The laptop writes scanning the disk from. Checking the hard drive for bad sectors

Most personal computers and even servers use hard drives to store information. They are quite reliable, but over time, magnetic drives become unusable. In most cases, the service life of the disk is 5-10 years. Each user must be able to diagnose the HDD in order to determine the need to replace the part and perform a data backup. You will learn everything about verification from this article.

Symptoms of hard drive problems

Malfunctions or imminent death of the hard drive may be accompanied by typical symptoms. We recommend paying attention to the following symptoms:

• The appearance of uncharacteristic sounds during operation. There may be clicks, crackles, or metallic clanging. In such cases, the problem is usually mechanical in nature.
• “Brakes” in the operation of the system. Windows loads too slowly, some files do not open, and errors occur when installing programs.
• The appearance of blue “screens of death”. In such cases, an error code is always written, which can be used to determine the source of the problem.
• Spontaneous shutdown or reboot of the computer. As a rule, in such situations, the boot sector of the HDD is damaged.

Please note that computer freezes can also occur due to insufficient RAM.

Ways to check the hard drive

HDD diagnostics is an important task. There are several ways to do this. Operating system tools allow you to analyze your hard drive, but they are not always effective. The optimal solution is to use specialized utilities that are created specifically for this task.

Via command line

Windows operating systems have a standard utility that can analyze the status of the hard drive. To do this you will have to run the command line:

In the command parameters, specify the drive letter and two specifiers. The first - F is responsible for automatic error correction, and R performs information recovery. Be prepared that the verification may take several hours. If you are using a laptop, be sure to charge it. At the end you will get statistics on how many sectors are damaged.

Using Windows Explorer

If you prefer using familiar windows, you can run the scan through Explorer. To do this, users should follow a number of steps:

During this operation, the system will perform the following checks:

• basic file system structure;
• security descriptors;
• file name associations;
• USN magazine.

To find out the scan results, you need to go to the “Event Viewer” menu, and then find the scan log in the Windows log.

Via Windows PowerShell

The latest Windows operating systems have an additional utility similar to the command line, which was created for convenient system administration. You can also use it to test your hard drive. To start, you need to perform several steps:

The system will scan and automatically fix if possible. If there are no errors, the message NoErrorsFound will appear.

Using Windows 10 Tools

The latest operating system from Microsoft has advanced functionality, so it can independently diagnose a wide range of problems. Using the built-in security center, you can check the status of the HDD. Additionally, go to storage diagnostics. How to use these functions will be described below.

Security and Service Center

This is a special section in the “ten”, which is responsible for maintaining the operating system. As a rule, all necessary checks are performed automatically after a certain period of time. You can access this section through the control panel. Next, if necessary, open the “Maintenance” tab and find the “Disk Status” line. Opposite it should be the “OK” option. If it is not there, then we recommend conducting a thorough analysis of the condition of the hard drive.

Storage Diagnostic Utility

The developers of Windows 10 also created an additional utility for checking the hard drive - storage diagnostics. It is launched via the command line (how to open it was described in the sections earlier). Next, enter the command and press Enter.

The procedure may take 2-5 hours (depending on the HDD capacity). At some points the process will appear to be stuck, but it is strongly recommended that you do not interrupt the scan. Once the process is complete, navigate to the path to save the report and open it (the file will have evtx permission). It will provide the following information:

• chkdsk check data and error information;
• registry files containing data about connected drives;
• Event Viewer Logs.

Experienced specialists are required to correctly interpret the information presented in the report. The report will be uninformative for ordinary users.

Third party programs

For professionals and ordinary users, third-party developers have created many useful, functional and easy-to-use utilities for checking the status of the hard drive. With their help, you can get comprehensive information about the status of your HDD. The most popular of them will be described below.

Victoria

This is the most popular free software from qualified specialists. Its wide functionality allows you to get almost any information about the hard drive. The parameters are displayed in a form convenient for the average user, so you don’t have to study anything additional to make a conclusion about the state of the HDD. The utility is distributed on a Freeware basis, i.e. absolutely free.

Download the software to your computer and follow the instructions:

All sectors will be marked in different colors depending on the response speed. Gray sectors are not dangerous. Green sectors are allowed in quantities of several hundred (up to 2-3 thousand). For example, on a completely new 1TV hard drive their number is about 1 thousand. Orange sectors are at their limit. No more than 100 pieces are allowed. Red and blue cannot be restored. They need to be “closed”, limiting reading from them.

When scanning, you can set the operating modes:

• Ignore is a classic check without further action.
• Remap – replacing unreadable sectors with reserves if available.
• Restore – restore damaged sectors programmatically.
• Erase – overwriting unreadable sectors. Attention, erases information.

As you can see, the utility is informative and easy to use even for beginners.

HDDScan

Another useful software for scanning your hard drive. It has less functionality, but a more friendly interface compared to the previous version. The utility is completely free, and allows you to get SMART parameters and detailed information about the state of sectors.

To start the verification procedure, follow these steps:

The colors for the sectors are identical to those described above. The scanning menu does not provide functions for correcting sectors.

DiskCheckup

The software supports work with almost all types of hard drives (SATA, USB, FireWire). It has small but sufficient functionality. Through the application, you can check the SMART parameters, as well as conduct a full test on the Disk Self-Test tab. The main disadvantage of the program is the complexity of the results for the average user. The status is indicated by the “OK” line and numerical parameters. Considering that they are all in English, it will be difficult to understand.

MHDD

This is highly specialized software for advanced users. It is used if the system does not start and the OS does not load to the desktop. To run MHDD software, you must burn it to a CD or flash drive as an image. You can even run the utility with the entire operating system. To do this, you need to select a flash drive or CD as the boot drive when using a floppy drive.

After the menu appears, you just need to select the desired hard drive and enter the command to check. The software is controlled in the same way through commands as on the console, or using the function buttons of the keyboard. Not recommended for use by ordinary users without appropriate skills.

Crystal Disk Mark

This utility allows you to evaluate the speed of writing and reading information from your hard drive. In its interface, the user can select the write/read type, local disk and file size to be read and written. After finishing the test you will receive information at speed.

You will not be able to evaluate these results yourself. We recommend finding a similar HDD model online to compare its testing with your test data. If the results with identical settings are almost the same, then there is no need to worry. If there are strong differences, we recommend analyzing the hard drive through Victoria.

HDD Regenerator

Functional utility for HDD scanning and recovery. A special magnetization reversal algorithm allows you to eliminate quite serious problems with your hard drive. To launch the software you should:

The advantage of this utility is the ability to quickly correct errors and close “bad sectors”.

Seagate SeaTools

Specialized software from Seagate product developers. Allows you to obtain basic information about the disk, perform preliminary and full scans. We recommend using this utility in cases where the above for some reason does not work, and you own a hard drive from Seagate.

Western Digital Data Lifeguard Diagnostic

Special software in English for checking Western Digital disks. It is more suitable for advanced users, but ordinary users can also perform quick diagnostics. For example, you can check the status of SMART parameters.

The utility also allows you to conduct simple and advanced tests, but the information content of the results for typical users leaves much to be desired.

Disk Utility on macOS

MacOS users also have a standard hard drive utility. Its functionality includes:

• creation and transformation of images;
• mounting and unmounting disks and other media.
• activation and deactivation of logging mode;
• HDD integrity testing and file recovery;
• erasing, formatting and partitioning disks;
• cleaning up debris;
• adding a partition table;
• checking the S.M.A.R.T status of the hard drive and much more.

To start, you need to find the application in the utilities on the system disk, and then launch it.

Prevention measures

To maximize the life of a hard drive, users can do a variety of things, including:

• Defragmentation. This procedure arranges all file blocks in order, making access to them as fast as possible, accordingly, the head travels less distance to open the file and wears out more slowly.
• Install a quality power supply. Power surges have a detrimental effect on any equipment. If important data is stored on the HDD, take care of a high-quality power supply to prevent damage to the hard drive due to power surges.
• Avoid vibrations and shocks. Winchesters are extremely vulnerable to impacts. When transporting your computer, make sure that the hard drive will not be subject to vibration.
• Clean the system. Freezes due to unstable software or viruses can cause increased load on the disk; accordingly, it will use its resource faster.
• Eliminate external magnetic fields. Many people install the system unit with other powerful equipment that has a magnetic field. If you want to ensure maximum data safety, do not place the system unit next to equipment that emits a powerful magnetic field.

Never forget to make backups. Any hard drive will eventually become unusable, and it is not always possible to recover data. Regular checks will allow you to determine the future demise of the HDD in advance and take action, for example, purchasing a new one.

Report content

This article will help you understand and fix problems on your PC. First you need to figure out why you should check your computer for errors. As a rule, you can observe a situation where the computer begins to reboot, while making some sounds such as tapping.

Also, the PC may reboot several times a day, and even when the computer is turned on, the startup may be interrupted by the so-called screen of death. The screen of death refers to a blue screen with white text. It is to prevent such problems that diagnostics need to be carried out.

Using a standard Windows utility

Using the CHKDSK command

1. Click “Start”, select “All Programs”, click “Accessories” and launch the “Command Line” utility;
2. For example, we want to test our disk (D:), then we should specify the command “chkdsk /r” in the window and click on Enter.

This Windows operating system command makes it possible to diagnose the HDD and identify the presence of errors. It will also notify you of any problems found.

CHKDSK Command Syntax and Options

The CHKDSK [volume:[[path]filename]] ] command begins the actual hard drive diagnostics in Windows. However, you should not enter square brackets on the command line.

Volume - indicates the disk on which the check or any other operation will be performed.

Path, file name - lists the name of the object or objects that will be worked on. Applies only to FAT/FAT32 file system;

Description of other parameters:

• /F - completely corrects all found problems;
• /V - command for the NTFS file system, which shows what the problem was;
• /R - execution searches and restores incorrect information;
• /X - if there is such a need, it completely disconnects the disk from the system for a deeper and more thorough scan. Typically used with the /F command;
• /I - less detailed diagnostics of disk elements. Performs a so-called “quick check”;
• /C - makes it possible to skip checking cycles inside the folder structure; the check is also fast, but not deep;
• /L:size - allows you to change the size of the log file to the specified size (in kilobytes) during the scan. In the event of an abnormal shutdown during testing, a log file is used;
• /B - the ability to re-evaluate damaged clusters on the disk (only if the /R parameter is present).

The process of identifying hard drive errors in Windows may take time depending on the speed of your computer and the presence of errors on the drive.

The computer hard drive is a very sensitive component. Errors that appear in its file system, bad sectors on the surface, and mechanical problems sometimes cause a complete failure of the computer system.

The same problems are typical for flash drives, which in essence are practically no different from a hard drive. How to determine the presence of errors and bad sectors and how to correct them if possible?

Just a little bit of theory

Many people simply confuse file system errors and bad sectors. Therefore, we will try to explain the difference between these phenomena and the reason for their occurrence. We will also determine what the symptoms of errors that appear on the surface of the hard drive may be.

File system errors

When people talk about hard drive errors and trying to fix them using the chkdsk utility built into Windows, they most often mean file system errors. Such errors are associated with problems in the metadata that describe the file system itself: errors in the $Bitmap, $BadClus files, the main file table, and various indexes.

For example, errors in the $Bitmap file of the NTFS file system can cause the system to incorrectly recognize the amount of free space on a volume. And problems with the $BadClus file can lead to incorrect identification of bad sectors and an attempt to write data to such sectors, which will cause the computer to completely freeze.

Bad sectors

The nature of bad sectors is somewhat different. The hard drive is “cut” into sectors at the factory during production. It is then that its logical structure is created, then it receives magnetic properties for recording data. These structures become faulty as a result of the gradual degradation of areas of the surface of the hard drive, which become so due to careless handling of the hard drive, which was accidentally dropped on the floor or was hit on the case even with an ordinary screwdriver.

Testing programs that fall on parts of a degrading surface detect so-called faulty or damaged sectors - bad sectors. Sectors that have lost their magnetic properties do not allow data to be read or written to them. It is possible to eliminate faulty hard drive structures. For this purpose, manufacturers create special reserve areas of sectors. When a bad sector appears, diagnosed at a specific address, its address is reassigned to a sector from this reserve area.

Symptoms of errors and bad sectors

We have already talked a little about the symptoms of file system errors above. However, the symptoms are sometimes very varied. Here are some manifestations of errors and bad sectors that have arisen in the hard drive.

• Noticeable freezing of the operating system when performing read and write operations.
• Failure to load the operating system. For example, downloading continues only until the download notification and Windows logo appear.
• Frequent occurrence of errors in the operating environment.
• Extremely slow and unproductive operating system.

Here is a far from complete list of error manifestations associated with file system problems and the presence of degrading areas of the hard drive. What to do in such cases?

Checking errors using Windows

Checking and correcting file system errors in Windows is carried out by a standard utility of this operating environment called chkdsk. It can also be useful in eliminating programmatically generated bad sectors as a result of viruses. It can be launched both in a graphical environment and from the command line. Let's consider the most accessible option for performing it in a graphical environment.

Checking an inactive volume

Checking an inactive volume is the simplest. It can be done entirely in graphical mode. By inactive volume we mean a partition on which the currently running operating system is not installed. This could be another connected hard drive or, for example, drive D.

Click the "Run check" button.

The utility is launched from the “Service” tab of the volume properties. This tab contains the “Run check” button. If you click it, the chkdsk utility window will open. To check bad sectors that appeared as a result of software errors, you need to check the box next to the corresponding option. Next, just click the “Run” button - the utility will check and correct errors.

The chkdsk utility checks volume D, also diagnosing bad sectors.

Checking the system volume

Checking and correcting errors on the system volume, where the operating environment valid at the time of checking is located, is carried out a little differently. The utility identifies such a volume as mounted, and therefore warns that it cannot perform the check, but offers to perform it during the next reboot.

The chkdsk utility reports that it cannot scan the disk.

After restarting the computer, the user will find that during boot, after the Windows logo appears, a black screen appears. This black screen is gradually filled with lines of text. This is the chkdsk utility that checks the system volume of the hard drive. After checking and making the necessary corrections, it will show the result, and then the operating system will continue loading.

The chkdsk utility checks volume C after a reboot.

Programs for checking hard drives for bad sectors

There are a number of applications on the software market that can test the surface of a hard drive. In this case, not just one volume is tested, but the entire surface of the hard drive. Of course, the user can independently set the boundary sectors and test individual areas. To identify bad sectors, a sector read test is usually performed.

Important: the results of the test for the presence of bad sectors must be considered in conjunction with SMART indicators, such as Reallocation Sector Count, Reallocation Event Count.

Data Lifeguard Diagnostic

This utility was created by Western Digital developers. It is available for download on the company's official website. Lifeguard Diagnostic works great with hard drives from almost any manufacturer, and not just native WD hard drives, as one might think. It offers a number of tests: Quick, Advanced, as well as the ability to fill hard drive sectors with zeros.

Interface of the Data Lifeguard Diagnostic utility.

We are most interested in the extended test. This test allows you to detect bad sectors on the surface of disks. When the program finds a bad sector, it informs the user about it, asking him to choose whether he wants to fix the detected error. If it agrees, then the application writes to sector 0, so the sector data will be lost.

A selection of utility tests. We need Extended Test.

This test takes longer than the quick test. Testing time depends on the size of the drive, since the test is carried out on the entire surface, starting from sector 0 and ending with the maximum LBA value.

Extended Test utilities in operation.

HDDScan

The HDDScan application also seems to be an excellent hard drive surface tester. It can often be seen as part of entire software packages such as LiveCD. This application has a graphical interface and offers a number of tests, among which, in our case, the most interesting is “Surface Tests”.

Select the Surface Test from the drop-down list.

Important: when conducting surface tests under Windows, you must close all running programs to avoid random results during the test caused by the action of these programs.

After selecting a test, an additional window will open, which presents the test parameters. Let's leave the “Read” option enabled, which will only allow us to read data from sectors. Thus, we will define sectors from which information cannot be read within a specified time (bad sectors), frozen sectors and normal cells. We will leave the fields of the initial and final sectors unchanged if we want to check the entire surface.

Let's leave the Read test option enabled.

When testing with this program, a number of sectors are identified:

• bad sectors,
• stuck sectors, reading data from which takes more than 500 ms,
• sectors with reading time from 150 to 500 ms,
• sectors with reading time from 50 to 150 ms,
• sectors with reading time from 10 to 20 ms,
• HDDScan considers sectors whose data is read within 5 ms to be normal.

The program test result is available in the form of a line graph, sector distribution map, and also as a regular text report.

Checking the hard drive surface.

Ashampoo HDD Control

Unlike the programs discussed above, HDD Control is not a free program. This application is a whole set of tools designed to restore the health of your hard drive. This program also offers the ability to test the surface of the hard drive.

Select the "Surface Test" option.

The test is very simple and accessible to the average HDD Control user. To start it, you just need to click the “Surface Testing” button. It lacks additional options that would allow you to customize the type of test. During testing, only two types of sectors are identified: with excellent reading results and bad sectors.

Victoria HDD

Victoria considers the health of the hard drive being tested to be "GOOD".

This application can collect information about the SMART health of your hard drive. It also allows you to test the disk surface, reassign damaged sectors using the Remap operation, and reset bad sectors. It also divides sectors into groups:

• bad sectors (Error),
• stuck sectors with a read time of more than 600 ms,
• freezing sectors with read times from 200 to 600 ms,
• sectors with reading time from 50 to 200 ms,
• sectors with reading time from 20 to 50 ms,
• Victoria diagnoses normal sectors within the framework of data reading up to 5 ms.

To test your hard drive, you can run this program in Windows graphical mode. Next, you will need to select the “Tests” tab. This is where the surface tests are located. There are four options available for working with the hard surface:

• Ignore,
• Remap,
• erase,
• Restore.

First of all, you can perform the Ignore test to determine whether there are bad sectors on the surface of the hard drive. If they are, then you need to start the Remap test. This test will allow you to reassign the addresses of damaged sectors to the reserved area, where normal sectors are located.

Types of tests available and sector categories. Victoria checks the surface.

If, after the Remap test, Victoria continues to diagnose bad sectors, then you can still try to restore their functionality by using the Restore test. The Erase option should be used wisely under Windows, as it writes zeros to sectors - erases sector data. It can only be used within a certain selection of sectors, the data of which is not related to the operating system.

Brief summary

It should be noted that there is a difference between errors eliminated by the chkdsk utility of the Windows operating system and bad sectors eliminated by programs such as Victoria HDD. The former are caused by file system problems, and the latter are often the result of the loss of magnetic properties by sectors of the hard drive surface and its gradual degradation. However, chkdsk can also fix some problems with bad sectors.

To eliminate bad sectors, you can use such applications as: Data Lifeguard Diagnostic, Ashampoo HDD Control, HDDScan, Victoria. We highlight the Victoria HDD application as the best for checking and eliminating bad sectors, as it offers a number of tests: Ignore, Remap, Erase and Restore. It allows you not only to detect faulty hard surface structures, but also to treat the HDD.

Checking the hard drive for errors necessary in case of slow operation or freezing of the computer, as well as failure of the operating system. Often, many users try to resort to third-party software, which is inconvenient for simply checking the hard drive for errors. Therefore, in this article we will consider “ how to check hard drive for errors» using two methods integrated into Windows OS.

There are two ways to run disk scan:

• running the chkdsk utility using the command line (be sure to run it with administrator rights);
• checking the disk using standard tools in the Windows graphical interface, or rather through “disk properties”.

Checking the hard drive for errors using the command line (method I)

To launch the built-in utility CHKDSK You must run the command line console with administrator rights. To open it, use the keyboard shortcut “Win+R”, in the “Run” window, enter the value “cmd” in the empty field and run it. For more detailed information, see: "Windows Command Line".

As indicated in the figure, we have entered one command with additional parameters that will check the hard drive for errors - CHKDSK C: /F /R, Where:

Chkdsk– specify the name of the utility for checking the hard drive;

C:– this parameter means that we will check partition C (system drive);

/F– this option will correct errors on the disk.

/R– search for damaged sectors and recovery of surviving information.

After entering the command, a message will appear indicating that the disk will be checked for errors the next time the system is rebooted. Agree, enter "Y" from the keyboard and restart the computer to begin the test.

Additional information about utility parameters сhkdsk can be obtained by running it with key "/?".

Checking the hard drive for errors using the graphical interface (II method)

Regardless of the operating systems used - Windows XP, Windows 7 or Windows 8, you need to go to the icon on the desktop “My Computer” - “This Computer” - “Computer”.

Next, select the desired drive, right-click and select “Properties”. To check your hard drive, go to the “Service” tab. In the window that opens, click the “Check” button. When you click on the button, a special window will appear, move the cursor and click “Check disk”.

After clicking, a scanning window will appear, which notifies you about the analysis of checking the hard drive for errors. The disk check process may take some time.

If completed successfully, the above image will appear.

And if the scanned disk actually contains errors, the program will offer to restore this disk. Therefore, you need to click on the “Repair disk” button and if the operating system cannot fix the errors, this usually occurs on the system drive C, then the error checking program will suggest “Repair the disk at next reboot”, click this button, the program will close and you will need to restart your computer.

After the reboot, when your computer starts to start, a special application will open that will check and correct errors on the hard drive being checked. Here are two simple ways you can check any local disk for errors.

If the system displays the error “Windows has detected a hard drive problem,” the reasons for this can be very different, as well as its consequences. The hard drive may be faulty (or defective if the computer is new), or the operating system files are damaged and will not load. If you encounter such a problem, I hasten to warn you - you can lose all your data: documents, videos, programs and images if the disk eventually becomes unusable, which will happen sooner or later.

What to do if you receive the message “Windows has detected a hard drive problem”

First, stay calm, don't panic. Pay attention to the bottom of the message, which shows which sections are having problems. This will save you time, given that the check takes a lot of time - you will know which sections to work with. We will perform the check using the CHKDSK command (from Check Disk), which checks the status of the hard drive and corrects any errors or problems, if possible.

And the warning “Windows has detected a hard drive problem,” as mentioned above, occurs due to hard drive problems - and sometimes it’s just sector damage, which can be cured using CHKDSK. So, we will perform the check through the command line, which can be opened by simultaneously pressing the Windows + R keys.

The Run dialog box opens. Type CMD and press Enter.

In the command prompt window, enter the letter of the problematic partition, or leave it as is if you need to check the default disk partition.

However, we see the message "ATTENTION! Parameter F is not specified. CHKDSK runs in read-only mode", plus some information. This is not enough. If we want to perform a full scan of the hard drive and allow Windows to automatically fix system file errors and bad sectors, we need to add the /F parameter to the CHKDSK command, i.e. so that it becomes CHKDSK /F.

Note: If you selected a disk containing an operating system to scan, you will be prompted to scan after rebooting.

If the CHKDSK command did not help

In such a situation, I recommend that you start creating backup copies of all important files and data. You can transfer them to safe partitions from partitions that have faults (remember, the problem partitions were indicated in the warning). Or to another medium, for example, a portable hard drive.

Once you have copied all your important data, you can check the hard drive to see if it is suitable for further use. Those. you can try to restore it to its functionality by full (not quick) right-clicking on the disk and selecting “Format” - the process may take quite a long time, depending on the size of the disk. Have patience.

All the above tips and instructions should help you in solving the “Windows has detected a hard drive problem” error related to hard drive problems. Also, in addition to all of the above, I would advise you to reinstall the operating system, because in most cases this helps in solving most problems. If all else fails, please give me feedback via the comment form below.