How to test if a hard drive is knackered?

MikeTyson · Dec 30, 2009, 04:24 AM

My boot times are insanely long and the hard drive activity is crazy

Think my Western Digital has given up the ghost..

Is there a way to test this?

Thanks

sneekypeet · Dec 30, 2009, 04:27 AM

I think western digital provides diagnostic software at their site.

Something along the lines of HDtune or HDtack may show or lead you to whats wrong.

mlee49 · Dec 30, 2009, 04:28 AM

You could scan the drive and see if a sector went bad. HDtune is what I use.

Damn it Sneeky!

link for HDTune:
http://www.hdtune.com/

Charper2013 · Dec 30, 2009, 04:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sneekypeet

I think western digital provides diagnostic software at their site.

Something along the lines of HDtune or HDtack may show or lead you to whats wrong.

Beat me to it.

MikeTyson · Dec 30, 2009, 04:32 AM

Right so what am I doing here then?

Phxprovost · Dec 30, 2009, 04:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeTyson

http://img.techpowerup.org/091230/safe.png

Right so what am I doing here then?

checking the health section for SMART error returns

Charper2013 · Dec 30, 2009, 04:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeTyson

http://img.techpowerup.org/091230/safe.png

Right so what am I doing here then?

Error Scan.

MikeTyson · Dec 30, 2009, 04:35 AM

Well the tests say it's Okay but I don't believe that at all

This hard drive takes an extremely long time to do anything... a lot more than it used to

sneekypeet · Dec 30, 2009, 04:35 AM

has it been defragged lately?

Charper2013 · Dec 30, 2009, 04:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeTyson

Well the tests say it's Okay but I don't believe that at all

This hard drive takes an extremely long time to do anything... a lot more than it used to

Defragg?

......Sneeky

MikeTyson · Dec 30, 2009, 04:36 AM

It's been formatted cleanly several times and just keeps degrading

sneekypeet · Dec 30, 2009, 04:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Charper2013

Defragg?

Twice in one thread

Phxprovost · Dec 30, 2009, 04:37 AM

what leads you to believe its the hdd? are your access times really high? sure its not something else?

MikeTyson · Dec 30, 2009, 04:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phxprovost

what leads you to believe its the hdd? are your access times really high? sure its not something else?

It's the same in my other system too..

It just has so much activity and it's so loud, especially when you boot up

It takes like twice as long now just to get to XP Desktop as it used to when it wasn't as old

And i used to be able to interact with the computer straight away

Now I have to wait ages..

And I don't have anything hogging my startup or extra programmes I never had before

It's just sucky

I hav a really cheap ExcelStor Jupiter 160GB SATA-II, but cos it's cheap I dunno if it'll be any better

Whats the best way to compare?

I'll finish this thread later, it's 5:40am

RejZoR · Dec 30, 2009, 05:14 AM

http://www.snapfiles.com/get/activediskmon.html

Use this. It'll tell you the condition of the HDD.

MikeTyson · Dec 30, 2009, 01:37 PM

This doesn't look too great

Beertintedgoggles · Dec 30, 2009, 01:48 PM

Hopefully this is obvious and redundant, but you have scanned for spyware and the like right? Also, have you recently installed an antivirus program or changed your antivirus to a different and more invasive program? I use CA antivirus since it's free with our ISP and I have not had any virus issues since using it (not that I had them before either). However, that program on a single core processor will being the system to its knees. Disable it though, and the PC instantly springs back to life speed wise.

MikeTyson · Dec 30, 2009, 01:57 PM

Yea, but even after a fresh clean install of XP with nothing installed it's still reallyyyyyyyyy slow

Chryonn · Jan 4, 2010, 07:50 PM

really long load times, random clicking, and crazy activity all point to a knackered drive. save your stuff NOW before it's too late.

[H]@RD5TUFF · Jan 4, 2010, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeTyson

It's the same in my other system too..

It just has so much activity and it's so loud, especially when you boot up

It takes like twice as long now just to get to XP Desktop as it used to when it wasn't as old

And i used to be able to interact with the computer straight away

Now I have to wait ages..

And I don't have anything hogging my startup or extra programmes I never had before

It's just sucky

I hav a really cheap ExcelStor Jupiter 160GB SATA-II, but cos it's cheap I dunno if it'll be any better

Whats the best way to compare?

I'll finish this thread later, it's 5:40am

Is it making any kind of noises? If it's spinning loudly, that's not really a sign of immanent failure, it's fairly normal for hard drives to grow louder as they get older, as the bearings get older and the lubricant in them begins to break down. What you should be on the alert for is mechanical scratching or crunching, or clangy squeeky noises. If this is the case, and there is a tangible difference in preformance, I suggest you back up your instilation on a spare hard drive, and begin to look for a replacement. Also as stated before, if you don't defrag on a regular basis you could just have a problem of the data being fragmented all over the hard drive, and thus increasing access times, and slowing down your computer.

KieranD · Jan 4, 2010, 09:20 PM

i dont know if you can test but i get a feeling when mine are going to die, the noise is one major way of telling

clicks and not loading is another one

corrupt data is another one

apart from general stuff there is only like disk checking for corrupt data

francis511 · Jan 5, 2010, 02:21 AM

Tried chkdsk yet ?

MikeTyson · Jan 5, 2010, 02:28 AM

Hmm nah, I really can't afford another one

But yea, it does make some horrid noises when it spins up and winds down when you shut down, and a lot of crunching when it searches

When you hav no money, what can ya do...

[H]@RD5TUFF · Jan 5, 2010, 04:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikeTyson

Hmm nah, I really can't afford another one

But yea, it does make some horrid noises when it spins up and winds down when you shut down, and a lot of crunching when it searches

When you hav no money, what can ya do...

Grab your "ExcelStor Jupiter 160GB SATA-II" drive and get it ready, if the drive is under 3 years old WD should still honor the warranty, and use the cheap one while you wait for the drive to come back from RMA, sadly if you can't buy a new one, that is pretty much your only option.

MikeTyson · Jan 5, 2010, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by [H]@RD5TUFF

Grab your "ExcelStor Jupiter 160GB SATA-II" drive and get it ready, if the drive is under 3 years old WD should still honor the warranty, and use the cheap one while you wait for the drive to come back from RMA, sadly if you can't buy a new one, that is pretty much your only option.

It was from an OEM PC ^_^

Dec 30, 2009, 04:24 AM	#1
MikeTyson Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: South East, United Kingdom Posts: 645 (0.51/day) Thanks: 75 Thanked 20 Times in 14 Posts System Specs	How to test if a hard drive is knackered? My boot times are insanely long and the hard drive activity is crazy Think my Western Digital has given up the ghost.. Is there a way to test this? Thanks __________________ various stuff for sale, CHEAP!!! http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=126182

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Dec 30, 2009, 04:27 AM	#2
sneekypeet Unpaid Babysitter Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 19,022 (7.31/day) Thanks: 3,039 Thanked 5,488 Times in 3,951 Posts System Specs	I think western digital provides diagnostic software at their site. Something along the lines of HDtune or HDtack may show or lead you to whats wrong. __________________ Hers: ASUS Maximus V Gene / i7 3770K / Swiftech H220 / 4X8GB Corsair Dominators / ASUS GTX660 / Corsair AX-760 / Windows 7 64bit / Fractal Design ARC Midi R2 Test: Gigabyte Z68X-UD4-B3 / i7 2600K / A lot Of Coolers / Ripjaws Currently / HIS HD7950 IceQ Turbo / Silverstone SST-ST85F-G / Windows 7 64bit / InWin D-Frame Limited Edition

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Dec 30, 2009, 04:28 AM	#3
mlee49 Eligible for custom title Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: KU Posts: 6,921 (3.50/day) Thanks: 1,598 Thanked 2,049 Times in 1,602 Posts System Specs	You could scan the drive and see if a sector went bad. HDtune is what I use. Damn it Sneeky! link for HDTune: http://www.hdtune.com/ __________________ Heatware: Mlee49 115-0

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Dec 30, 2009, 04:32 AM	#5
MikeTyson Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: South East, United Kingdom Posts: 645 (0.51/day) Thanks: 75 Thanked 20 Times in 14 Posts System Specs	Right so what am I doing here then? __________________ various stuff for sale, CHEAP!!! http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=126182

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Dec 30, 2009, 04:35 AM	#8
MikeTyson Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: South East, United Kingdom Posts: 645 (0.51/day) Thanks: 75 Thanked 20 Times in 14 Posts System Specs	Well the tests say it's Okay but I don't believe that at all This hard drive takes an extremely long time to do anything... a lot more than it used to __________________ various stuff for sale, CHEAP!!! http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=126182

Dec 30, 2009, 04:35 AM	#9
sneekypeet Unpaid Babysitter Join Date: Apr 2006 Posts: 19,022 (7.31/day) Thanks: 3,039 Thanked 5,488 Times in 3,951 Posts System Specs	has it been defragged lately? __________________ Hers: ASUS Maximus V Gene / i7 3770K / Swiftech H220 / 4X8GB Corsair Dominators / ASUS GTX660 / Corsair AX-760 / Windows 7 64bit / Fractal Design ARC Midi R2 Test: Gigabyte Z68X-UD4-B3 / i7 2600K / A lot Of Coolers / Ripjaws Currently / HIS HD7950 IceQ Turbo / Silverstone SST-ST85F-G / Windows 7 64bit / InWin D-Frame Limited Edition

Dec 30, 2009, 04:36 AM	#11
MikeTyson Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: South East, United Kingdom Posts: 645 (0.51/day) Thanks: 75 Thanked 20 Times in 14 Posts System Specs	It's been formatted cleanly several times and just keeps degrading __________________ various stuff for sale, CHEAP!!! http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=126182

Dec 30, 2009, 04:37 AM	#13
Phxprovost Xtreme Refugee Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 1,148 (0.76/day) Thanks: 240 Thanked 264 Times in 190 Posts System Specs	what leads you to believe its the hdd? are your access times really high? sure its not something else?

Dec 30, 2009, 05:14 AM	#15
RejZoR Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Europe/Slovenia Posts: 3,967 (1.26/day) Thanks: 39 Thanked 753 Times in 541 Posts System Specs	http://www.snapfiles.com/get/activediskmon.html Use this. It'll tell you the condition of the HDD. __________________ RejZoR's Little Secrets @ rejzor dot tk

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Dec 30, 2009, 01:37 PM	#16
MikeTyson Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: South East, United Kingdom Posts: 645 (0.51/day) Thanks: 75 Thanked 20 Times in 14 Posts System Specs	This doesn't look too great __________________ various stuff for sale, CHEAP!!! http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=126182

Dec 30, 2009, 01:48 PM	#17
Beertintedgoggles Join Date: Nov 2005 Posts: 692 (0.25/day) Thanks: 63 Thanked 194 Times in 144 Posts System Specs	Hopefully this is obvious and redundant, but you have scanned for spyware and the like right? Also, have you recently installed an antivirus program or changed your antivirus to a different and more invasive program? I use CA antivirus since it's free with our ISP and I have not had any virus issues since using it (not that I had them before either). However, that program on a single core processor will being the system to its knees. Disable it though, and the PC instantly springs back to life speed wise.

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Dec 30, 2009, 01:57 PM	#18
MikeTyson Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: South East, United Kingdom Posts: 645 (0.51/day) Thanks: 75 Thanked 20 Times in 14 Posts System Specs	Yea, but even after a fresh clean install of XP with nothing installed it's still reallyyyyyyyyy slow __________________ various stuff for sale, CHEAP!!! http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=126182

Jan 4, 2010, 07:50 PM	#19
Chryonn Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: London, England Posts: 1,013 (0.53/day) Thanks: 24 Thanked 98 Times in 90 Posts System Specs	really long load times, random clicking, and crazy activity all point to a knackered drive. save your stuff NOW before it's too late. __________________ Ever wanted to add LEDs but didn't know the correct voltage and resistance? www.ledcalc.com - everything you need to light up your PC's insides “Join me.. we will be alone in the dark for a few thousand hours... together.” -Ketxxx

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Jan 4, 2010, 09:20 PM	#21
KieranD Eligible for custom title Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Glasgow, Scotland Posts: 5,460 (2.59/day) Thanks: 1,640 Thanked 822 Times in 713 Posts System Specs	i dont know if you can test but i get a feeling when mine are going to die, the noise is one major way of telling clicks and not loading is another one corrupt data is another one apart from general stuff there is only like disk checking for corrupt data __________________ http://myinstants.com/instant/transformer/

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Jan 5, 2010, 02:21 AM	#22
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Jan 5, 2010, 02:28 AM	#23
MikeTyson Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: South East, United Kingdom Posts: 645 (0.51/day) Thanks: 75 Thanked 20 Times in 14 Posts System Specs	Hmm nah, I really can't afford another one But yea, it does make some horrid noises when it spins up and winds down when you shut down, and a lot of crunching when it searches When you hav no money, what can ya do... __________________ various stuff for sale, CHEAP!!! http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?t=126182

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