicate a day or two to look again at the associated literature (getting new papers where applicable). Sometimes we lose track of the fact that our projects must be comparable to whats out already and then finding some niche (ok, not from a lab based PhD so perhaps its easier for me to say).

Take it easy on yourself and as a sort of break, do a literature search and find a few good papers on your topic. As for the lack of data, you can catch up! Also, is there any chance that you could speak to the other people within your research group or college? It seems as if you are a bit isolated (ask a post-doc - its their job).

One last thing - if funding is not an issue for continuation, take a break! You sound as if you need it! Don't worry - it will come together ... it does seem like headbutting a brick wall at the mo, but as SuperChicken once said "You knew the job was dangerous when you took it!"

I'll tell you a story about my Master thesis: I had a work that was done already (C++ program (Computer Science)). When I came to my reviewer firstly, he told me that there is nothing new in my work => it couldn't be used for master thesis. I thought for a few months. Then I found out that it was new aspects in my work, but I hadn't seen them before. I came to the same reviewer with the same work, but told him about it in other words. And later I've received an "excellent" mark for my master thesis.
Conclusion: Try to have an other look on your work. Read other master thesises (or phds), especially from your department or in your field of research. It really helps because you see the examples of thesises those were passed through the assessment committee (or examination commission).