How to Know if your Hard Drive is Starting to Fail

All components of a computer have a useful life. Some may last longer than others, although it depends on a multitude of factors. The hard drive does not escape this, and it also has a limited lifespan. It is for this reason that it is recommended to always make backup copies. It may happen that the hard disk stops working unexpectedly, with the consequences that this has.

How to know if your hard drive is starting to fail

We are lucky to be able to detect if the hard drive is living it’s last days. There are symptoms that we can easily detect. Thanks to them we can be prepared and anticipate their death, without this posing a problem of enormous magnitude. This is why it is important to know the symptoms when you think that your windows detected a hard disk problem.

What symptoms can we detect?

The computer makes noise. That is so, but we generally know how to distinguish when there are strange noises. If we hear strange or unusual noises, there is reason to be alert. In many cases, the noises are caused when one of the heads of the hard disk is damaged. It may also be that the motor that turns the discs does not work well. These are two signs that tell us that there is little time left.

If any of you experience problems saving and reading documents, be careful. Or if some program suddenly stops working. It may be caused by a virus, but it is usually time to make backups.

There are other problems that can make us see that the hard drive is not working properly. It may happen that our computer does not detect a disk drive. In this case, the problem is usually on the hard drive. Another symptom to watch out for is that the computer crashes frequently. It goes slow, it restarts, it crashes … these are ways to detect that the hard drive is failing. Closely connected to this are access times. If it takes forever to access the file explorer, things go wrong. If you try to empty the recycle bin and it seems like it’s never going to finish, worry.

All these symptoms can help us to know that it is time for our hard drive to die. Do you know any of these symptoms? Other symptoms to watch out for?

How to check for faults

There are several ways to check the status of our hard drive. To be able to guarantee its good or bad condition, and thus know if the moment has come. There are two general ways to find out. One is through some tools that we can download, and another is manual. We explain both ways.

What tools can I download?

There are currently three useful tools that we can download onto our computers to check the status of the hard drive. I tell you something about each of them, and so you can see the one that best suits your needs.

• DisckCheckup: This is a free application. It works with any version of Windows (plus point) and usually comes with numerous updates. Just download a file to install the software that will analyze the health of your hard drive. If all SMART attributes are marked OK, the hard drive is in good condition. It is very easy to use, so it would be a great option.
• HDDScan: This is another free program. Its main problem is that it only supports up to Windows 7. Its great advantage is that it supports any hard drive regardless of its manufacturer. It has very complete software, which analyzes up to the temperature of the disk. You can also save reports with the information to keep track.
• CrystalDiskInfo: Once again a free application, it works only with Windows, although the good thing is that it supports all versions. It shows in detail the statistics of the SMART attributes and informs us about the status of the hard disk. It also shows your temperature. In addition, with its system of colors to the pure traffic light style we can see if the state of health of the disk.

These three tools are very useful and easy to use, so they can be another way to detect problems with your hard drive. You don’t need to install them when the disk is about to die. They are tools that can help you keep a very clear and concise control of your hard drive. Also, in a very simple way.