Hard disk drive failure occurs when a hard disk drive (HDD) fails to perform properly, resulting in data loss and potential damage to stored information. Physical damage, electrical issues such as power surges, overheating caused by blocked vents or defective fans, water or fire damage, logical errors such as unintentional deletion or malware attacks, and firmware or manufacturer flaws are some of the potential causes of hard drive failure,
Major Symptoms Of Hard Disk Drive Failure
Firstly, it’s very important to identify if your hard drive is really failing. We have outlined some major symptoms of a failing hard drive. If you observe any of these symptoms, your hard disk may not be functioning properly.
- Blue Screen Error, most common symptom for hard disk drive failure
- Strange sounds coming from the drive, such as clicking or knocking noises
- Having different types of error.
- Evidence of physical damage, such as dents or scratches on the casing.
- Unable to boot up the system or access stored data.
Causes of Hard Disk Drive Failure
If you have encountered any of the above symptoms, your hard drive may have failed. You need to identify the specific cause of the hard drive failure so that you can fix it at home.
Physical Damage
Dropping the hard disc or exposing it to extreme vibration might cause internal component failure.
Electricity Damage
Power surges and electrical fluctuations can cause damage to the drive’s electrical components, rendering it useless.
Heat Damage
Overheating, which is commonly caused by a faulty fan or a clogged vent, can reduce the drive’s performance and longevity.
Water Damage
Spills, natural calamities, and high humidity levels all increase the potential of water damage, which can corrode the drive’s sensitive components.
Fire harm
Fire can demagnetize the drive’s platter and permanently harm its internal structure.
Software Failure
In most cases, the main cause of software failure is due to malware, viruses, and spyware attacks, which can cause your hard disk drive to failure to function properly.
Check your Hard drive’s health status
Now that we know the cause of the hard disk drive failure, we will do some tests to diagnose the overall status of the hard drive using the command line.
Follow the below steps to diagnose hard disk drive failure:
- Type cmd into the Search bar and open Command Prompt.
- Type and run the command: wmic diskdrive get status.
- If the reply says OK, then your hard drive’s health is good
Steps to Fix your Hard Disk Drive Failure at home
Use the Scan & Repair Drive Function
For Windows laptop and computer users, the Scan and Repair Drive application can help you fix a failing hard drive. This is Windows default application to scan your hard drive for errors and repair them automatically.
Follow the steps to do so:
Close all running applications on laptop.
- Open My Computer or This PC.
- Right-click your failed hard drive and select Properties.
- This will open the hard drive’s properties window. Switch to the Tools tab
- Click Scan Drive to scan and fix your faulty hard drive.
Using CHKDSK Command
CHKDSK command is powerful default application to find and fix hard disk drive failure. This application will scan your hard disk for bad sectors and fix them.
How to use CHKDSK command:
- Press the Windows button and type cmd.
- Right-click Command Prompt and click Run as administrator.
- Type this command: chkdsk *: /C /D /E (replace * with your hard disk drive Name).
Clean Up your hard drive
Remove debris and dust from computer vents to prevent overheating and hard disk drive failure.
Check cable connections
Ensure all power and data connections attached to the hard drive are securely plugged in. If no activity occurs despite appropriate connections, consider replacing the power wire.
Recover Data
Before its too late, recover your valuable data
If the hard disc is accessible but has issues, choose immediately reliable data recovery software or services to recover all of your important data.
Techno Talkies Recommendation
If fix-at-home attempts fail or the hard disc is physically damaged, skilled data recovery specialists can retrieve data and repair the drive.