hard drive failing

LauraJ23

LauraJ23

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OK, I have started getting windows messages stating windows has detected a hdd problem and it asks me to back up. I click cancel on this as I have transferred all of my pics onto an external drive. I have ran malwarebytes and a full mse scan and nothing has been found by either programme. The intel rapid utility also shows that my hard drive is at risk.

Before this laptop went out of it's guarantee I had a complete hdd fail and the company replaced the drive.

If this is a 2nd drive which is packing up is there likely to be something in the laptop causing it to fail or have I just been unlucky with 2 duff drives in a row?
 
Unfortunately, you are unlucky.....
 
A poorly designed laptop maybe. Heat is a big killer of mechanical hard drives.
 
Thanks both, I am pretty sure the original was a toshiba and the replacement was/is a hitachi hts547550A9E384.

So if I changed the hard drive over for a new one I should I be ok? I would have to buy new windows though as this doesn't have a disk it's all on the hdd.
 
michael23 said:
I downloaded a temperature monitor the cores are running at 62 c last night the hd was around 50c
Click to expand...


That's the CPU... I'm talking about the hard drives. It's probably not to be honest, but excessive heat can dramatically shorten a mechanical drive's life. I think in all probability, Neil is right. If they replaced it with the same type, and model, then maybe that has more to do with it.

Replace it with a SSD? How big is the drive?
 
Hard drives usually have a one year warranty independant of the computer if this helps

Realspeed
 
You're probably just unlucky then I imagine.


replacing that with a 500GB+ SSD will be around £350 so maybe that's not an option :)
 
Pookeyhead said:
A poorly designed laptop maybe. Heat is a big killer of mechanical hard drives.
Click to expand...

This ^^

Cheap consumer grade laptops tend to be poorly designed, with low grade components.

I've got a 2004 IBM T42, has been running 24/7/365 (web server, FTP server and P2P client) since 2006, it sit's on a desk, on it's docking station with good ventilation all round. It's on it's original 40GB HDD, only needs it's cooling fan stripped and regreased every 12 months or so when it's starts to get noisey, but this is easy as the machine is built to be servicable.

Would have been worth £1600 new, when a similar spec laptop in PC world would have cost you under £700. I got it as a refurbished business class machine for £180.

Also the word "laptop" is wrong really, it's a portable computer, it shouldn't be used on your lap or any other soft surface than can block the vents.

michael23 said:
The drive is 500gb. I am pretty sure the original was a toshiba and this one is hitachi.
Click to expand...

Look up "Hitachi Deathstar" ;)
 
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Lyonspride said:
Also the word "laptop" is wrong really, it's a portable computer, it shouldn't be used on your lap or any other soft surface than can block the vents.
Click to expand...

Totally agree.... especially as the fan usually exhausts to one side and the intake is burried in your lap!

Being a geek, I've always used cooling stands for my laptops and ensured there's plenty of ventilation.

Off at a slight tanget..... my parents were looking to get a laptop so I lent them my old one to see how they got on with one......

It was a 5 year old Advent that set me back around £300, never gave me any problems and apart from some cosmetic issues (slight cracking on the corners of the case) perfectly servicable..... in less than a year they've destroyed 3 power supplies (cable breaking near the jack plug) and one of the screen hinges has snapped.

I've told them to replace their 10 year old Dell desktop with another desktop as they'll be replacing laptops every couple of years :lol:
 
rough handling of a laptop can also shorten the life of it's hard disk drive
 
Lyonspride said:
I've got a 2004 IBM T42, has been running 24/7/365 (web server, FTP server and P2P client) since 2006, it sit's on a desk, on it's docking station with good ventilation all round. It's on it's original 40GB HDD, only needs it's cooling fan stripped and regreased every 12 months or so when it's starts to get noisey, but this is easy as the machine is built to be servicable.
Click to expand...
Check the case with a straight edge. I left my T42 on at work for two years in a docking cradle. When I came to release it the heat from the HDD had softened the case in that area enough that it had a distinct droop to it!

It's still going strong though. I'm typing this message on it some 10 years after I bought it ...

Mind you it is like Trigger's Broom: only the mobo/CPU, screen and casework are original.
 
WD caviar blacks have a 5 year guarantee.

I've had 5 pc hard drives fail within 2-3 years from a variety of manufacturers, and in a couple of pcs. All drives fail. Its just a matter of time. But so far the Blacks have proved most reliable.
 
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