Surface scan errors

My iMac G5 began freezing up, sometimes making ticking noises, loud fan noises. After talking to Tech Support and repairing permissions and repairing disk, I am running the Tech Tool Deluxe CD. On the surface scan test, there are 72 errors and it's only about 1/10 finished. What does this mean?

Which version of TechTools Deluxe are you using, Wilma?
It is very common for the version included with AppleCare packages to be TOO OLD for the version of the OS installed on your computer. Sadly, sometimes the people on the phones don't seem to check before asking you to try it.
see http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=61794 for information about updating to the current version. You should be able to obtain it from https://support.apple.com/techtooldeluxe/main?id=dl
Using an "older" version of TTD can cause serious problems.
It MAY be that the indicated problems are real, and that your HD has serious problems. It may also, however, simply be a false error reading, in which case attempting to use TTD to resolve the situation may cause far more serious problems than it can cure.
Personally I WISH that Apple only provided this software as a download, rather than on the Applecare CD's, so that people could be assured of using the latest version, appropriate for their computer.
Rod

Similar Messages

Persistent surface scan error on techtool- please help

My Powerbook started running slower than usual, so I decided to run the Techtool Deluxe cd I got with my Apple Care plan. I ran all the tests. My result: 5 errors in the Surface Scan test.
I didn't know what to do, so I took my Powerbook to the Apple store Genius Bar. The guy just said I needed to reformat my HD. So, I did the "erase and install" reformat at the store.
But, the genius bar guy didn't seem to know what he was talking about, so after I did all the software updates at home, I decided to run the Techtool Deluxe cd again. Again, the results showed I had 5 errors in the Surface Scan test, even after I had completely reformatted my hard drive.
I had the 3.0.4 version of Techtool, and just to be safe that it wasn't out of date, I installed it on my computer and updated it to version 3.1.2.
With the updated 3.1.2 Techtool Deluxe program, I ran all the tests again.
And STILL I have 5 errors on my Surface Scan test.
Here is a copy of my results (every thing else passed).
Surface Scan
Failed - 5 errors
The Surface Scan test will scan the disk for bad blocks.
Media defects cause this test to fail. You should consider backing up the device, reformatting the media, replacing the data, and then testing again.
Please help! What am I supposed to do???? (I don't think reformatting my HD will help, because I already did, and still have this problem)
Thank you!

Welcome to the Apple discussions.
When you reformatted the hard drive, did you do an erase and write zero's? That's important because that's what remaps the bad sectors of the hard drive. After booting from the OS X CD, choose disk utility, choose the hard drive, and on the erase tab, choose security options and write zero's. If you don't do this step, a plain erase or erase and install only deletes the index or catalog of the disk contents.

TechTool Surface Scan 1000+ Errors. Replace Drive or Reformat?

My computer recently began freezing whenever I tried to open certain files. I found that each time the computer locked up, a Disk0s2 error flashed in the Console. After checking the SMART Status of my drive (Verified) and running Disk Utility (Repair Disk and Permissions), the problems persisted today. I ran a TechTool Surface Scan and found that my hard drive has over 1000 errors. My question is, should I take the time to reformat the drive and zero over it or should I replace my 3.5 year old hard drive?
Thanks!

jbend32 wrote:
Thanks for your response. I was afraid that the writing was on the wall with this one.
Methinks you're correct.
When I ran Repair Disk, it found two errors, one about a discrepancy in the volume of files and another in the volume directory count. It told me that 1 HFS Volume had been repaired. I'm not sure what this really means.
Always run RD repeatedly until you get two "clean" runs in a row. Each time RD fixes something, something else may be affected, or may not show up until the first thing is fixed.
RD attempts to fix the directory structure, basically the locations of every bit of millions of bits of data scattered across the HD platters. If this directory becomes corrupt, then the data cannot be located/accessed, even if it is still "intact" (would require data recovery software).
As far as an HD replacement goes, it looks like the Seagate Momentum XT might be a good option. Any thoughts?
If 5 people respond to that question, you could easily get 5 different opinions. For my preferences, Seagate has slipped over the last year or two, and although I like the idea of their hybrid drive, I will not buy one until I see reviews reflecting consistent quality. That is my recommendation to you; take a look at some reviews (Tom's hardware, newegg, Amazon, xlr8yourmac, etc.) and see what looks good to you. Another thought, I like to compare it to car brand loyalty. Is a Chevy or a Toyota or a Ford or a Honda, etc. "better?" My current favorite is Hitachi.
Message was edited by: tjk

Techtool deluxe found 7 errors during surface scan... what do i do???

please help

The steps mentioned by TTD aren't very thorough, especially for a rookie. I only have 1 error and the suggestion by TTD is:
Surface Scan
Failed - 1 errors
The Surface Scan test will scan the disk for bad blocks.
Media defects cause this test to fail. You should consider backing up the device, reformatting the media, replacing the data, and then testing again.
Can you please walk me through these steps? I have my computer backed up using Time Machine and I still have the box that I bought to upgrade my operating system to Snowleopard.

Volume structure, surface scan

I have a new imac, it's been with me for about 2 months total. I noticed some silly little things happening occasionally....so I used tech tools and did a scan. The volume structure failed....and the surface scan has 2 errors.
What's the significance of this? What should I do?

Probably nothing. If you used TT Deluxe I would not rely on it's results. The standard repair tool is Disk Utility which is in your Utilities folder. If you need to repair your drive do this:
Repairing the Hard Drive and Permissions
Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Installer menu (Utilities menu for Tiger and Leopard.) After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer. Now restart normally.
If DU reports errors it cannot fix, then you will need Disk Warrior and/or Tech Tool Pro to repair the drive. If you don't have either of them or if neither of them can fix the drive, then you will need to reformat the drive and reinstall OS X.

Tech Tool Deluxe 'Surface Scan Failed-'

Surface scan repeatedly failing, no recent change to iBook settings, I suspect that this problem may have been caused by m-audio software, however I believe it has been properly uninstalled. Advice?
Error message reads;
'Surface Scan Failed - 212 errors
The Surface Scan test will scan the disk for bad blocks.
Media defects cause this test to fail. You should consider backing up the device, reformatting the media, replacing the data, and then testing again.'
I am unsure as what this report is prompting me to do. What does the term 'media' mean in this context? Which data should I be trying to replace?
Please forward any tips on how to resolve this issue.
<Post Relocated by Moderator>

When I use the disk utility application the volume passes verification, is this contrary to Tech Tools or are they analyzing different elements of the drive?
Yes, different, DU is just basically checking part of the drive, where Directory info is stored & such.
Laptop drives are generally a lot shorter lived than regular drives, which now seem to last 3 to 5 tears.
Although these errors are present it doesn't seem to be effecting my day to day running of things at the moment...
There's a Train Wreck coming up ahead though, you can avoid it, or wait 'till it hits!
Not certain which iBook G4 you have, but here's some ideas on HD replacements...
http://eshop.macsales.com/MyOWC/Upgrades.cfm?sort=pop&model=198&type=DataStorage&TI=5904&shoupgrds=ShowUpgrades

Surface scan on TechTool Deluxe.

Hi
Surface scan on TechTool Deluxe has said that there were 48 errors, why is this? Is this due to the Internet or is it internal or is it just something that happens? Need answers please.
Regards

TJ94 wrote:
Surface scan on TechTool Deluxe has said that there were 48 errors, why is this? Is this due to the Internet or is it internal or is it just something that happens?
A surface scan identifies bad sectors on the drive where data won't be reliably read or written too.
Normally as one writes data to the drive if it can't write to it then the driver software maps off that bad sector and uses another.
However at the factory, data is likely injected directly onto the drive, right over the bad sectors and everything which might result in unstable OS X behavior.
If your computer is running fine, then no need however if OS X is unstable, then perhaps some part of OS X itself is written on a bad sector.
There is a simply method to pre-mapping off bad sectors on new hard drives, and that's Disk Utility Erase Security option Zero and format the drive HFS+ journaled. (warning all data will be lost)
You can also do this in a perfectly fine working OS X by using Disk Utilities "Erase Free Space" option and choosing Zero (don't format)
To do it to a whole OS X drive, you need to clone all the data off first using Carbon Copy Cloner, to a external drive, then hold option and boot from the clone, then use Disk Utility > Zero method.
What Zeroing does is writes 0's to every bit on the drive or free space, depending which option you choose.
The driver software for the hard drive will then map off any bad sectors automatically. So with Zeroing your forcing the machine to do it in advance.
As you notice the Surface Scan for TechTool Deluxe was not enabled in the software by default, it's because there are always errors from bad sectors, but the hard drive driver software automatically takes care of them.

What does a "full surface scan" of a hard drive?

I've been advised to do a "hard format and full surface scan" of new internal hard drives I'm adding to my new mac pro to hopefully avoid encountering any problems down the line. (mostly HDV video editing purposes) If there are any problems I would just exchange the drives now rather than wait for the problem to pop up unexpectedly. I'm not sure if disk utility does a true surface scan. So, is there any included apple application that does a true "full surface scan"? If not, what other inexpensive software would do it? I've heard of disk warrior and similar software but they are $100 which I'd like to avoid spending on a preemptive surface scan. Thanks.

You can look for free utility. But you won't find a better disk catalogue maintenance program.
You could buy TechTool Pro that does a good media surface scan but then fails or doesn't actually do anything to map a sector out.
Windows wlll let you use the vendor's own tool and does an excellent job.
SMART Utility sounds like it does a good job.
Intech Speedtools has a suite of tools but I found it to not do a good job when I did notice the side effects and behavior of weak and bad blocks. ZoneBench/QuickBench set is only $29 and you can do a lot with those, helps to create multiple partitions to force write test to every block.
Bottom line i see: no free lunches.
I use to believe that a zero all would attempt but the errors have to be really bad to pick them up. And a 7-way write erase takes 7X longer and really strains things. So I stict to WD Diagnostic Utility running in Windows, and I swear by the results and job it does. Excellect.
In theory, enterprise drives with 1.4 million MTBF hours have longer burn-in and therefore should be safer.
You could torture a drive for a few days and load it with files and then erase with zero and/or 7-way.

Failed "Surface Scan"

Hello Everyone.
I recently ran TechTool Deluxe - The program that came bundled w/ Apple Care, and it generated this report:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1347667/TechTool%20Deluxe%20Report.html
Everything passed except that in the surface scan section, it says:
Surface Scan
Failed - 1 errors
The Surface Scan test will scan the disk for bad blocks.
Media defects cause this test to fail. You should consider backing up the device, reformatting the media, replacing the data, and then testing again.
Should I be concerned about this? Unfortunately, I can not get the drive replaced for free by apple care because I bought this drive a while ago not from Apple (it seems to work very well). Does anyone have any opinions about this matter.
Thanks!

Normally, yes, but TT has a tendency to produce that erroneous error. Use Disk Utility which is in your Utilities folder to repair the drive and/or permissions. Stay away from TT Deluxe. If you need something heftier then purchase Disk Warrior.

DVD Surface Scan Software

This is the second year I've used DVDSP4 to author DVD's of my wife's studio dance recital. I got the final DVD's back yesterday and started checking them in one of our DVD players at home. Two of the seven I tried were ususable. They would start playing but pause and display a disc read error message. I called the duplication shop and they said if I bring in the discs I think are bad, they can check them and will replace them if they indeed are bad.
Is there software I can download to do a surface scan on these discs? I did a google search but all I can find is software for PC's such as Nero CD-DVD speed. Thanks in advance.

Before you go worrying about the surface of the media, think about how you built the disc...
What was the bitrate for the video?
What format of audio did you use?
How full were the discs?
Now, if your bitrate was below 7.4Mbps, and the audio was all AC3 at 192kbps, then I'd start looking at the media, but only after checking the bitrate with a tool like Mpressionist (www.digigami.com). If you encoded with Compressor there is a chance that you got a bitrate spike in the encode which will make the disc unplayable.
Finally, the duplication house will have simply copied your DVD-R, bit for bit. I would look there first to make doubly sure your disc is good.
Then I'd be thinking about the media after that! If you are sure all of your work is well within the boundaries, and that your master was fine, then ask the duplicator to use one of your own branded discs to create a copy. If that works, then it is almost certainly the media they have used!
Or, you could just ask them to replace the discs...

Deskjet 3050 all-in-one J610 series Displays "scan error-Try scan from computer"

Running I-Mac Lion. Have scanned in the past without problem. Today went to scan and "Scan Error Try scan from computer" appears on display. Why? How to correct the problem? HELP PLEASE

Hi NavyDave,
Welcome to the HP Forums, I hope you enjoy your experience! To help you get the most out of the HP Forums I would like to direct your attention to the HP Forums Guide First Time Here? Learn How to Post and More.
I see that you are having issue with scanning to your computer. I see that you are getting an error on your printer when attempting to scan. I'm giving you a document that troubleshoots Communication Error between the Scanner and Your Computer in Mac OS X v10.4, v10.5, or v10.6.
Please write back if you require additional assistance.
Thank you.
Click the “Kudos Thumbs Up" at the bottom of this post to say “Thanks” for helping!
Please click “Accept as Solution ” if you feel my post solved your issue, it will help others find the solution.
W a t e r b o y 71
I work on behalf of HP

HP scanning error: "An error has occurred saving the file because it could not be written to..

HP scanning error: “An error has occurred saving the file because it could not be written to. Check the properties for the file to make sure it is not read-only.” Dr. Google finds others with this problem. Some claim that this is caused by an upgrade of Apple OS10 (which I did do). One claims that HP has a "patch" for this problem. If I try to quit HP scan, it won't quit and freezes my computer. Here's the odd thing. I have no problem scanning in a colored page from Scientific American either before or after this error (after rebooting each time), but simple black and white documents started just today to give the error message above.

Thank you for the link however if I understood all of the instructions I would still be reluctant to try this on my own especially from a third unknown party where some of the information may be wrong and/or lost in translation. (Google translation at the end of this comment). The instructions say to uninstall the software. So if I uninstall the original HP software am I using the original disk to reinstall and then personalize again?What about all of the updates since I originally installed the software? I found the Disk Utility but what is "gatekeeper"And I am using OS X 10.9.1 that is current because I downloaded the latest upgrade. How would I reinstall it?And at what point do I go to the URL for the software drivers and the patch? This is just not practical for someone who is not proficient in troubleshooting applications.I switched to Apple because I don't want to have to go through this kind of process, take my time to fix the application and potentially mess up my system . WHy should I have to try to figure out how to retrieve the normal function in this case, of my All-In-One. If it is so simple why can't HP develop the fix and make it available? Unfortunately right now I have to find an alternative to scan some important business documents that are due today. Since I am using an older printer by technology standards even though it is working fine I may be looking for a replacement and HP may no longer be at the top of my list given that the problem appears to affect other HP models. No need to answer my questions, I'm not going to try this fix based on these instructions. Please HP provide a fix for this problem with the scanner and MAC OS X 10.9.1 compatibility! Translation of the information on the suggested link: We hereby send you a guide that should help you in solving the problem .Please carry the following: 1 Please uninstall the software again .Goto -> Programs - > Hewlett -Packard - > HP Uninstaller 2 Please repair permissions on your Mac .Go -> Utilities -> Disk Utility - > Repair Disk Permissions . 3 Please disable ' gatekeeper ' on your Mac . 4 Reinstall the full software for MAC 10.6 and patch for 10.7 / 10.8 / 10.9. HP Scanjet Software and Drivers for Mac OS X v10.6 features :http://h20566.www2.hp.com/portal/site/hpsc/template.PAGE/public/psi/swdDetails/ ? sp4ts.oid = 457 534 & spf_p.tpst = swdMain & spf_p.prp_swdMain = wsrp - navigationalState 3Di % dx % 253D % 257CswItem % 253Dsj_78355_5 % 257CswEnvOID % 253D219 % 257CitemLocale % 253D % 253D % % 257Cs wLang 257Cmode % 253D % 257Caction % 253DdriverDocument & javax.portlet.begCacheTok = com.vignette.cachetoken & javax.portlet.endCacheTok = com.vignette.cachetoken
Scanjet software patch to Use OS X 10.6 Software and Driver on OS X:http://h20566.www2.hp.com/portal/site/hpsc/template.PAGE/public/psi/swdDetails/ ? sp4ts.oid = 457 534 & spf_p.tpst = swdMain & spf_p.prp_swdMain = wsrp - navigationalState 3Di % dx % 253D % 257CswItem % 253Dcs_97791_1 % 257CswEnvOID % 253D219 % 257CitemLocale % 253D % 253D % % 257Cs wLang 257Cmode % 253D % 257Caction % 253DdriverDocument & javax.portlet.begCacheTok = com.vignette.cachetoken & javax.portlet.endCacheTok = com.vignette.cachetoken

Samsung SCN-4826FN Scanning error via USB cable

When scanning from the Multifunction Printer(MFP) user interface selecting Scan to PC the scanner is not able to properly connect with the computer. An error message comes up on the screen and says there was a scanning error. I can scan to a USB memory stick via the front panel USB interface and then plug that into the Mac and use the PDF as usual but this adds an extra step!
The MFP works fine with my older MacBook Pro even with the upgrade to Snow Leopard OS.
I've reinstalled the Samsung printer/scanner software several times and am at my wits end.
I've put an email in to Samsung describing the problem, but I have a suspicion that the Latest Snow Leopard OS-X 10.6.5 is to blame.
any suggestions would be helpful

When scanning from the Multifunction Printer(MFP) user interface selecting Scan to PC the scanner is not able to properly connect with the computer. An error message comes up on the screen and says there was a scanning error. I can scan to a USB memory stick via the front panel USB interface and then plug that into the Mac and use the PDF as usual but this adds an extra step!
The MFP works fine with my older MacBook Pro even with the upgrade to Snow Leopard OS.
I've reinstalled the Samsung printer/scanner software several times and am at my wits end.
I've put an email in to Samsung describing the problem, but I have a suspicion that the Latest Snow Leopard OS-X 10.6.5 is to blame.
any suggestions would be helpful

Have a hp photosmart getting scan error , i am however able to copy and print to same printer?

have a hp photosmart getting scan error , i am however able to copy and print to same printer?

Hello Maria444
The community needs some more information so that they can help you. If you could, please share the model of your printer as well as any other prevalent information such as Operating System. Also have you ever been able to scan and if so has anything changed recently with your devices.
Don't forgot to say thanks by giving "Kudos" to those that help solve your problems.
When a solution is found please mark the post that solves your issue.

"Could not complete scan" error when using Windows Fax and Scan

"Could not complete scan" error when using Windows Fax and Scan with a HP OfficeJet Pro 8600 Plus All-In-One network printer.
Printing is fine.
When using the HP Scan application, get the error "Scanner communication cannot be established".
When scanning from the printer itself it fails with the same message. In addition the printer panel displays the error:
"The scan could not be completed due to one or more of the following issues:
Connection to the computer is lost
The scanner is in use
OCR application is not installed"
My PC is a HP Compaq Pro 6300 SFF 64bit, with ethernet cable to the router and ethernet cable to the printer
Originally ran Windows 8.0; recently upgraded to Windows 8.1.
Older separate Netgear router and modem was replaced with a newer Netgear Router/Modem, but both experienced the same problem.
There was no problem with the original Windows 8.0 configuration and only after upgrading to 8.1 did the problem emerge.
On my home netowrk I have an HP ProBook 6550b running Windows 7 sp1 that uses wireless to get to the Router, and it has no problem with scanning.
I have followed the recommendations of a number of articles relating to this issue (including: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?cc=us&lc=en&docname=c02915410&product=4323659#N94), but there has been no change in behaviour.
The printer has a static IP address;
Power settings have been adjusted to Never for Turn off Hard Disk; Sleep and Hybrid Sleep.
Scanning has been tested with all firewalls and antivirus turned off and in Selective Startup.
The printer has been plugged directly into the power socket.
With all these settings the Windows 8.1 cannot scan while the Windows 7 laptop with wireless to the router has no problems.
Appreciate any insights into this problem.
I can only surmise that the problem is a compatibility problem between the 8600 Printer and Windows 8.1.
Any ideas?
regards,
Motorbike

You can determine if there is compatiblity between the printer and PC by checking the Windows 8.1 hardware compatibility list. I have done that and it is shown to be fully compatible. If the driver you installed before was only the basic driver,it would explain the lack of scan and copy functionality.
Download and install the Windows 8.1 full feature driver and software on the HP Compaq Pro 6300 SFF 64bit PC .
http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/softwareDownloadIndex?softwareitem=bi-108858-4&cc=us&dlc=en&lc=en...
****Please click on Accept As Solution if a suggestion solves your problem. It helps others facing the same problem to find a solution easily****
2015 Microsoft MVP - Windows Experience Consumer

Surface scan errors

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