Reasons for Hard Drive failure (bad blocks)

I've had my MacPro looked at by an Authorised Apple Service Provider because it's been crashing and the screen is corrupting.
They have told me that they have scanned the hard drive and it's showing some bad blocks.
They have said in this scenario I should bin the hard drive and buy a new one, install the OS and start again.
My questions are these:
1. I thought Hard Drives by default always have some bad blocks and that there is extra space allocated on the partition to deal with this.
2. Should the hard drive be binned and buy a new one - the argument being that a 1TB drive which is the capacity of mine is very cheap to replace - only about £50.00 currently.
3. Are these bad blacks really the cause of the crashing on my computer and the monitor display corrupting?

2. Should the hard drive be binned and buy a new one - the argument being that a 1TB drive which is the capacity of mine is very cheap to replace - only about £50.00 currently.
You should not spend more than a moment struggling with this drive using only Recovery_HD or other primitive tools.
You should get Mac OS X running and get your computer in business immediately, and if it takes a new drive to do that, you should get at least one new drive right away and install Mac OS X on it.
Then at whatever pace is appropriate, you can work with the old drive and whatever tools you need to a) salvage your files if you do noir have adequate backups, and b) re-write all the blocks to see whether it is capable of having all good blocks again. Under full Mac OS X, you can do this in the background while other work continues.

Similar Messages

How to recover data from a hard drive with bad blocks?

An external hard drive, 4TB Iomega...connected via eSATA cable...had a power outage and the drive won't be read by OSX now. (Yes, it was on a surge protector and no I did not have a backup. I was actually preparing for the process of creating a backup when the power went out!) Anyway, I have tried using Data Rescue 3 and DiskDrill to try and recover data from the drive. I can recover the first 1/3 of the drive, but it ejects when either app tries to access the bad block. Can anyone tell me how/what software to use to recover the data? I know there are programs that will avoid the bad block but I've only found them for Windows. Are there any that will do such a thing in Lion? Any help will be appreciated...and no, I can not afford a data recovery service. Trying to do this on my own.

Basics of File Recovery
If you stop using the drive it's possible to recover deleted files that have not been overwritten by using recovery software such as Data Rescue II, File Salvage or TechTool Pro. Each of the preceding come on bootable CDs to enable usage without risk of writing more data to the hard drive. Two free alternatives are Disk Drill and TestDisk. Look for them and demos at MacUpdate or CNET Downloads.
The longer the hard drive remains in use and data are written to it, the greater the risk your deleted files will be overwritten.
Also visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQ on Data Recovery.

Hard drive failure - options for data recovery and AppleCare coverage

I have been handed a relative's 12 month old MacBook Pro with a factory-installed 500GB hard drive which appears to have failed. When attempting to boot the MacBook I am met with the classic clicking and grating noise which I know is a tell-tale sign of hard drive failure. The drive will not boot and I am shown the question mark folder icon, indicating that the operating system cannot be found. Have booted into internet recovery mode, Disk Utility appears to have found no sign of the hard drive's existence and shows none of its partitions. I have attempted putting the MacBook into FW target-mode and mounting the disk from another laptop, but to no avail; while it will go into target mode the drive simply isn't visible. The SATA connection to the drive is definitely OK - I have tested with another 2.5 inch hard drive which showed up fine in Disk Utility and was bootable. Have run Apple Hardware Test/Diagnostics but this returned no errors. It seems like a pretty clear cut case of drive failure.
I put this all to the relative whose laptop this is and asked them whether the MacBook had been dropped recently, explaining to them that this is one of the likeliest causes for such sudden failure. Sheepishly they admitted that they had indeed dropped it, although not from too great a distance and onto a carpeted floor. Apparently in the days immediately after the shock the hard drive continued to boot but the system was very slow and beset by spinning beech ball hangups. It is only in the last few days that the hard drive has become completely unbootable, and seemingly unreachable.
I have two questions that I would be grateful for some help with.
Firstly, is there any possibility of recovering data from this drive without going to a data recovery specialist? The user did have backups of most important data, but some recently imported photos were not backed up. Is it any use me trying any third-party data recovery software utilities, bearing in mind that I can't even mount the drive in target mode?
Second, the MacBook is still covered by the extended AppleCare warranty for the next two years. Is it worth my relative's while making a Genius Bar appointment to see whether Apple would replace this drive for free, given that the damage was most likely user-inflicted? Is there any chance that this sudden failure could be unrelated to the drop the MacBook suffered the other day - perhaps just a result of the 'normal' failure rate? I am more than happy to exchange the drive for a new one myself and my relative is happy to pay for the new part (I was amazed at how cheap hard drives are now), but would we be better off trying an Apple Store? My prediction would be that while we might get lucky and have an obliging genius who agrees to swap the drive without asking too many questions, we could also have one who concludes the damage is not covered by the warranty and insists on charging for the new hard drive (at a mark-up I assume) and labour.
Any thoughts about these two issues or the hard drive failure more generally are very welcome. Thanks.

1, Data recovery software is your only alternative if there is no backup. It may or may not be able to revoker anything from that hard drive. If it does then the only other choice is to go to a data recovery service. If have to go that route expect to pay for it, like $$$$.
2, Yes. They will at least tell him what the problem is and the cost if any to fix. There is a good chance they will fix it for nothing and only charge for data recovery if they can do it.

HT1661 My mid-2009 MacBook Pro has just died via a painful (for me) hard drive failure. I backed up a good percentage of files recently but not enough to keep me happy. I need to access the dead drive on the MBP via a 2008 iMac. Best options?

My mid-2009 MacBook Pro has just died via a painful (for me) hard drive failure. I backed up a good percentage of files recently but not enough to keep me happy. I need to access the dead drive on the MBP via a 2008 iMac. Best options?
I have ordered a 800 firewire to 800 firewire cable and am hoping to use the target mode option to copy files from the MBP.
Is this possible?
Hope so!
Any advice and or help would be greatly appreciated.
Many thanks,
Neil

Thanks Ogelthorpe.
Just bought an enclosure to try that also.
Hoping the MBP isn't really dead but just feigning death
Fingers crossed.

Question about activation key for pre-installed software after hard drive failure.

I had a hard drive failure on my MacBook Pro last week and had it replaced by Apple. When I restored my computer with a Time Machine backup, Office 2011 wants an activation key to start up again. Problem is, I had Office pre-installed when I bought my MacBook by Apple. Where do I get the activation key to get it working again?
Thanks
Q

Do you still have the signons.sqlite and key3.db files from the IT setup?
You can find the sync account password and the sync (recovery) key in the password manager on computers where a sync account with a specific e-mail address has been set up.
Look for:
* chrome://weave (Mozilla Services Password)
* chrome://weave (Mozilla Services Encryption Passphrase)

Mini hard drive failure? What to do...

My Mini was exhibiting signs of hard drive failure: Lots of SBBODs, taking a long time to bootup (and sometimes not booting up), locking up for no apparent reason with only the mouse working, and making clicking noises like the hard drive is searching for something.
I ran Onyx and repaired permissions to no avail. Hardware check showed no problems. I ran Disk Utility from the setup disk and it repaired several problems (e.g., invalid leaf record, minor Bit Map repair, invalid volume free block count, etc.). It reported that my hard drive was repaired successfully.
However, the drive is still acting up. Strangely, when I jiggle or tilt the Mini while it's hanging, it will sometimes kick-start it. It looks bad all around. Fortunately, my valuable data is all on an external drive (250 GB MiniStack), since I use the Mini to manage my media and a PowerBook as my primary machine.
My questions are these:
• Does it make sense to continue using this drive by zeroing out the drive and reinstalling Tiger?
• Or, should I consider replacing the drive altogether (the tilting action makes me think it may be mechanical)?
Or course, my AppleCare expired a couple of weeks ago...<sigh>
Thanks in advance for any advice!
Best,
Amy

Sounds exactly like mine!
See if you have any friends with computers that could loan you a stick of 2700 or higher.
If I were closer, I would loan you my other stick from my PC.
Since your valuable data is on another drive...if you want to reload everything...
You can erase and reinstall OSX. If the drive is bad, it will have problems loading, then you'll know.
If it does load, and it runs fine, then the OS was somehow screwed up, but if it gives you the SBBOD again after the install and during software update or other intensive programs (like mine did) then I would suspect the memory.
Memory isn't used very much for the minor applications during the Hardware Test or booting to CD/DVD. Mine only showed up during actual OS booting and running programs, but since it's the easiest thing to replace and check, that's what I did first and it resolved my problems.
If you want to check out what I went through see:
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=392827
Maybe some of that can help you too.

Time Capsule hard drive failure

Hello, all
I have a 500 GB Time Capsule that is about four years old. I use it to back up my MacBook Air and I also use it for file storage. Recently the HD has become erratic, in that it appears on Finder under Shared sometimes but not always. The wireless router part is still working fine. I can usually get the HD to reappear but it disappears again eventually. I can get it back by unplugging and replugging the TC, but I tried a hard reset and that didn't bring it back. I have backed up all the files I had stored on there as advised by the Apple Store Genius (see next paragraph).
I took it to the Apple Store and the Genius said that he thinks it is failing. He was not able to see the TC/HD wirelessly but was able to access it by plugging in a cable. He expressed surprise that my TC has lasted four years!!! He said I should replace it.
I then went to the online Apple Store and read the TC reviews, which contained quite a few reviews that report HD failure (mostly power failure, if I'm not mistaken) after 18 months or so! Some suggested that a good solution would be to get an Airport Extreme plus a USB hard drive of some other brand, not Apple. Many of these report power failure, which is not my problem. I still have power; apparently hard drive failure.
This sounded like a good idea, so today I went to London Drugs in Vancouver (an Apple retailer) and the salesman there (should be fairly unbiased) thought I should get a new TC rather than the two-piece solution just because it was simpler. He also said that in fact there about three HD manufacturers who produce all hard drives and that any one would have about the same frequency of failure, Apple include because they don't manufacture their own.
So I'm ready to replace my old TC with the new one I bought, but I'd like to get any suggestions the community might have. I can see the advantage of the TC because it's an all-in-one. I haven't opened it yet, so I'll await your well-informed input.
Thanks so much!

I think the TC is a much better buy.. If only for this reason.. the USB hard disk on the AEBS is dog slow.. whereas the TC internal drive is at least same as standard single disk NAS.. overall for what you get the price of a 2TB TC vs the 2TB USB disk plus AEBS is about right.. the 3TB TC is much poorer value.
Read the review.
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4577/airport-extreme-5th-gen-and-time-capsule-4th- gen-review-faster-wifi-/4
It is fairly well done, but not everything is correct.. the stuff about the fan turning on is wrong.. it has the same issue as the old one. That is overheating, no ventilation and the fan does not turn on, has no outside vent anyway.
But look at the internal vs usb speed of hdd.. that should convince you of the value of the TC.. if you are using anything but wireless.
BTW the issue with the Gen 1 is still more likely to be the power supply.. The original 500GB hard disk was a Seagate Server ES drive.. the only server standard drive in the whole TC series although it was always promoted as having server standard drives..
IMHO a repair of the power supply would get it up and running again. Very extermely unlikely that drive will die in such a manner.. even if it was to go bad they tend to stay bad.. not come on again when you power cycle.. but power supplies sure do.
I have repaired dozens of them.. haven't ever come across a dead 500GB drive yet.. seen a few 1TB, both WD and noisy hitachi.. but even so not that many..
Lots and zillions of dead power supplies though.
https://sites.google.com/site/lapastenague/a-deconstruction-of-routers-and-modem s/apple-time-capsule-repair
At least you can pull open the TC and remove the hard disk and wipe it.
Interesting the Apple guys are surprised at the 4year life span.. obviously intended for you to buy a new one much sooner than that.

Hard Drive failure - various boot modes won't work, HELP!

Hello all,
First of all, sorry for the essay, but I didn't want to miss out on possible crucial details that could help!
A couple of weeks ago, my beloved 27" iMac had a hard drive failure. It won't boot, but instead goes to the grey 'no entry' sign when booting up. I tried holding Cmd + V on boot and this message repeated itself whilst failing to boot:
"rooting via boot-uuid from chosen/: D94DA2D5-DB38-3517-B05D-70A97AC6EE5B
Waiting on <dict ID="0"><key><IOProviderClass</key><string ID="1"> IOResorces</string><key>IOResourceMach</key><string ID= "2">boot-uuid-media</string></dict>
Got boot device = IOService:/AppleACPlatformExpert/PCI0@0/AppleACPIPCI/SATA@1F,2/AppleIntel5Serie sAHCI/PRT0@0/IOAHCIDiskDriver/IOAHCBlockStorageDevice/IOBLockStorageDriver/Hitac hi HDS722020ALA330 Media/IOGUIDPartitionScheme
BSD root: disk0s2, major 14, minor 2
jnl: unknown-dev: open: phys_blksz 4096 does not match journal header size 512, and journal is not empty!
hfs: late jnl init: failed to open/create the journal (retval 0)
cannot mount root, errno = 19"
I'm not sure how much of that is useful, but I thought I'd copy it all down anyway.
I googled error number = 19 and found articles on an invalid b-tree node and corrupt journals, leaving me to believe that because I recently deleted a Windows Vista partition and reformed the overall HD into a 2TB OSX volume, some windows data may have been left over and corrupted the journal?
So it fails to boot normaly, using Cmd V, and using the OSX install disk, as well as failing to boot from the DiskWarrior 4 DVD I purchased from my local Apple Reseller because I'd heard that it's very good at helping with issues such as what I think my HD is having. I tried Disk Utility whilst booting from the install disk, and tried to repair the drive, and each time I tried it said that invalid content was present in the journal but the disk repair had been successful.
Am I right in thinking that my data is on the drive, it's just that OSX won't register the drive's existence because of a corrupted journal? (the little I know of hard drives is shining brightly through at this point, I'm sure!)
I also tried to boot using target mode by connecting my iMac to a MacBook Pro also running Snow Leopard, but, whilst the iMac clearly went into target mode (bouncing firewire icon on screen), my HD never appeared on the desktop of the MacBook Pro, nor in Disk Utility.
Whilst I have AppleCare, I haven't tried taking it to a mac store yet because of two reasons; 1. The last time I did this I had HD failure on my old 2008 MBP and, whilst I told them to keep the data on it, the first thing they did was reformat the disk. Needless to say, it worked, but I lost all my valuable Data! The second reason is that it's bloody heavy, and I don't own a car!
Before people go on about the way I should have backed up my data, I did, and that's gone as well! D:
System Specs:
First generation of 27" iMacs
2.8Ghz Intel i7 quad core
2TB HD
ATi Radeon HD 4850 512mb VRAM
8GB DDR3 RAM
OS version: not the very latest snow leopard but the one before.
Thanks in advance, and once again sorry for the essay!
Westy

I'm not sure about the DW disk. Check that out at Alsoft's website. Apple doesn't provide data recovery services.
Apple has records of your iTunes purchases. However, the licensing for music only permits you to download it once. I'm surprised that you don't have backups.
If you get an external enclosure in which to put the drive then you might try accessing it from the MBP as an external drive. If you have an external drive you could try using recovery software:
General File Recovery
If you stop using the drive it's possible to recover deleted files that have not been overwritten by using recovery software such as Data Rescue II, File Salvage or TechTool Pro. Each of the preceding come on bootable CDs to enable usage without risk of writing more data to the hard drive. Two free alternatives are Disk Drill and TestDisk. Look for them and demos at MacUpdate or CNET Downloads.
The longer the hard drive remains in use and data are written to it, the greater the risk your deleted files will be overwritten.
Also visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQ on Data Recovery.
Beyond this you would need to send the drive off to a data recovery service which will be extremely expensive.

Macbook Pro 2011 extremely slow wondering if hard drive failure

Hello, I want to start off by saying I'm not a huge computer guru, so that is why I'm coming here first. My Macbook Pro worked very well for a year, and then it has slowed down drastically. I've always been a windows user so mac is kind of foreign to me, but I'm trying to learn.
Some problems I've encountered are 1. Extremely slow running whether internet related, or just an application. I have checked the activity monitor and nothing is hogging up my memory. 2. Spinning wait cursor (rainbow circle) when I try to do ANYTHING. It takes minutes to start computer once it makes it to home screen. The circle just spins for a few minutes. Even just web surfing it's there. 3. Battery drains from 100% to less than 20% in 30 minutes, which again is annoying. 4. When battery drains the fan turns on and seems to drain battery even faster. 5. I get a lot of random errors forcing shut down of programs. I have ignored this problem for two years by not using my laptop or using it very minimally, but I am going to be needing a laptop again for school and not just my iPad and phone so I was planning on taking my macbook to genius bar, but wanted to check here first since Apple is an hour away. Plus I want to be able to use the piece of equipment that I spent a decent chunk of change on. I used time machine to back up everything today. I know its not a space issue as I have 300+ free GB on hard drive. I have tried to read through similar posts, but its overwhelming so I came here to post my own question.
I ran disc utility and there were some errors, which were able to be corrected after a couple tries. Computer still slow though when trying to do anything and running rainbow circle.
In recovery mode I reinstalled OSX
I was finally able to install updates after completing the above that were not able to be installed before.
I ran etre check, this is the report that came up:
Problem description:
Extremely slow computer, possible hard drive failure
EtreCheck version: 2.0.11 (98)
Report generated November 3, 2014 9:25:29 PM EST
Hardware Information: ℹ️
MacBook Pro (13-inch, Late 2011) (Verified)
MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro8,1
1 2.4 GHz Intel Core i5 CPU: 2-core
4 GB RAM
BANK 0/DIMM0
2 GB DDR3 1333 MHz ok
BANK 1/DIMM0
2 GB DDR3 1333 MHz ok
Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported
Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n
Video Information: ℹ️
Intel HD Graphics 3000 - VRAM: 384 MB
Color LCD 1280 x 800
System Software: ℹ️
Mac OS X 10.7.5 (11G63) - Uptime: 0:6:50
Disk Information: ℹ️
Hitachi HTS547550A9E384 disk0 : (500.11 GB)
S.M.A.R.T. Status: Verified
disk0s1 (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / [Startup]: 499.25 GB (357.49 GB free)
Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB
OPTIARC DVD RW AD-5970H
USB Information: ℹ️
Apple Inc. BRCM2070 Hub
Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
Apple Inc. FaceTime HD Camera (Built-in)
Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
Thunderbolt Information: ℹ️
Apple, Inc. MacBook Pro
Kernel Extensions: ℹ️
/System/Library/Extensions
[not loaded] com.Logitech.Unifying.HID Driver (1.2.0 - SDK 10.0) Support
/Users/[redacted]/Downloads/LCC Installer.app
[not loaded] com.Logitech.Control Center.HID Driver (3.5.1 - SDK 10.0) Support
Startup Items: ℹ️
HP IO: Path: /Library/StartupItems/HP IO
Startup items are obsolete and will not work in future versions of OS X
Problem System Launch Agents: ℹ️
[failed] com.apple.coreservices.appleid.authentication.plist
Launch Agents: ℹ️
[not loaded] com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist Support
[loaded] com.adobe.CS5ServiceManager.plist Support
[running] com.Logitech.Control Center.Daemon.plist Support
[invalid?] com.luthresearch.savvyconnectmenu.plist Support
[loaded] com.oracle.java.Java-Updater.plist Support
Launch Daemons: ℹ️
[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist Support
[invalid?] com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist Support
[invalid?] com.luthresearch.scservice.plist Support
[loaded] com.oracle.java.Helper-Tool.plist Support
User Launch Agents: ℹ️
[loaded] com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist Support
[failed] com.apple.CSConfigDotMacCert-[...]@me.com-SharedServices.Agent.plist
[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist Support
User Login Items: ℹ️
iTunesHelper Application (/Applications/iTunes.app/Contents/MacOS/iTunesHelper.app)
Dropbox Application (/Applications/Dropbox.app)
SavvyConnect UNKNOWN (missing value)
Google Chrome Application (/Applications/Google Chrome.app)
HP Scheduler Application (/Library/Application Support/Hewlett-Packard/Software Update/HP Scheduler.app)
Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
Silverlight: Version: 5.1.10411.0 - SDK 10.6 Support
FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 15.0.0.152 - SDK 10.6 Support
Flash Player: Version: 15.0.0.152 - SDK 10.6 Mismatch! Adobe recommends 15.0.0.189
QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.1
JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 7 Update 67 Check version
3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️
Flash Player Support
Growl Support
Java Support
Logitech Control Center Support
Time Machine: ℹ️
Time Machine not configured!
Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️
      11% Safari
      3% WindowServer
      0% fontd
      0% Google Chrome
      0% ps
Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️
245 MB WebProcess
206 MB System Preferences
168 MB Safari
99 MB mds
82 MB Google Chrome
Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️
1.37 GB Free RAM
1.57 GB Active RAM
318 MB Inactive RAM
1.03 GB Wired RAM
436 MB Page-ins
0 B Page-outs
Basically I'm wondering if anything sticks out in this report. I was thinking it could be a possible hard drive failure. I know my computer has been dropped on the floor at least a few times. Thoughts are appreciated. Thank you for your patience.

Eab, I feel your pain! I am replying simply to share my similar ongoing experience with my early 2011 17 inch MacBook Pro, running Mavericks with seeming ample hard drive space, [applications requiring less than 100GB, about 200GB data (total drive space of 500GB)] & 4GB RAM. (Disclaimer: I am not a wise or computer-savvy mac guru - simply a fellow traveler who has had a very similar set of problems - apps taking forever to load, rapid battery depletion & super overheated MacBook. While I am a Genius Bar groupie, getting to the Apple store is, for me, akin to an antarctic polar expedition (i.e. problematic). Having spent endless hours struggling with a similar issue, I offer you a synopsis of my struggle/experience.
STEPS TO DATE:
1.Installed several memory utility programs (Daisy Disk & MacCleanse) system
maintenance program to regularly and thoroughly empty application caches (Adobe apps & internet browsers being tremendous hogs), identify and remove language elements and other redundant space hogs, etc.   Result: Small, but real improvement when I forced myself to perform a "scan and delete" session every second major computer run (typically about 6-8 hours in length). However, this did nothing to help the problems regularly detected when I run the Disk Utility which almost invariably demonstrates disk permissions that need to be repaired and, with increasing frequency, has demonstrated actual disk errors that require restarting and walking through a disk repair protocol. I did bring it to the Genius Bar where they kindly reinstalled Mavericks which they could do in about an hour versus the several hours that doing this at home requires. This did identify that my RAM was, on fact, a limitation on the speed at which I could run certain apps.
2. My next move was to install an additional 4GB of RAM. I bought the new RAM on eBay for about $90 because, with 3 kids equipped with MacBooks & iPhones, I simply couldn't afford the official Apple RAM. I even installed it myself, with the help of a YouTube video. Result: Giant improvement in speed (starting up or switching apps. If I had realized how simple it turned out to be, I would have done it well over a year ago. Some minor improvement in the overheating problem, but persistent problems with disk permissions continually requiring repair and periodic disk repairs (using Disk Utility) required.
PLANNED FINAL INTERVENTION:
3. I am purchasing and installing a solid state drive (ssd) and simply chucking the original hard drive, after considerable discussion with my savvier mac friends. It has become clear to me that, sadly, every hard drive has a finite life affected by a variety of factors. I am, in fact, hard on my equipment - running multiple graphic apps simultaneously, transferring massive GBs of data between my laptop, time capsule and an array of hard drives. I will let you know how it goes, but can share that the decision to get a solid state drive followed many conversations with multiple Mac guru-types (in the hope of saving you similar painful tribulations). The cost varies according to the size of the drive, but $400-$500 would buy a reasonable starting size. I am waiting for Black Friday sales, myself. Amazon (where I will likely purchase the ssd) is already offering a number of pre-Black Friday deals. While I don't really feel like putting out that amount of cash, I reassure myself that a new drive will almost certainly solve the disk errors (with a solid state one offering more durability) & will help me prolong the life of my MacBook Pro by a couple of years hopefully. It beats buying a new Apple MacBook only three and a half years after investing close to $3k for this one!
I am certain that more experienced forum users could point you to software that could help defragment your drive or may be able to offer other solutions. I've simply had enough of struggling with burning thighs and head-banging behavior triggered by slow performance. I hope this is helpful to you in some small way. The war is not yet over, but I'm feeling good about the battle plan!

Satellite C855-1GQ - hard drive failure warning

Hi
suddenly my laptop has started showing me "hard drive failure warnings" and I honestly have no idea what to do about it please can someone help me.
Symptom: The PredictFailure flag is set on the disk
Cause: A logical disk has the SMART Predict Failure bit set.
Details: This disk is experiencing a problem and predicts that the drive will fail
Symptom: Pred Fail
Cause: A device has reported a "Not OK" status.
Details: The device, Disk drive, is reporting a bad status value. This device will not be available until the issue is resolved. The Plug and Play ID for this device is \\.\PHYSICALDRIVE0.

Hard drive failure can be cause of computer is bumped or jostled while it is running; the electric motor which allows the platter to spin fails due to bad bearings or other components; filter on your air intake gets too clogged or the filter isn't working properly.
Extreme heat while running causes the electronic circuit board to fail.
There is a sudden power failure while the disk is writing.
You can try the following solution:
Firstly, create a bootable CD/USB by Windows Boot Genius
Windows Boot Genius is a multiple windows repair tool which can be used to fix all computer errors, create bootable CD/USB, recover data lost and unlock windows password, etc.
We just need to insert a CD or USB flash drive and run the program, then click "burn".
Secondly, set the computer boot from CD/USB after enter into the BIOS menu.
Thirdly, start to fix Hard Drive Failure with the CD/USB created at the first step.
At this section, the wizard will tell us what we need to do according to our computer's issues.

Hard Drive Failure on HP DV 6000 Pavilion laptop Windows-XPsp3 OS - Need Data Recovery Help

Hard Drive Failure on HP DV 6000 Pavilion laptop - Need Data Recovery Help
HP Pavilion DV 6108 NR, RG365UA, purchased in late 2006 at Best Buy, with Windows XP, upgraded to Service Pack 3. It has a Fujitsu hard disk, 60 gigabyte, partitioned into C: and a Recovery D:.
Windows tries to boot up, but goes to blue screen with the message: "Unmountable Boot Volume" for one second, then just keeps recycling until I force a shutdown.
BIOS Phoenix, hard drive test result: " #1-08 Fail "
I ran a disk analysis/recovery program on the Cdrive and it seemed to show the directory structure intact, and it was able to recover some files. I was using the free one from Seagate (which only recovers small files). The second pass didn't run so well, and during the third run the program said I should not proceed further, and I should contact a professional disk recovery company.
However, the D drive seems to be intact, so, I wonder if the disk is corrupted or just some aspect of the logical C drive is bad.
How can I get the D: to run the recovery software on it? The recovery disks, made by Best Buy, only proceed to the R / F / Q option screen, and when I press R, I get a blue screen every time.
Tapping the F10 key during startup gets me nowhere. Ditto the F11 key.
I dont care about the hard disk; it is the data (files, docs, images, etc) that I want.
I contacted HP to order recovery disks but they are no longer available for my computer.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Jon
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Update...
I found a website that offers the following:
http://www.computersurgeons.com/p-13442-recovery-kit-435422-001-for-hp-model-number-dv6108nr.aspx
Recovery Kit 435422-001 For HP Model Number dv6108nr
Price: $27.00
Recovery Kit Set (An Entire Image of the Computer hard drive when the computer was new)
But I wonder how useful it would be. Early XP , no doubt. And if my hard disk problem is a mechanical fault, would any recovery disk even work? The disks made by Best Buy when I bought mine new in 2006 don't do anything more than go to the R /F/ Q screen and then goes to a blue screen when I press R (to recover the OS and apps and data files). And, as I wrote, it is the data that I want, not the disk drive.

Hard Drive Failure on HP DV 6000 Pavilion laptop (dv6108nr) with Windows-XPsp3 OS - Need Data Recov

Hard Drive Failure on HP DV 6000 Pavilion laptop - Need Data Recovery Help
HP Pavilion DV 6108 NR, RG365UA, purchased in late 2006 at Best Buy, with Windows XP, upgraded to Service Pack 3. It has a Fujitsu hard disk, 60 gigabyte, partitioned into C: and a Recovery D:.
Windows tries to boot up, but goes to blue screen with the message: "Unmountable Boot Volume" for one second, then just keeps recycling until I force a shutdown.
BIOS Phoenix, hard drive test result: " #1-08 Fail "
I ran a disk analysis/recovery program on the Cdrive and it seemed to show the directory structure intact, and it was able to recover some files. I was using the free one from Seagate (which only recovers small files). The second pass didn't run so well, and during the third run the program said I should not proceed further, and I should contact a professional disk recovery company.
However, the D drive seems to be intact, so, I wonder if the disk is corrupted or just some aspect of the logical C drive is bad. Or does the disk have a mechanical failure, in which case, is a recovery disk even helpful at all?
How can I get the D: to run the recovery software on it? The recovery disks, made by Best Buy, only proceed to the R / F / Q option screen, and when I press R, I get a blue screen every time.
Tapping the F10 key during startup gets me nowhere. Ditto the F11 key.
I dont care about the hard disk; it is the data (files, docs, images, etc) that I want.
I contacted HP to order recovery disks but they are no longer available for my computer. (But see below, "UPDATE")
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Jon
===============================
UPDATE:
I found a website that offers the following:
www.computersurgeons.com/p-13442-recovery-kit-435422-001-for-hp-model-number-dv6108nr.aspx
Recovery Kit 435422-001 For HP Model Number dv6108nr
Price: $27.00
Recovery Kit Set (An Entire Image of the Computer hard drive when the computer was new)
But I wonder how useful it would be. Early XP , no doubt. And if my hard disk problem is a mechanical fault, would any recovery disk even work? The disks made by Best Buy when I bought mine new in 2006 don't do anything more than go to the R /F/ Q screen and then my computer goes to a blank blue screen when I press R (to recover the OS and apps and data files). And, as I wrote, it is the data that I want, not the disk drive.
Any help here would also be appreciated!
Jon

Hi @goshenguy
Thank you for your inquiry, I am happy to help.
I grasp you tested the hard drive from the bios and it failed. This tests the physical aspcects of the hard drive and when it fails it does require replacement. You were able to retrieve some of your files using recovery software but not all.
Your recovery partition is still intact and when you try to do a recovery with the disks from Best Buy you do not get past these options R / F / Q but will not proceed.
Here is a link to Performing an HP System Recovery (Windows XP, 2006 or Later) that may assist you in performing a recovery.
Here is a link to the Maintenance and Service Guide HP Pavilion dv6000 Notebook PC. Please note chapter 3 page 42 for a replacement hard drive part number.
HP Parts, HP Replacement Parts
If you are still unable to do the recovery, you could try contacting Best Buy for assistance with the recovery kit they provide.
I don't know if it is possible, but you may want to check cloning software to see if you could clone the D partion to the new drive or connect both drives and try a drive to drive copy of the D partition.
If you were able to successfully put the D partition on a new hard drive you should be able to do a recovery from the D partition to take it back to factory.
If none of the above has allowed you to successfully do a recovery, I suggest contacting Best Buy to see it they have options other then purchasing a third party recovery kit.
Good Luck!
Sparkles1
I work on behalf of HP
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Hard drive failures after 10.6 installation, 2 library folders appear.

I have had to erase my intel imac hard drive 3 times and reinstall 10.6.
Each time the computer slowed to a standstill after a day or so, while using safari or mail.
It could not be repaired with disk utility.
After reinstalling 10.6 I have then retrieved the data from time machine. In all cases I had to update to OS 10.6.1 in order get my printer going (with the updated driver).
The odd thing is that when checking the hard drive trying to find out what is causing the problem
I noticed that it had
one library folder in the system folder
and another library folder outside the system folder
on the internal hard drive.
Is this the reason for the hard drive failures?
What should I do with this?? How could this have happened?
Please help! I've been using only Mac since 1986 more or less without any trouble,
but now I am having the kind of problems with SL that I thought only Windows users had!

HI,
"*It could not be repaired with disk utility.*"
Insert Installer disk and Restart, holding down the "C" key until grey Apple appears.
Go to Installer menu (Panther and earlier) or Utilities menu (Tiger and later) and launch Disk Utility.
Select your HDD (manufacturer ID) in the left panel.
Select First Aid in the Main panel.
*(Check S.M.A.R.T Status of HDD at the bottom of right panel. It should say: Verified)*
Click Repair Disk on the bottom right.
If DU reports disk does not need repairs quit DU and restart.
*If DU reports errors Repair again and again until DU reports disk is repaired.*
When you are finished with DU, from the Menu Bar, select Utilities/Startup Manager.
Select your start up disk and click Restart
While you have the Disk Utility window open, look at the bottom of the window. *Where you see Capacity and Available. Make sure there is always 10% to 15% free disk space.*
There should be a Library folder in the System Folder.
Carolyn

My MacBook Air chimes during startup but flashes a bar at the bottom then shuts down, is this a hard drive failure or a hard ware failure? Please help I miss my laptop

First generation MacBook Air running OSX 10.6.8

Hi,
From what you describe it's certainly a Hard Drive failure so you'll definetely need to contact HP. Personally, considering this is the 2nd HDD in under 2 months, I say it's either bad luck ( however unlikely ) or there is another issue at play - it may be worth suggesting this to HP when you contact them.
Regards,
DP-K
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****Please mark Accept As Solution if it solves your problem****
****I don't work for HP****
Microsoft MVP - Windows Experience

Hard Drive Failure on Satellite A660

I bought a new Toshiba A series 9 months ago.
Within a week I had to return it because the sound card was not working. The store I bought it from did not have an identical replacement so the replacement model cost me an additional $150.
Now the hard drive has failed.
Any attempt to back up anything fails so I will lose everything including an important contract. Toshiba tell me that I should go and pay a computer store to save my files!!!
I would consider it just a coincidence except that a friend who purchased a Qosmio a month before I purchased my A660 has also had her hard drive fail. It has supposedly been repaired under warranty but is still not working.
So much for Toshiba stating "Toshiba believes that reliability is the single most important feature a laptop can have and understands that it must be built in and not something that can be bolted-on.
The result? Our laptops have a class-leading reputation for reliability." The technical support person said that its just bad luck - its electronic anything can fail at anytime - thats nothing to do with reliability.
So what is Toshiba reliability?

"When you bring your notebook there, they will check if the warranty data at first. If the warranty is valid every defective hardware component will be exchanged for free.
Maybe it sounds stupid not but I believe people who work in this store have utilized your situation to make more money and sell you new HDD for $150."
I think you misunderstood. The first time it was a sound card failure and the computer was less than 2 weeks old. It was TOSHIBA that told me to return it to the store (they gave me a specific number to give to the store when returning it) and exchange it for a new computer!!!! The store did not have the exact model to exchange it with. So I had two choices. Pay the $150 or take it home, spend a day dropping it off to Toshiba and then wait 21 days for them to repair a brand new computer that I had not even been able to use, or pay the additional $150 for a different model. Funnily as a consumer I dont expect to pay large amounts of money for something that has to be repaired before it can be used.
This second problem has now occurred, 9 months later, which is the hard drive failure.
I do realise that this is a user to user forum, but I am hoping to warn people that Toshiba is no longer a reliable brand. The Toshiba technician told me that the very first thing he expects to fail is the hard drive and I am simply lucky that in 16 years of owning my own home computers that I have never had a hard drive failure. Funny thing is none of my friends have ever had a hard drive failure before either....... My girlfriend and I must be the unluckiest people in the world to both buy brand new Toshiba computers at the same time and to have the hard drive fails at the same time........... Not a strong believer of coincidence I strongly suspect that Toshiba have a problem with a component(s) that they are using, its not just our "bad luck". This is the first time I have even had to use the warranty on a computer that I have purchased.
On the plus side Toshiba offered to send a courier to collect the computer, of course no replacement or loan computer. I did arrange for them to collect the computer Monday as I was not going to be home yesterday and need to find the correct box and packing materials to return it (they gave me VERY specific instructions on how it must be packed). But then I had a dozen phone calls yesterday from the courier trying to contact me to arrange to pick it up either yesterday or now today. I just hope that they are equally keen to return it as quickly!!!!
Sorry I am VERY annoyed. I am in a position where I NEED a computer. My son is disabled uses various bits and pieces of medical equipment to survive, (eg ventilators, monitors etc) and I use the computer to communicate with the hospital. If I cant get access to a computer he gets to spend the time I wait for its repair in hospital. I realise that my personal situation is not Toshiba's concern however I paid more and bought the Toshiba because of its reputation for reliability as that was VERY important to me. It has proven to be the most unreliable computer I have ever owned. I will now have to dust off a cheap Dell that is 6 years old, still works just fine, and use that while my expensive Toshiba gets fixed. And thats what is annoying, even my first 2 gig and now 16 year old computer still works, no hard drive failure..........

Reasons for Hard Drive failure (bad blocks)

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