Computer keeps killing hard drives

Galdorf

Galdorf

Well-Known Member
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Location
Ontario, Canada
Have a customer so far i have replaced his hard drive 4 times each time the hard drives have loads of bad sectors any idea what could be causing this?.
Things i have done:
Changed mfg tried 3 different brands. including WD blacks.
Changed power supply put a more expensive power supply bronze 80 cert.
Changed both the sata cables and mother board.
 
I would try a fresh install of windows perhaps he has something that is writing like crazy to the drive?

Sent from my SM-G870W using Tapatalk
 
We had a customer laptop that went through 3 drives in a year, the last time we put in an SSD, and haven't see the customer since. If it's a laptop, I'd strongly suggest an SSD.
 
10G is the recommended sensitivity for Hard Drives:
http://www.shockwatch.co.uk/selection-guide.htm

1NusLwG.png


However, I suspect 10G is more suited to hard drive shipping. 5G might be better if you're looking to detect shocks while the drive is in use.

OR, you could use both a 5G and a 10G.
 
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Galdorf said:
any idea what could be causing this?
Click to expand...

Yes - it's the customer.

We had a similar situation a few years ago and after a little polite but persistent questioning the client admitted that he was a semi-pro* skateboarder and kept his laptop in his backpack during practice so it wouldn't get stolen. He didn't see how that could possibly be relevant but since moving him to an SSD he's had no further problems, so perhaps we were right after all.


* Good enough to make some money at it, not good enough to leave home.
 
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Bad sectors would be due to deteriorating media, head problems, or head damage that damages the media. Could also be corroded PCB contacts at the HDA connector (caused by corrosive atmosphere). I assume you tested each replacement drive to verify its health before installation, once the problem repeated itself. Seems like a physical issue (vibration or impacts). How well is the drive mounted? I would try HDD Sentinel to get a history of HDD health, plus a UPS.
 
I've had ground faults and power problems cause this, also defective RAM can manifest as a bad hard disk too.

But the ground faults thing is huge out here, the computer figures out the difference between 0 and 1, by comparing voltage to ground. So if you've got intermittent voltage on ground, the unit will lose its mind. If the customer lives in a rural area, you can either suggest a line interactive UPS, or a laptop. The former upgrades a desktop to have the power filtration built into a laptop.

The shock sensor isn't a bad idea either... but I think I'd just sell him an SSD, no moving parts to break.
 
Galdorf said:
They live right next to a train track could this be what is causing the problem?
Click to expand...

Should not be so. People work using laptops with rotational drives inside the actual trains, and not much, if anything, ever happens.

Do you happen to have SMART dumps from these drives?
 
Galdorf said:
They live right next to a train track could this be what is causing the problem?.
Click to expand...
It's likely that the shock waves will subject the drive to much smaller forces than a drop at the rated g-force would (unless the trains pass right through the house!).

However, if the shock waves are able to travel relatively unhindered through the floor to the PC (ie if it's a hard floor and there is little in the way of absorption materials), I would imagine it's possible that lots of smaller, repeated shocks could cause premature wear, especially given the extreme precision and tolerances of a modern hard drive. And with a flying height of just tens of micrometers, it probably doesn't take a large shock to make a head kiss a platter. Not enough to make a hard drive suddenly fail, but possibly enough to result in a few bad sectors over time.

Does the PC have rubber feet or hard plastic feet? If you want minimise or rule out minor shocks you could attach some soft rubber feet to the bottom of case and/or use hard drive rubber suspension mounts, such as these:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Scythe-Anti-Vibrations-Mounting-Hard-Stabilizer/dp/B000VWH31Q

https://www.amazon.co.uk/SEDNA-Shock-Proof-Hard-Mounting-adapter/dp/B01EHRAWJU
 
The vibration of a train also causes voltage oscillation in the power grid, anyone living in close proximity to such heavy equipment would be well served to have a whole house UPS installed. It will greatly extend the life of every device dependent on electricity in the home, including light bulbs.

But failing that, a line interactive UPS is in order.
 
Sky-Knight said:
I've had ground faults and power problems cause this, also defective RAM can manifest as a bad hard disk too.

But the ground faults thing is huge out here, the computer figures out the difference between 0 and 1, by comparing voltage to ground. So if you've got intermittent voltage on ground, the unit will lose its mind. If the customer lives in a rural area, you can either suggest a line interactive UPS, or a laptop. The former upgrades a desktop to have the power filtration built into a laptop.

The shock sensor isn't a bad idea either... but I think I'd just sell him an SSD, no moving parts to break.
Click to expand...
This, always suspect power when weird sh-t starts happening.
 
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