Top Signs of Hard Drive Failure

A hard drive failure can be a frustrating disaster, leading to system crashes and even permanent data loss. And there’s nothing worse than losing a lifetime’s worth of family photos, videos and important documents. The good news is that there are warning signs that can signal an impending hard drive failure, giving you time to take action. In this post, we’ll look at the main signs of failure so you can take proactive steps to protect your data.

Strange Noises
Failed hard disks often make strange noises, such as the following. Keep in mind, however, that these sounds apply more to hard disks (aka mechanical drives) than to SSDs:

Clicking or ticking: Indicates a mechanical failure or head assembly failure.
Whirring or grinding sounds: Indicates motor or bearing failure.
Beeping or buzzing: Signals a power failure or electrical problem.

Data Corruption
If you notice that files are becoming corrupted, cannot be opened, or are missing altogether, this is an indication that your hard drive is experiencing errors. This could mean that a failure is imminent, but it could also be a sign of a benign problem such as fragmentation or sector corruption. We recommend running other disk checking tools such as System File Checker or chkdsk to determine the severity of the problem.

Blue Screen of Death (BSOD)
BSOD can occur for a number of reasons, including hard drive failure. If you experience BSOD frequently, you can usually find the cause by doing a Google search for the resulting error code. If it’s hard drive related, the Internet will tell you. If not, then now you have another problem to solve ……

SMART Errors
Your system should contain a utility called SMART (Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology), which is a built-in BIOS application designed to monitor and alert you to potential hard disk failures. If you receive a SMART alert, especially after some type of crash, do not ignore it! It is most likely an indication that a hard disk failure is imminent.

Checking for SSD Failures
Generally speaking, SSDs have a longer lifespan than hard disks, but that doesn’t mean that SSDs are infallible. For example, all SSDs have a limited number of total bytes written (TBW), which is the number of times they can be written/rewritten to before they wear out.

Most SSDs have a proprietary utility to monitor the health of the drive, and each manufacturer has its own unique program (Samsung’s Samsung Magician, Crucial’s Crucial Storage Executive, etc.). If you’re using a Velocity Micro PC, the utility will come pre-installed, but if not, you may need to download and install it yourself. Each utility is a little different, but all rate the health, total capacity, and usage of each drive. These features come in handy for proactively monitoring your hardware.

Other errors indicating hard disk failure
New message indicating that the hard disk is not formatted (may be caused by software or power surges)
Boot loops: virus or Trojan horse may be present in the boot sector
System lockups and freezes: may be bad sectors or related to software or resources
Hard disk not found: check connectors (SATA and power), BIOS setup, RAID setup (if applicable)
Operating system not found: check BIOS setup, may be caused by hard disk prioritization
If any of these signs occur, it is best to back up your data immediately and begin a hard drive replacement program. Remember, all Velocity Micro systems have a Lifetime Upgrade Program that can help with issues like these!