Re: Multiple solutions for a problem (Re: How to map bad sectorson IDE?)

[Chuck Swiger]

Marc Schneiders wrote:
[ ... ]

Because it involves a lot of work to backup the disk, open up the
machine, check it with some software that reports something that I
could tell Maxtor, have them give me another disk (if they do that).
Wait, wait, wait. And all this time machine not working obviously,
which is extra bad since it is the key machine here that connects
others to the internet.

I'll try to suggest some other alternatives, as you wish. If this is "the key machine" for your network, however, you should consider what the consequences of this disk drive failing completely are.

[ Modern hard drives have failure modes that include "you don't get the data back". So if you don't have a good backup of the system already available, take one right now. ]

All in all I would say 10 hours work, a few weeks of waiting.

Yes. Or you could get a replacement drive for less than $100 now, and copy a working system so that you don't encounter unplanned downtime for this key machine, wait for an RMA, or anything else.

So why not first try something (if it exists, which was my question)
that does not involve picking up a screwdriver and turning of my
network here? Or lets say I am poor (which I am) and cannot really
just run off and buy a new disk? The one with problems may be under
warrenty, it may not. I cannot tell before I take the machine apart
and read the serial on the disk.

I understand your point about cost. Do you understand that waiting is unlikely to improve the chances of your drive remaining under warrantee?

Your advise sounds perfectly sound for IBM and Microsoft and the
Pentagon. But for a home or small office situation, there might be
another way to deal with it?

Especially since we are not talking about something 10 years old or
heavily used in a mailserver.

Dude, IDE hard drives have moved from having a 3 year warrantee to a 1 year warrantee for a very simple reason: the percentage of IDE hard drives which fail after one year is high enough as it is.

Anyway, one can use dd as a non-destructive read test-- although the manufacturors' utilities can test more effectively (as well as look into the SMART status and so forth, if applicable). I believe the system installer lets you invoke the bad144 destructive scanner (via wizard mode), if you wanted to do that.

-Chuck


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