Solve : Is my slow-death harddisk worth saving??

1.	Solve : Is my slow-death harddisk worth saving??
Answer» Recently my computer has been hanging more than it boots, especially when I left the computer off for more than the time it takes to reboot. I organised a technician to come take a look. He said it was the motherboard, which surprised me. Anyway, $170+ and a new motherboard later, same problem. FORTUNATELY after the first reboot which died after two hours into the PC being on (which was strange, because once on it had previously survived for days), I managed to finally get another boot to work and quickly BACKED up all my files (yes! thankyou! there is a God!). My question is this - the harddisk is now failing randomly during bootup, yet still boots ok occassionally. The Windows XP SP3 on it is old and worn and hasnt been re-setup for about 2 years. If I reformat this disk, is it likely to work? And should I trust the resulting disk? Is it possible a reformat will fix this hardware-like error? Is there anyone who has expereinced this problem, done a reformat with their disk, and had it work like new again? Thanks, MatIf I reformat this disk, is it likely to work? The format may fail or it may complete. Hardware failure cannot be arrested by formatting. In fact the intensive head movements might just finish the drive off. And should I trust the resulting disk? Formatting is not a magic fix for failing hard drives. Is it possible a reformat will fix this hardware-like error? It is possible that a format will map out bad sectors. but if the disk really is failing, then it will soon grow some more. Is there anyone who has expereinced this problem, done a reformat with their disk, and had it work like new again? I have experienced this problem, formatted the disk, and had it carry on failing. If your hard drive has shown signs of failure, and you have been lucky enough to get your data off it, you should know that it is time to cut your losses and get a new drive. Many people don't like to face up to the reality of hardware failure, and go into a sort of "maybe I can fix this with a magic tweak" denial frame of mind. Be a man and ditch that drive! bottom line... Quote the harddisk is now failing randomly during bootup, yet still boots ok occassionally ...get real! Download the disc diagnostic utility from the hd manufacturer's website and run it. If the disc is bad, replace it.I presume PCKaos has checked that the cable is OK and connected snugly at bothe ends... If he needs a rule. Reformat and install again. If problems come again within a week... And if it is the HDD... Use it as a doorstop. http://www.instructables.com/id/Hard-Disk-Magnet-Doorstop/On a side note, why do people say "reformat" when they MEAN "format"?Thanks everyone, your answers have been useful to some extent, but salmon trout: a) what am i meant to be getting real about? b) I apply for a loan - don't get it - REAPPLY next month. I format a disc - it fails - I reformat it and start again. Why is this difficult to understand? Makes sense to format a new disk and reformat a used disk. Thanks all. Quote from: PCKaos on May 21, 2010, 12:54:32 AM a) what am i meant to be getting real about? The hard disk. It's not a loved one clinging to life in the hospital, it's a failing hard drive. pull the plug. Hey, I'm happy to be as brutal as the next pragmatic. But I'm not going to waste a resource if I can save it. Quote from: PCKaos on May 21, 2010, 06:07:02 AM Hey, I'm happy to be as brutal as the next pragmatic. But I'm not going to waste a resource if I can save it. Unlike semiconductor chips, which are either OK or they aren't, hard drives are (very) complex (highly) precision-made electro-mechanical devices. They typically work absolutely fine until they start to fail. When they show signs of failure, it is time to discard them. They don't get better. This is a fact. You would not be wasting a resource. An unreliable hard drive is not a resource. You can't save it. Sweet - thanks for the expereinced advice. I'll dump it - a bit small space-wise anyway.Salmon Trout is right again. Hard drives to not get better. They are mechanical drive devices with some electronics. A common problem is where on the surface of the hard disc platter. Bits of material will fly off the surface and create an area that is unreliable and may cause additional damage to the flying head. In some cases the drive itself will remap the geometry of the disk when you completely erase the drive and reformat it. In this case the word reformat is correctly used. You must completely destroy the partitions and then re-create them. Then after that you will format the disk again. But it is a new format, not simply a redo of the existing format. But it does restart the process whereby the internal electronics will remap the bad parts of the drive. You will NOTICE this is the format operation takes longer than usual. If that's the case, give it does take longer than normal to format after being completely destroyed, then the drive is near the end of its life. In this context destroyed means to completely erase the master boot record and declare a new partition. Sometimes setting a new partition with different start and end boundaries might eliminate some of the defective areas of the disk. That is to say, map them outside of the active area that you intend to use. This is best done with the Diagnostic programs used by the manufacturers. Or use the commercial products such as Spin Right. It is certainly worth a try. But if you succeed in getting a loan, spend some money on a new hard drive. But if you are unemployed and have nothing else to do, see if you can restore the hard drive to almost new characteristics by selectively choosing different parts of the surface to be used at your usable partitions. I once did that to a horrible drive. I had an extended its useful life for about two or three years before I got tired of it and threw it out. Such a drive should be used for storing data that you really don't care about anyway. This is something like using DVD - RW discs. Those re-writable DVD disc are a BIG fraud. They never ever have the lifespan that the manufacturers claim. But if they can justify using those wretched things, you could easily justify reusing a bad disk drive by selectively formatting different areas of the surface until you get it to work again. It all has to do with your perspective of things. As for me, I'm getting tired of doing that. I now have a 250 GB drive that I should use as a doorstop.

Answer»

Recently my computer has been hanging more than it boots, especially when I left the computer off for more than the time it takes to reboot.

I organised a technician to come take a look. He said it was the motherboard, which surprised me. Anyway, $170+ and a new motherboard later, same problem.

FORTUNATELY after the first reboot which died after two hours into the PC being on (which was strange, because once on it had previously survived for days), I managed to finally get another boot to work and quickly BACKED up all my files (yes! thankyou! there is a God!).

My question is this - the harddisk is now failing randomly during bootup, yet still boots ok occassionally. The Windows XP SP3 on it is old and worn and hasnt been re-setup for about 2 years. If I reformat this disk, is it likely to work? And should I trust the resulting disk? Is it possible a reformat will fix this hardware-like error? Is there anyone who has expereinced this problem, done a reformat with their disk, and had it work like new again?

Thanks, MatIf I reformat this disk, is it likely to work?

The format may fail or it may complete. Hardware failure cannot be arrested by formatting. In fact the intensive head movements might just finish the drive off.

And should I trust the resulting disk?

Formatting is not a magic fix for failing hard drives.

Is it possible a reformat will fix this hardware-like error?

It is possible that a format will map out bad sectors. but if the disk really is failing, then it will soon grow some more.

Is there anyone who has expereinced this problem, done a reformat with their disk, and had it work like new again?

I have experienced this problem, formatted the disk, and had it carry on failing.

If your hard drive has shown signs of failure, and you have been lucky enough to get your data off it, you should know that it is time to cut your losses and get a new drive. Many people don't like to face up to the reality of hardware failure, and go into a sort of "maybe I can fix this with a magic tweak" denial frame of mind. Be a man and ditch that drive!

bottom line...

Quote

the harddisk is now failing randomly during bootup, yet still boots ok occassionally

...get real!

Download the disc diagnostic utility from the hd manufacturer's website and run it. If the disc is bad, replace it.I presume PCKaos has checked that the cable is OK and connected snugly at bothe ends...
If he needs a rule.
Reformat and install again.
If problems come again within a week...
And if it is the HDD...
Use it as a doorstop.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Hard-Disk-Magnet-Doorstop/On a side note, why do people say "reformat" when they MEAN "format"?Thanks everyone, your answers have been useful to some extent, but salmon trout:

a) what am i meant to be getting real about?

b) I apply for a loan - don't get it - REAPPLY next month. I format a disc - it fails - I reformat it and start again. Why is this difficult to understand? Makes sense to format a new disk and reformat a used disk.

Thanks all.

Quote from: PCKaos on May 21, 2010, 12:54:32 AM

a) what am i meant to be getting real about?

The hard disk. It's not a loved one clinging to life in the hospital, it's a failing hard drive. pull the plug.

Hey, I'm happy to be as brutal as the next pragmatic. But I'm not going to waste a resource if I can save it. Quote from: PCKaos on May 21, 2010, 06:07:02 AM

Hey, I'm happy to be as brutal as the next pragmatic. But I'm not going to waste a resource if I can save it.

Unlike semiconductor chips, which are either OK or they aren't, hard drives are (very) complex (highly) precision-made electro-mechanical devices. They typically work absolutely fine until they start to fail. When they show signs of failure, it is time to discard them. They don't get better. This is a fact. You would not be wasting a resource. An unreliable hard drive is not a resource. You can't save it.
Sweet - thanks for the expereinced advice. I'll dump it - a bit small space-wise anyway.Salmon Trout is right again.

Hard drives to not get better. They are mechanical drive devices with some electronics. A common problem is where on the surface of the hard disc platter. Bits of material will fly off the surface and create an area that is unreliable and may cause additional damage to the flying head.

In some cases the drive itself will remap the geometry of the disk when you completely erase the drive and reformat it. In this case the word reformat is correctly used. You must completely destroy the partitions and then re-create them. Then after that you will format the disk again. But it is a new format, not simply a redo of the existing format. But it does restart the process whereby the internal electronics will remap the bad parts of the drive.
You will NOTICE this is the format operation takes longer than usual. If that's the case, give it does take longer than normal to format after being completely destroyed, then the drive is near the end of its life. In this context destroyed means to completely erase the master boot record and declare a new partition. Sometimes setting a new partition with different start and end boundaries might eliminate some of the defective areas of the disk. That is to say, map them outside of the active area that you intend to use. This is best done with the Diagnostic programs used by the manufacturers. Or use the commercial products such as Spin Right.

It is certainly worth a try. But if you succeed in getting a loan, spend some money on a new hard drive. But if you are unemployed and have nothing else to do, see if you can restore the hard drive to almost new characteristics by selectively choosing different parts of the surface to be used at your usable partitions. I once did that to a horrible drive. I had an extended its useful life for about two or three years before I got tired of it and threw it out.

Such a drive should be used for storing data that you really don't care about anyway. This is something like using DVD - RW discs. Those re-writable DVD disc are a BIG fraud. They never ever have the lifespan that the manufacturers claim. But if they can justify using those wretched things, you could easily justify reusing a bad disk drive by selectively formatting different areas of the surface until you get it to work again. It all has to do with your perspective of things.

As for me, I'm getting tired of doing that. I now have a 250 GB drive that I should use as a doorstop.

Solve : Is my slow-death harddisk worth saving??

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