My Hard Drive's Not Looking Good

Is it beyond saving, or can I still salvage it?

 

Jesse Newell...

Have you tried Hard Drive Sentinel?:

http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/hard_disk_sentinel.html

Install this program, and wait a few days to see what it says about your drive. Everything is there. It will give you a ballpark idea of what to expect from your drive and how long it is likely to last.

I put off installing this for a long time, trying to avoid system tray startups, but this one runs on boot for me now. This version is Beta, but it is working fine for me...

BTW, your drive does look marginal. HDS should help you be able to ask the deeper questions about the SMART data and what HDS says and also have a deeper knowledge of what can be expected...

*****

 

Thanks. Just installed HDS now. Only the trial version though for the moment. When I opened the program, it told me everything was fine. Health 100%, hard disk status PERFECT, no actions needed. Sure doesn't look that way from those pics I posted. How many days do you think I should leave it running to get a more accurate picture?

 

JN...

Do you see where it says how many days you can expect from the drive? It's on the overview tab about mid way down. If the days aren't there yet, they will be there within a few days. Overall, it's the best look at drive health I have run across with the analysis available on the overview and other tabs.

I was under the impression that the free version was free, but I see that it is shareware. I did see the pop up for purchasing the Pro version when booting, but I didn't think twice about it. Also, I don't see any timer telling me how long I can use the program, so I guess I will use it until it won't run any longer. Thanks for pointing that out to me.

BTW, correction I should have said Hard Disk Sentinel, not Hard Drive Sentinel. Hope it helps you...

 

The trial version lasts 30 days. And it says the drive has over 1000 days life left in it. Should I trust it so early on, or will it need a few more days to assess things more accurately?

 

How many days does it say you have on the drive just out of curiosity?

I have had it running for a couple of weeks, and I haven't noticed a change in the number of days left on the drives. BTW, I think 1000 days is as high as it will predict or at least for a normal disk drive (not SSD)...

One other thing. If you ran your drive scan in Windows, that could explain the many low points. I have compared tests run from a boot medium and tests in Windows using the same program, and the results were surprisingly worse (to me) in Windows. I guess it's all the static from the OS...

Thanks for the info. I still don't see a reference to the number of days of free use, but I haven't read the pop up. It's probably on there...

 

I don't think the free/trial version of HDS actually expires, it just stops access to the Standard and above paid for features after the trial period ends, worth contacting the author via his forum to check on that though, he seems to be very accessible should anyone need help.

It's one of the very few software that I feel is worth the cost, the HDS Standard version has available on many 'giveaway' sites over the last several years, keep an eye open, also watch out on the HDS social media pages, the author sometimes gives away a few Pro versions as well.

 

I love having it there, so I will probably buy it eventually. Looking into security issues for now with the spare change I can put together for software. Thanks Satrow...

 

It says I've been on 112 days, 10 hours.

Yes, I did run the scan in Windows. Good to know the drive's healthier than I thought. Thanks.

Thanks for the info. I think the program's worth paying for though. And $20, or whatever it is exactly, isn't that much.

 

Jesse Newell...

I agree with you about HDS. I don't go bonkers over software usually, but HDS is a really good looking setup. Uses almost no resources it seems. Even though I am trying to limit system tray startup type programs, it seems like it should be there.

112 days, 10 hours is not much compared to 437 days I am getting on this drive. HDS is still predicting over 1000 days for it. Just an observation JN. I think the key with HDS is to be on the look out for sharp changes. This can mean that the drive is going kind of quickly or quickly. Based on what I have seen and read from others about the program, the warning alerts red boxes and so on are something to pay attention to. It's not a 1 for 1 prediction tool about a drive, but it does really seem to catch when drives are beginning to teeter.

I got one drive I am going to be replacing soon that I didn't realize has a high number of hours on it. It's the backup drive in my old main PC from several years ago. Same on another PC here. They both read 100% healthy, but HDS makes it possible for me to know that the hours mean I need to be ready with backup images of the drives and I need to have some spare drives handy.

Hate having to face the inevitable, but I am glad to know what I have to do. As soon as I can scrape together the funds I will be paying for HDS I am sure...

 

Thanks. Right now, HDS is much more affordable to me than spare drives are. I'll have to save quite a bit before I can afford another drive.

 

It looks like you're OK for a good while. That's nice to know, and maybe you can look for an opportunity over the next year to pick up a spare just in case. Eased my mind a lot when I started being able to keep spare parts around (or at least some).

These drives I have mentioned that need replacing here are well up to 1000 and up days of usage. For you, the only thing to be concerned of is a mechanical failure, but there isn't much of anything that can predict that with any reasonable degree of advance notice...maybe for a few days at the most there will be unusual sounds as the arm or read head begin to fail. Backups are important to keep someplace in case of that occurrence.

I found a deal on some used drives that I am keeping around for now. They aren't low on hours, but I tested them with HDS, and then wrote on each drive the info and a self assigned grade. I paid $25 ppd on ebay for 5 160GB Western Digital blue drives, and I got three B grade range drives with 400 hour or so usage and 100% health in HDS. Only one of them had over 800 hours, but it should still be usable for a couple of years.

This is something you might look into when you are in a position to do so. I look for matching drives that look like they are in excellent condition. In the past, I have bought drives on ebay and used them to back up data and then stored them in a closet for months with no issues or performance degredation. I would rather have a storage array/tower, but that's my $$$ challenge for now I guess...

Good luck with the drive...

 

Please post SMART data for analysis (like export from HDDExpert)

 

Sorry for taking so long to get back about this. And thanks for all the info. I don't buy anything off eBay though. Never trusted them. Too much chance of getting scammed. The only second-hand stuff I've ever bought has been from actual physical places or Amazon Marketplace. I know it's more expensive to only buy new but I'd rather spend more money than take the risks.

 

Sorry for the delayed response. Here ya go.

 

Everything's fine, except your "G-Sense Error Rate" which is abnormally high.

 

Well I do move the computer around a bit more than I guess I should when I'm using it.

 

That's likely to be the case
Are you happy with HDDExpert so far ?

 

Yeah, it's good. Thanks.