Signs of bad hard drive?

I noticed the other day that my iMac seemed a lot more sluggish - a lot of spinning beach balls when opening windows, web pages, system preferences, etc.
So I restarted the computer, and it wouldn't boot, just a grey screen with the spinning wheel. I tried holding down the option key and booting into Windows (which I had installed several weeks ago via Boot Camp). It wouldn't get past the initial black screen with the vertical bars at the bottom.
So I started the computer in target disk mode and connected it to my iBook. When I try to copy things from the iMac to the iBook (I'm trying to back up key files, just in case...) the waits for copying are very long.
Are these the first signs of hard drive failure?
Thanks

You can do a basic check of the status of your hard drive in Disk Utility as well. At the bottom of the Disk Utility window, check the status reported in the S.M.A.R.T. Status field.
1. If the status is Verified, your hard drive is considered to be working properly.
2. If the status is other than Verified, such as About to Fail, then your hard drive is not working properly.
Also, after you have successfully transfered your data files to your other Mac, use Disk Utility on the Install disk to erase your hard drive and then do a clean install of OS X. I would choose the erase option that writes zeros to the drive.
Here is a website that was recommended today in another post, perhaps you will find useful ideas here as well!
http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/faqs.html

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Bad Hard Drive or Bad File System?

Good morning.
A few months ago my late 2008 iMac went to the Genius Bar for what I was convinced was a bad hard drive. I was having long "beachball" pauses, until I couldn't do much without waiting several seconds, at least, for the program to respond, even if I wasn't running much of anything. I started seeing I/O errors in the kernel log pointing to the system disk. Finally, the system stopped booting, getting stuck forever at the grey apple screen. The disk utility was unable to repair the file system and the complete hardware test confirmed a problem with the hard drive.
So I was pretty surprised when I lugged the thing to the Genius Bar and they decided the file system was just totally messed up. They reinstalled Snow Leopard (something I could have done at home, had the tech on the phone not agreed with me that it was a physical issue), and I went home. It worked great for a time. I couldn't understand how a system could develop a problem so severe, but it worked and I was happy.
But now it looks like I'm running into the same issue. WoW chokes. Firefox freezes. iTunes 10 makes me want punch a wall. I'm not necessarily running all three at the same time, and other program are starting to act the same way. And as of last night, those I/O errors are appearing in my log again (oh yeah, the console freezes too).
If it's not a physical disk issue, I just don't understand how this could happen twice. IIRC, the Genius explained that the file system is self-healing, but eventually the problems stack up until it just craps itself. Is HFS such a delicate flower? I was gently admonished for doing things like running WoW and having a Bootcamp partition (the latter of which I don't have now). This seems like a silly thing to worry about. Both are perfectly normal uses of any reasonably powerful system.
Could it really be messed up a second time? Should I just insist that the hard drive be replaced? If you do think it's nothing more than a logical issue, can you help me understand how this happens and how to prevent it? I'm trying to understand Macs as well as I understand Windows-based PCs.
Thanks!

Thanks for the reassurance on HFS, Macbig. I wanted to trust the expertise of the Genius, but it was a pretty confusing situation. I saw every sign that on a non-Mac would scream failing hard drive, including an actual failed hardware test, and to have someone confidently tell me that the hard drive was fine and that the test could determine the drive was failed based on a screwy file system left me doubtful that I could ever quite understand these Macs.
I know I won't be able to take my iMac in for service this week, but maybe I can get a ticket in for parts in the meantime.
WZZZ, I will definitely run the extended test again. S.M.A.R.T reports all is well, but I can't remember the last time I've seen S.M.A.R.T warn of approaching doom before it was too late.

How to recover data from bad hard drive

Once a hard drive goes bad (cannot get into the computer), is there any hope of recovering any data from it? If so, how?

Do you mean the hard drive is mechanically broken for sure? It's not a data corruption issue that is causing a problem with starting up the Mac, but maybe not be a bad mechanism?
If the drive is definitely broken, there are businesses that specialize in recovering data from bad hard drives. For example
http://www.drivesaversdatarecovery.com/ (I always saw their booth at MacWorld Expos...)
The cost of such services is usually high.
cannot get into the computer
So that probably means the hard drive in question is the internal drive? If you don't know for sure that the hard drive is physically broken, you can try starting up using your Mac OS X installation disc. Insert disc in optical drive and start up with the C key held down. When you get to Installer's screen, go up to the menu bar and run Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. Does the internal drive appear in the Disk Utility sidebar?
Alternately, if you have another Mac (that has FireWire), you can try starting the Mac with the problem in FireWire Target Disk Mode,
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1661
Connect the "target" Mac to the other Mac (running normally) using a FireWire cable. Run Disk Utility on that Mac. Does the hard drive of the Mac in FireWire Target Disk Mode appear in the sidebar?
If you can get the internal drive to appear in Disk Utility, you may be able to run Repair Disk on the First Aid tab. There are also third-party utilities, such as TechTool Pro (Micromat), Drive Genius (Prosoft), and Disk Warrior (Alsoft), that may be able to fix (or at least recover data from) the hard drive.

Cannot uninstall cs6 bad hard drive, any suggestions?

Cannot uninstall cs6 bad hard drive, any suggestions?
THank you

Thank you for the Adobe contact. They connected me to the chat link and the Adobe tech Support rep sent me a License Recovery download link (attached) http://download.macromedia.com/pub/support/tools/LicenseRecovery111.dmg.
I have 10.10.1 Yosemite. When I open the download folder and click on the LicenseRecovery.app it shows up on the dock but it nothing happens. I cannot quit the app only Force Quit. I have restarted the mac and that did't help.
Adobe chat suggested I uninstall CS5.5/6 and re-install but why would that have anything to do with the app opening?
Any suggestion is greatly appreciated, again.
Thank you

Cloning a bad hard drive

If this were a PC, I'd have no problem. But I'm not a Mac Tech.
I usually back up my laptop's hard drive to an external hard drive using the Disk Utility. Has worked great, never had to restore from it.
Now, the hard drive is begining to fail. So I tried to make one more backup of it, to save me reinstalling when I get the new HD. But the backup fails because of a file system error (file/dir does not exist), which is due to the bad state of the hardware.
Now if this was a PC, I'd just use a utility to copy the drive, errors and all, which would be fine because then I could fix the problem once the data is on a good hard drive.
But I have no such utility for my Mac. My PC utilities don't recognize the Mac file system, so I can't trust them.
*So, how does one copy a slightly buggy hard drive using a Mac? Any tricks in Disk Utility? Tried it from the CD, same result. And other utilities?*
I could just reinstall, but I just got this thing built just right a month ago!

One Mac cloning utility that I like is Super Duper:
http://www.shirt-pocket.com/SuperDuper/SuperDuperDescription.html
You can download it and do a clone of your hard drive for free. If you decide to register it, you can unlock other features.
Another utility is called Carbon Copy Cloner. I have never used it, so I don't know much about it. I believe you can download and run it for free, and then make a donation if you like it.
http://www.bombich.com/software/ccc.html
I have never attempted to clone a bad hard drive, so I don't know how this would work.
Good luck!

My i mac is having trouble at Start up and often makes a clicking sound followed eventually by a folder icon on the screeen that shows a file with a questionmark inside, Is this a sign that my hard drive is failing?

My i mac is having trouble at Start up and often makes a clicking sound followed eventually by a folder icon on the screen that shows a file with a question mark inside, Is this a sign that my hard drive is failing?

As for the folder with a '?', here is some info that might help:
https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5201710
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS2570
Hopefully you are making regular full backups just in case the hard drive is failing?

I'm replacing a bad hard drive on my imac. It was a 500GB Seagate 7200.12. Can I replace it with a 1TB Seagate 7200.14 HDD??

I'm replacing a bad hard drive on my imac. It was a 500GB Seagate 7200.12. Can I replace it with a 1TB Seagate 7200.14 HDD??

Yes of course.

Lenovo B570 Bad Hard Drive

My daughters laptop won't boot and won't allow me to do a system recovery which I suspect is indicative of a bad hard drive.
I've been through the troubleshooting forums and from the best I can tell, it's toast.
The laptop isn't under warranty anymore and I know can buy a new drive from lots of places but it doesn't come with the OS. Does Lenovo sell these drives with OS installed so I can just pop it back in without the hassle of buying a windows cd, finding the right divers etc etc.

Welcome to the Lenovo Community !
I don't know about Lenovo selling an OS installed hard drive, kind of doubt it, but another option to consider is purchasing a set of recovery discs from Lenovo for your model. Give Lenovo Support a call about the hard drive to see if that is an option. Otherwise check with them on availability and pricing on the recovery discs.
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Cisco IDSM-1 bad hard drive

Hello,
A bit of an odd question but does anyone have any kind of recovery software for the Cisco IDSM1? I have a Cisco 6509 with and old(!) Cisco WS-X6381-IDS that seems to work fine, but has a bad hard drive and therefore wont boot. I get the "boot loader" prompt where I can select maintenance partition or application partition but both result in an I/O bad disk error. I know the WS-X6381-IDS is ancient, but I find the card oddly fascinating. I can browse the "application" software on the download center but I don't see any kind of recovery software. I can obviously replace the hard drive, but how can I re-install the maintenance/application partition and software on the new drive? I'm not even sure if this part of the card was ever user replaceable/maintainable.
Thanks in advance!
--Will
*EDIT*
I was able to figure it out. The files hosted on Ciscos download section, are cab files of the root of the Windows NT 4 install that makes up the IDSMs primary operating system. If you take the hard drive (or another dirve) out of the IDSM and put it in a computer, install Windows NT (create two partitions), boot linux, delete the contents of the partition, and copy the files from Ciscos site to the partitions. The drive should boot right up.
Thanks,
--Will

Hello,
A bit of an odd question but does anyone have any kind of recovery software for the Cisco IDSM1? I have a Cisco 6509 with and old(!) Cisco WS-X6381-IDS that seems to work fine, but has a bad hard drive and therefore wont boot. I get the "boot loader" prompt where I can select maintenance partition or application partition but both result in an I/O bad disk error. I know the WS-X6381-IDS is ancient, but I find the card oddly fascinating. I can browse the "application" software on the download center but I don't see any kind of recovery software. I can obviously replace the hard drive, but how can I re-install the maintenance/application partition and software on the new drive? I'm not even sure if this part of the card was ever user replaceable/maintainable.
Thanks in advance!
--Will
*EDIT*
I was able to figure it out. The files hosted on Ciscos download section, are cab files of the root of the Windows NT 4 install that makes up the IDSMs primary operating system. If you take the hard drive (or another dirve) out of the IDSM and put it in a computer, install Windows NT (create two partitions), boot linux, delete the contents of the partition, and copy the files from Ciscos site to the partitions. The drive should boot right up.
Thanks,
--Will

Replaced What I Thought was a bad hard drive...

I recently bought an iBook that I knew had issues. I had another iBook with a bad hard drive that I replaced without problems. Now, I just tried to replace the hard drive on the new one, made sure all the connections had been made, etc. When I went to use the restore disk, it does not recognize the new hard drive.
Is this a bad cable or something else?

It sounds like you are having the same problem I did with a new hard drive not being recognized. I replaced the hard drive in my iBook G4 and it wasn't recognized at all. I took off the lower case to be sure it was securely plugged into the logic board and reassembled it and again no dice. I then completely disassembled the iBook and checked everything including the cable and put it all back together again and again, no dice. But I did hear it spin up and run. So I thought a while and then decided to try resetting the PMU several times. And then the drive was recognized, and I was able to proceed to install the OS. Don't know why this worked, but it did for me.
Start up and listen carefully and see if you can hear the hard drive. You may boot up to a flashing world which will eventually turn into a flashing Mac folder/question mark. After resetting the PMU, you should be able to boot up directly to the flashing folder/question mark. If so, try again and see if DU can see the drive then. If you can hear the drive spinning, then that it would argue that the cable is working to some degree at least.
Good luck!

Perhaps a sign of a bad hard drive

Just got my MacBook Pro back from Apple. The old hard drive wasn't working correctly from the very beginning. One thing I just noticed was after using it for the last hour and a half, it is significantly cooler to the touch.
Could this be a sign that if your notebook is running [very] hot that it could be a faulty drive? I would have it checked out, The difference is immediately noticeable.

Not necessarily. This could also be caused by a graphics card running warm, bad cooling, leaving it on your lap for too long, etc.
That doesn't mean that the HDD ISN'T faulty, but don't jump to conclusions.

Bad Hard Drive? Would someone please check my thinking?

If the hard drive is bad in my iBook G4 (14" 1.42mhz), shouldn't you be able to at least start up from the optical drive with your install DVD?
I just upgraded to a new 120GB hard drive, installed Leopard 10.5, then the combined update to 10.5.8, repaired permissions and was installing iLife when I got the Kernel Panic screen. *The computer was working fine before the hard drive upgrade*. I went through the Kernel Panic troubleshooting procedures on Apple Support and from Dr.Smoke to no avail. I upgraded the memory to 1.5GB and still am not able to get past the gray Apple screen before a Kernel Panic.
When I connect through Target Disc Mode to my iMac G5 and run Disc Utility on the G4 drive, it says "Repair Failed, unable to repair disc". I then erased the disc through DU, started the G4 normally to do a fresh install, but it was immediately back to the Kernel Panic when I inserted the install disc.
When I try to run Apple Hardware Test, I get a gray open firmware screen that says 'error' and a line about problem with memory access. It's an old version of AHT, so I'm not sure I can rely on it. Is my built in memory bad? An why now just after a hard drive change?
I'm thinking about going to the Apple Genius Bar in Seattle, 100 miles away but first wanted to ask if there is any possible step I've overlooked.
Thanks for you time,
Randy

The wear sustained in a hard disk drive, in a portable computer, can be
a bit more brutal in a shorter period of time. So the sounds that old drive
you took out were indications it was likely well used and on its way out.
Thanks, again, for the courtesy of a reply; and yet I should be asleep.
However, speaking of OWC, their boot capable external hard drive cases,
enclosures made of aluminum with several kinds of ports, are almost an
ideal product. If I could afford to get new good stuff, I'd consider some of
their stuff along with a new kit of Apple gear; perhaps an iMac 21.5, etc.
And something portable; maybe smaller than an iPad & weather protected.
A good time to get a clone of a portable computer's drive, is when it is
somewhat active (not fried, of course) and in the computer; then there
is less trouble, since not all external enclosures can use the small size
ATA/IDE or PATA; so special consideration or additional costs are likely.
But with a clone of the worn drive in a healthy (partitioned) external HDD
with boot capabilities, you could test the rest of the computer now.
I've been told hindsight is such a wonderful thing; usually I have the
foresight and no budget for the tools needed to accomplish the task!
If you haven't noticed this line of (dream on?) aluminum drive units @ OWC
http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/firewire/1394/USB/EliteAL/eSATAFW800_FW400USB
they are worth a look. That's about all I can do. I have two older LaCie drives
one is a D2? or something, and it literally screams. I have nothing into it and
it will need at least a new HDD inside before I can use it. But can't afford that.
And the other is a LaCie Porsche-design FW400 with 250GB 7200RPM HDD,
external power supply, and four partitions; one-each of my Macs plus a spare.
Plus a USB-port powered external drive by iomega, a 120 GB HDD inside of
unknown brand/quality; it could be good enough to install in my iBook G4, yet
my iBook has few hours runtime and no sign of needing a new one. This odd
iomega has FireWire400 ports, no power supply, and an odd dual-USB cable
where a second USB port is used for powering it, when used with USB!
So, I have not used it with USB at all, and did briefly test it for recognition by
my computers via the FireWire400 cable. It may work as storage; but with a
portable computer, that only robs the battery to run those kind.
While some users of last model iBook G4s with USB 2.0 ports (few) did note
in an unofficial and I'd say unsupported/unverified capacity, they were able
to boot the final iBooks from a USB flash or thumbdrive, I have not tried that;
I do use the small USB memory devices to move data & images, though.
They do not appear to consume much battery power when away from AC
power supplies, when using the portable. I have two Apple batteries for my
iBook G4 and while that can be nice, it also means I have more maintenance
in regards to keeping on top of their use and charge/calibration cycles, too.
Well, I am rambling here; maybe because I should have been sleeping
instead of reading several topics and then mistakenly stayed awake. It's
only 4:48 AM now, so there's plenty of time between now and, say 7:30
for me to get some sleep, you think?
If you were further north, I'd let you use or have the drive out of the iomega
120, it is new; but of unknown quality. It is still inside the boxed iomega.
Good luck & happy computing!

Can I use my time capsule with a bad hard drive as a wireless router if I remove the hard drive?

I have a 500 GB time capsule with a failed HD (i've repalced the whole machine with a new time capsule). I cannot get past the start up when I plug it in and the light glows a solid amber. If I remove the hard drive can I use it as just a wireless router to exted my network?

Yes, although the existing power supply might go bad before long.. you can run the TC as just an AEBS..
It is a fairly easy job to get the hd out.
http://www.ifixit.com/Device/Apple_Time_Capsule
Key to it is using hot air gun or even a hair dryer on really high temp lowest fan and spend enough time getting to glue to soften.

File recovery from a "bad" hard drive?

My macbook air was giving me the flashing-question-mark-folder. I took it into the apple store and they told me my hard drive "went bad" and has to be replaced. I don't have a back up (stupid, I know)- is there really NO way to get my files recovered? (the guy at the store was kinda rude and I got the feeling he wasn't trying very hard...)

For iTunes version 7 or later, then you can transfer purchased iTunes store music from the iPod to an authorized computer by using the "file/transfer purchases from iPod" menu. Note that the maximum of 5 authorized computers applies here.
Find out how to do that here.
How to copy iTunes purchases from an iPod to a computer.
For all other non purchased content (your own CDs etc) try this method which works on some Windows PCs.
Enable your iPod for disk use.
See: iPod Disk Use.
Open iTunes and select edit/preferences/advanced/general. Put a check mark in the box marked "copy files to iTunes music folder when adding to library" and also "keep iTunes music folder organized", then click 'ok'.
Connect the iPod whilst holding down the shift/ctrl keys to prevent any auto sync, and if you see the dialogue window asking if you want to sync to this itunes library, click 'no'.
Then go to file/add folder, open 'my computer', select your iPod and click 'ok'.
The music files should transfer to your iTunes.
If this doesn't work (and it may not because officially it's not supposed to), check out the instructions/suggestions here.
Music from iPod to computer (using option 2). This a manual method using "hidden folders" and although it works, it is a little more involved than other methods.
Much easier ways are to use one of the many 3rd party programs that copy music from the iPod to the computer.
One of the most recommended is Yamipod. This is a free program that transfers music from iPod back to the computer. However, it does not transfer playcounts/ratings etc.
Another free program is Pod Player.
SharePod is also freeware.

I have a laptop with a bad hard drive, my iTunes library is on an external hardrive. How do I move iTUnes to a new computer and have it work?

I have my iTunes Library all saved on an external hard drive. I have iTunes on the desktop of my laptop. The hard drive in my laptop is going bad. How do I move iTunes to another computer and be able to use my external hard drive? This may be easier than I might think. I hope so.
Thanks

Hey oob,
Thanks for the question. You may find the information in the following article helpful in moving your iTunes library via external drive:
iTunes: How to move your music to a new computer
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4527
Thanks,
Matt M.

Signs of bad hard drive?

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