Any Crystal Disk Experts?

My laptop (Lenovo G585) did an automatic hardware check. The report said the following failed: Targeted Read Test, SMART Short Self Test, SMART Drive Self Test. No details were provided, just a table with a red X at the indicated items. I downloaded CrystalDisk and ran it. The results are attached. I've checked via Google, and after reading several threads at several sites I am now very confused. My impression is that things are not all that bad, but I have read warnings - replace your disk now. So which is it? Should I try again with another program like CrystalDisk, for which I will need suggestions.

 

I suggest you get a second opinion.
Run HDDExpert.
http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/hddexpert.html

The author is very helpfull. Here's the support forum.
http://www.kcsoftwares.com/forum/

 

Agree with Eldon. Hard Disk Sentinel is another one you might want to take a look at:

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

You get a pop up when it boots, but the information is the best I have seen and very trustworthy, overall. HDS is something more to stick with over time than to use once, though. If you check it once a month or so or just leave it in the tray, it will tell you when the drive is beginning to fail...

 

Thanks. I tried both and got the same answers. Both made more sense to me than CrystalDisk, but I still have hard time understanding what it all means. Apparently the 99 is some kind of index and not a "real" number. I need to find a site that explains this stuff. But it appears that my drive is nearing the end of the trail

 

tm711...Here's how I think it works with SMART data. It's in most cases the data numbers represent a % for each category of what is acceptable for the drive. The threshold is the rock bottom for time to get a new drive in each case where there is one specified. In your case, the only bad attribute I see if Seek Error Rate. Here is some info on that that might help with it:

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/265218-32-seek-error-rate

The poster in the thread had the same numbers you do for Seek Error. This is not unusual in my experience that some drives don't do the best job of supporting SMART or some such, leading to the data being the same on any drive of the type or over estimated, etc. This can lead drive health evaluation software to misinterpret the data to indicate that you are having or are close to a problem. This happens most oftenly with software that relies most heavily on SMART data for the health evaluation.

A little more on the data that is measured. Some of it is raw data that is converted to a % of what is acceptable. Others like temperature are just measures. Interperative software will in most cases read the data correctly, no matter what it says.

Can't speak for HDDE Expert, but in my experience Hard Disk Sentinel is great for use over say the period of a couple of weeks or so. It will continue to test the actual sectors of the drive and also monitor your disk activity for disk read errors by monitoring for Windows Event Viewer reported disk errors. HDS also does an initial scan of the drive to get a read from the beginning. For real, HDS is a very reliable program...not 100% but if it says you should replace a drive, it won't be based solely on the SMART data. It will also be based on an actual sector read rate test. Their presentation may not give you 2 months notice about a drive, but you should have a week or two to get a replacement...

BTW, what does HDS say about your drive in the main "Overview" tab? If it says 100% healthy, your drive is not likely to fail soon...

 

AtlBo: health is 13% BAD. Estimated Remaining Life: 24 days. Frankly this laptop is not worth fixing. I am backing up the important stuff, and will upload it to a new machine.

 

That's pretty standard for a drive that is going fast. If you want you can verify HDS with a raw read test program like those the manufacturers of drives have on their sites for testing purposes. If you would like to run this kind of test, you can try Googling "<brand of your HD> test software" or "hard drive test software Major Geeks". Whichever one you get, the raw read test is the one to run...

 

Thanks AtlBo. Right now I am going to concentrate on saving the important stuff, and what to buy next.