No matter how high quality your HDD, sooner or later problems may arise with him. Incorrect removal of programs, viruses and malicious applications, wear and tear - all this can lead to a breakdown of the "hard drive" and the appearance of the so-called. The latter do not make themselves felt instantly, most likely months will pass before you notice the problem.
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What are bad sectors?
For a more understandable definition of a broken sector, it will not be superfluous to understand the design of your hard drive. In general, it consists of rotating magnetic disks, which are divided into tracks, and these very tracks, in turn, are divided into sectors. Any information that you copy to your hard drive is recorded in them. Disk sectors have one unpleasant property - they deteriorate over time and you lose access to them. And this process is accelerated by improper work with a computer.
You most likely will not know about the existence of several bad sectors without the use of special programs. They practically do not affect the operation of the computer in any way and only become a real problem in large numbers.
Computer freezes when trying to access any files, long copying from one partition to another, errors and rebooting the PC - all this may be the result of a large number of bad blocks on your "screw". Some of them can be corrected, and some cannot be treated. By this sign and by the nature of the damage, all broken sectors can be divided into two types: physical and logical.
- Physical problems are the result of damage (for example), dust getting inside hard disk and normal wear and tear on equipment. The main thing is to understand that in such cases, which can no longer be restored. Even the usual data recovery from such sectors will be a miracle;
- Logic bads appear under the influence of viruses, errors file system and incorrect writing of information to the disk (for example, a sudden shutdown of the computer while copying files or other active work). In such cases, it is not the sector's magnetic coating that is damaged, but its data. Such broken sectors are subject to treatment and can be corrected using a variety of programs at normal home conditions.
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Programs for recovering bad sectors of the hard drive
Microsoft provides a built-in utility chkdsk to work with hard drives. By default, the utility only checks for file system errors, but if you add the key / f, then chkdsk will check the disk for bad blocks and try to fix them automatically. Of course, there are many alternative solutions from third party manufacturers to check the hard drive and fix broken sectors, which can be easily found on the Internet. Let's talk a little more about the most popular of them:
- - probably the most popular program for testing hard drives and recovering bad sectors on a hard drive. It can be used not only for treatment, but also for testing equipment. As the developers themselves note, when interacting with the hard drive, it ignores the file system and works at the level of I / O ports. This property ensures the most efficient and quality work. Besides, there are two versions of the program, one of which works directly from under Windows, and the other from under DOS. The latter is more versatile, but it is also recommended for use by experienced users.
- Is another popular program that works with equipment through controller ports. Also has two versions (Windows and DOS), both of which are completely free. It features a very fast speed of work, which does not affect its quality in any way. In addition, it provides complete statistics on your device: the number of on and off cycles, the number of spindle revolutions, etc. As a minus, you can count the unfriendly program interface, which will become a problem for inexperienced users.
- - a unique program that, according to the developers, can even repair physical damage. The point is that often physically damaged sectors have incorrect magnetization, which is eliminated this program... The rest of the set of characteristics and capabilities is similar to the above utilities.
In this article, we will tell you about recovering bad sectors of a hard drive and the reasons for their appearance. Step by step instructions help you prepare for this procedure and cope with it yourself.
What are broken sectors
Let's take a quick look at the structure of the hard drive. It consists of several separate disks, above which there are magnetic heads for reading and writing information. When storing data, the heads magnetize certain areas of the disk, divided into tracks and smaller components - sectors. It is in them that the units of information are stored. If the sector becomes unavailable for reading, it is called "broken".
Several signs indicate the appearance of such a problem:
- squeaks, grinding, tapping when the disc is working;
- heating of the HDD surface (in a normal state, this should not happen);
- frequent errors during operation and startup operating system.
Typical Causes
The main reasons for the appearance of broken segments of the hard drive are:
Also, malfunctions of the hard drive may appear due to mechanical damage. They are often caused by dropping the hard disk or computer, damaging the magnetic surface (for example, during transportation). Non-working parts also appear due to factory defects. V in this case they may not appear immediately, but "fall down" over time, rapidly increasing their number to a critical level.
Important! If you suspect mechanical damage or marriage, you should immediately contact a specialist or exchange the hard drive under warranty.
Recovering bad HDD sectors with Victoria
If the appearance of broken segments is associated with software glitches, then they can be restored using specialized software. One of such programs for recovering bad sectors of hdd is Victoria. The utility is available in two versions - for Windows and DOS. The most effective recovery will be through DOS, since when the OS is running, some sectors may be busy, which means they are not available for scanning.
Victoria HDD - diagnostic software
Scanning
To get started, we need to do a little preparation. First, you need a disk with a program image recorded on it or a bootable USB flash drive. If everyone can cope with recording an image, then difficulties can arise with the creation of a USB flash drive.
Let's dwell on this step in more detail:
Note! The program takes up very little space, so after installing it, the drive can be used to store other information. In order not to accidentally delete the files necessary for the utility to work, it is recommended to allocate a separate folder for them.
Let's start the scanning process:
Here we need the item "Reallocated sector count", which displays the number of fragments in the reserve zone, as well as "Current pending sectors" where the parts that cannot be read are displayed. If their number is not very high, then the disk should be recovered.
Hard drive recovery
Let's see exactly how this process takes place. Problem segments can be roughly divided into two types. The first ones are not readable due to the mismatch of the information stored in them and its checksums.
This error occurs during a power outage when new data has already been written and the checksums remain old. They simply cease to be recognized and are restored quite easily - by formatting them and writing the correct amounts.
The second type occurs as a result of mechanical damage. In this case, recovery is more difficult, but still possible. The resumption of the performance of such parts is carried out through the use of reserve areas that are on each hard drive.
Let's start recovering each of these types of errors.
Video: HDD - "curing" bad sectors
First, let's try to fix the bad sectors by erasing the information stored in them:
- press F4 and get to the check menu;
- in the menu for selecting operations with unreadable sectors, specify "BB: Erase 256 sect" and press "Enter".
A lengthy process of scanning and restoring bad sectors of the HDD will start. If the program finds a bad sector, it will try to erase it, thereby correcting the error. If a mechanical defect is present, an error will be reported. In any case, you need to wait until the check is complete and then separately fix the sectors with physical faults.
For this:
Now the restore operation will work on a different principle, trying not to erase the bad sectors, but to replace them with space from the spare area.
Important! If there are a lot of such sectors, then the spare space may run out. This will be announced by a special message, and further recovery will become impossible.
After successfully recovering bad sectors on the hard drive, it is recommended to perform a full check of the file system for errors.
This can be done using the CHKDSK utility or in the following way:
Photo: checking disk for errors
Attention! In order for the system not only to find, but also to fix the problems, before starting the scan, select "Automatically fix system errors."
The methods described above will help you easily cope with non-critical cases of the appearance of problem sectors, find and fix them. Accurately following our instructions, any user can do it on their own, even without having a computer education. Hope that this information was useful to you.
Often users personal computers face hard disk problems that affect system performance. The main causes of hard drive failure are: broken sectors in HD D and faulty file system... In this article, we will describe in detail process of fixing HDD problems and also describe methods for recovering information on hard drives if it is defective or completely out of order. I would also like to note that the problems associated with hard disk, you need to pay special attention. For example, if the HDD becomes completely faulty, then you will hardly be able to recover information from it. That is, all your documents, personal videos and photos, as well as other files may be lost forever.
Reading SMART readings from the hard drive
If files are not copied on your computer, programs freeze after opening, then possible reason it might be faulty HDD... Typically, this behavior of the operating system is associated with bad sectors in your hard drive. To be sure that the problem is related to the bad sectors of the HDD, and not with malware, the first step is to confirm this guess. If the situation described above is observed on the computer, we will install the utility on it CrystalDiskInfo... This utility describes the status of all hard drives installed on your computer. You can download CrystalDiskInfo from its official website http://crystalmark.info. The utility supports Windows operating systems from XP to Windows 10.
To check information about the hard drive, the utility uses self-diagnosis technology SMART... SMART technology is used on all manufactured HDDs. Below is an example of checking SMART readings using the CrystalDiskInfo utility in the hard drive WD1200JS... From this window, you can see that the program detected its state as “ Good"- this means that this hard drive is in perfect order and you shouldn't worry about it.
In the following image, in the SMART readings, the CrystalDiskInfo utility detected the status of the screw with the message “ Anxiety". This message means that the hard drive already contains bad sectors or it is overheating.
If you see the message “ Bad", It will mean that all bad sectors are reassigned on the hard drive and soon it will be completely covered.
In both cases, when the program found the messages “ Anxiety" and " Bad", You should do backup all data on the computer, as soon the screw will become unusable.
One solution that can temporarily fix your screw is the utility Victoria... This utility can do REMAP BAD sectors, that is, it will reassign the bad sectors to the spare. In the next section, we will describe in detail the process of REMAP BAD sectors using the Victoria utility.
Recovering a hard drive using the Victoria program
Utility Victoria created by the forces of a Belarusian programmer and is distributed free of charge. You can download the utility on its official website. hdd-911.com... Victoria utility is distributed in two versions for Windows and DOS. In our case, we will download the Windows version. After running the Victoria utility on Windows, we will get into such a window.
To fix the hard drive, we need to go to the "Tests" tab. On this tab, we are interested in the area with the radio buttons Ignore, Erase, Remap and Restore, as well as the Start button. To fix it, we need to select the Remap radio button and click Start.
After these actions, the Victoria program will begin the process of fixing the sectors, which can take quite a long time.
After reassigning the sectors, the Victoria program may be able to recover the bad sectors, and the value "Good" will be displayed in the CrystalDiskInfo utility. But the magic fix may not happen, since the reserve sectors may simply be absent and Victoria will not be able to help. In this case, there is only one way out - do a complete replacement of the HDD... In addition to the treatment of the screw, Victoria also provides verification of readings SMART on the “ SMART».
I would like to note that all the operations that you perform with Victoria, you do at your own peril and risk. Using the utility, an inexperienced user can damage the hard drive and void its warranty service.
Fixing file system problems on your hard drive
Many users on Windows computers often have problems with file system errors NTFS... File system problems occur due to malicious utilities and various software... Also, most often, problems in the file system occur inexperience the PC user himself. For example, mishandling the utility Acronis Disk Director... Windows itself will help us to solve this problem. Windows provides file system fixer... To fix the file system on a specific partition, you need to go to its properties. In our case it is system partition operating room Windows systems 10. To start the fix, we need to go to the " Service».
There is a Check button on this tab that we will click.
After this action, a window will appear in which you need to confirm our actions.
After confirming the action, Windows will scan this section.
After scanning, the system will display a message with the results of scanning the section for errors.
Using this method, many users restored the operating system to normal performance without having to reinstall it. If the problems lie in the HDD itself, then no disk check and OS reinstallation will help in this case. The only option in this case would be that you can resort to the Victoria utility or do a complete replacement of the screw with a new one, while reinstalling Windows.
Recovering disks with Acronis True Image 2016
The software is the perfect tool to create a full backup all local partitions, including the system one. This opportunity is used by many administrators around the world. The created backup of local disks can be restored in a very short time. For example, if the system has been infected by a virus or the HDD is broken, in this case you will restore all OS disks in a short period of time. Find Acronis True Image 2016 is available on its official website www.acronis.com. Having launched the program in question, we will get into such a window.
First of all, we will show our readers how to back up local partitions in Acronis True Image 2016. On the first Backup tab, you can see that the entire computer is selected for backup. That is, a full backup of all local partitions, including the system one, will be carried out. In the next block, you need to select a location for the backup. In our case, this is the local disk E. After selecting the type of backup data and the location of their saving, click the Create a copy button located in the lower right corner.
The time of the backup will depend on the amount of data to be backed up.
After completing backup, we will describe the process of recovering a computer. For this we need to create boot disk or an Acronis True Image 2016 USB flash drive. You can do this by going to the " TOOLS / BOOTABLE STORAGE WIZARD". Below is the wizard that should open.
In this wizard, we will select the first item and continue. In the window that appears, select where we will save the boot drive: in the image or on a USB flash drive.
After saving boot storage the wizard will display a closing window.
After creating a bootable USB flash drive or optical disc with Acronis True Image 2016, you can start data recovery. To do this, boot from bootable USB at computer start. After booting from the bootable drive, we get to the Acronis True Image 2016 menu. Select the first item in this menu, and then we get to the main Acronis True Image window.
In the program window, go to the "" tab and find the previously created backup copy of the entire system.
Now to restore system disk with windows and local drives, press the button Disk recovery.
In the wizard that appears, select the item " Recover disks and partitions"And continue.
In the next window, select all local drives and continue with the wizard.
In paragraphs " Destination»For the first and second disks, select the original HDDs. If there are many hard drives installed in the system, be careful not to mix up the screws. In the final window, click the Proceed button.
The recovery time of a backup depends on the size and HDD speed... In our case, it took 10 minutes.
The example shows how easy it is to back up an entire computer, so if you master the Acronis True Image 2016 software package, you can easily restore its functionality in cases where the system is infected or the hard drive breaks down. Also, after mastering the program, you will not have any questions about how to recover data from your hard drive.
Recovering information with Recuva
There are times when reinstalling Windows or when using Acronis software, users by mistake erase all information from the hard drive... If you have this particular situation, then you should not be upset, since all the information can be restore... This task will help us free utility Recuva... You can download the utility on its official website www.piriform.com. After starting the utility, the user enters a wizard that will help you recover all data. Below is the sequential work of the wizard.
The example shows that recovering information from with Recuva a fairly simple process and almost any PC user can handle it.
Summing up
From this article, it can be emphasized that recovering a hard drive is not a very simple task, but depending on the situation, even an ordinary PC user can handle it. I would also like to advise laptop owners to handle it as carefully as possible. For example, if the laptop falls or receives a strong impact, it can damage the HDD. In addition, if you yourself have identified the problematic screw, then do not be afraid to open the case of a laptop or stationary computer yourself, since replacing the HDD is quite a simple task. And we, in turn, hope that our material will be useful to our readers and will allow you to restore your hard drive.
Related Videos
Important things depend on the state of the hard disk - the operation of the operating system and safety user files... Problems such as file system errors and bad blocks can lead to loss of personal information, failures when loading the OS and a complete failure of the drive.
HDD recovery depends on the type of bad blocks. Physical damage cannot be repaired, while logical errors must be corrected. This will require special program working with broken sectors.
Before starting the curing utility, it is necessary to carry out diagnostics. It will allow you to find out if there are problem areas and whether you need to work with them. In more detail about what bad sectors are, where they come from, and which program scans the hard drive for their presence, we have already written in another article:
You can use scanners for built-in and external HDD as well as a flash drive.
If, after checking, errors and bad sectors were found, and you want to eliminate them, then again special software will come to the rescue.
Method 1: Using third-party programs
Often users decide to resort to using programs that would perform the treatment of errors and bad blocks at a logical level. We have already compiled a selection of such utilities, and you can familiarize yourself with them at the link below. There you will also find a link to a lesson on disk recovery.
When choosing a program for the treatment of HDD, approach it wisely: with inept use, you can not only harm the device, but also lose important data stored on it.
Method 2: Using the built-in utility
An alternative way to troubleshoot errors is to use the built-in Windows programs chkdsk. She knows how to scan all drives connected to the computer and fix the problems found. If you are going to fix the partition where the OS is installed, then chkdsk will start working only the next time you start the computer, or after a manual restart.
The best way to work with the program is to use the command line.
Please note that none of the programs can fix bad sectors on physical level even if declared by the manufacturer. No software unable to repair the surface of the disc. Therefore, in the case of physical damage, it is necessary to replace the old HDD with a new one as soon as possible before it stops functioning.
It is difficult to give an unambiguous conclusion in this category, since it cannot be said what will help to restore a hard drive without conducting detailed diagnostics. We do not advise ordinary users to try to reanimate the device in order to avoid negative consequences. Before starting such work, HDD computer you need to study, understand its algorithms, learn to navigate in command line etc. Simply put, it is better to leave the case to professionals. Moreover, after a complete overwrite, data cannot be saved from formatted disks and other media.
We recommend periodically, if you suspect a hard drive malfunction (files disappear or open for a long time, Winsows XP-10 runs chkdsk before each system boot, etc.) to check its surface and SMART using HDDScan... The utility can be downloaded for free, you only need to understand a minimum of English. She reads the entire important information hard.
To recover data, apply Hetman Partition Recovery- it will pull out as much information as possible, even if the volume is no longer displayed correctly in the explorer. A step-by-step wizard will guide you through the procedure quickly and easily. Zero Assumption Recovery or Acronis Recovery Expert from the Acronis Disk Director suite will help you troubleshoot partition structure. We also recommend the effective Seagate File Recovery tool, but pay attention to its peculiarity - it is compatible exclusively with Seagate hard disk.
Let's talk a little about each utility, in our opinion, worthy.
HDD Capacity Restore Tool rescues when the disk size has unexpectedly "decreased" from hundreds of GB to several MB. The application is fairly simple, efficient, and can recover the capacity of a hard drive after a failure or if the laptop manufacturer initially "cut off" a part of it for the needs of the subsystem.
Low Level Format Tool- a good thing for flash drives and disks, information on which is not needed. It will not be possible to restore data after it. The main function of this program is the so-called. " low-level formatting"- overwriting both normal and broken areas with zeros. It helps to permanently erase files and improve speed work hard disk due to the lack of fragmentation for new data.
Program HDD Regenerator It is mercilessly criticized by experts, but for the "semi-professional" it is useful, because it turns the reanimation of damaged sections into an easy task. You boot from a disk / flash drive, select a drive, ask the tool to scan and repair it, and calmly drink tea. It will "cure" boot sectors and "logical problems". Such damage removal will not hurt 100%, the utility itself is easy to use, but expensive.
The cohort of professional solutions is made up of a trinity , ... The last two are very popular. Initially, they were created for DOS, but alternative developers were able to port applications to Win, depriving only a part of the "proprietary buns".
The capabilities of the + products are the same: "low-level formatting" and re-partitioning of bad sectors (Advanced Remap). In simpler terms, setting a mark about the impossibility of writing on a bad block. This will not help against a large number of "bad" ones, but if there are several dozen of them, you will extend the life of the drive.
The algorithms for the utilities are similar. It is better to keep on your computer due to the ease of choosing a disk, its interface is simpler than that of. But the trouble is that both projects have stopped - support for the latest models of hard drives can be found only in. The high speed of the programs also distinguishes them favorably from the HDD Regenerator.
Summarizing the above, we note once again that it is better for beginners not to "play hard". If you find problems, just carry out the recovery individual files(images, audio, video, etc.) using the program Hetman Partition Recovery and carry the "screw" to the workshop. If you can't "make friends" with the solution from Hetman, free, but less effective 7- data recovery suite, minitool power data recovery will come to the rescue.
Advanced users will appreciate LLF Tool, Capacity Restore Tool, HDD Regenerator or its cheaper counterpart DRevitalize, Windows version popular DOS utility Victoria.
The choice of the pros is unambiguous - these are bootable , or - a project that continues to develop in contrast to the eminent "colleagues". Updates on the official website appear regularly, the developers continue to improve the tool with enthusiasm and add support for new drive models.