Are you worried about your hard drive failing? Undoubtedly, your system’s hard drive plays the most important role no matter what the operating system is. No wonder, your hard disk is loaded with lots of media files, important documents, and much more. Your hard drive failing can be a threat to all your reliable data.
How do you check if your hard drive is failing? You are at the right spot! This guide walks you through how to check your hard drive’s health on different operating systems. Let’s get started.
What are the Lifespans of Hard Drives?
Depending on the hard drive type and the intensity of the use, the overall longevity can differ. Typically, hard drives are fine for at least 5 years with regular usage. However, HDDs or hard disk drives have more mechanical parts compared to SSDs or solid-state drives.
Hence, HDDs are more likely to face mechanical failure and physical damage. On the other hand, a hard drive failing is an over-the-year process. And it should perform well with continuous checks and maintenance.
On a contrary note, SSDs are not as delicate as HDDs. Still, they can suffer from irreversible data loss if you leave them powered off for too long. Additionally, you can lose larger chunks of data when SSD cells start discharging.
Signs Your Hard Drive is Failing
How to check if your hard drive is not working? Typically, hard drives exhibit signs when something is off. Make sure you take quick action if you find your hard drive failing and showing any of the symptoms below:
- Strange sounds such as grinding, clicking, or loud humming
- Overheating
- Corrupted or missing data, files, and folders
- Frequent error messages about bad sectors
- Blue screen of death
- System crashes
- Slowdowns
- System boot failure
- Undetectable hard drive (external)
If you face disappearing files or system errors frequently, then it’s a clear sign of the hard drive failing. Additionally, it’s time to check the hard drive’s health using dedicated tools.
How to Check If Your Hard Drive is Failing on Windows?
A S.M.A.R.T. hard drive test is required when it comes to how to check if your hard drive is failing Windows or Mac. Here S.M.A.R.T. stands for Self-Monitoring, Analysis, and Reporting Technology. It applies to all sorts of modern hard disk drives, solid-state drives, and embedded multimedia CD drives.
A S.M.A.R.T. hard drive test can warn you about a failing hard drive. Thus, you can prevent the upcoming data loss. In addition, you can stop using the defective hard drive, consider data recovery near me for laptops, and replace the faulty one at the right time.
By the way, here’s how to check if your hard drive is failing Windows:
Use Check Disk Utility
Check Disk Utility, or CHKDSK, is an in-built Windows tool that helps you detect and rectify bad sectors and file system errors. Here’s what you can follow:
- Begin by right-clicking the Start menu.
- Afterwards, select Command Prompt (Admin).
- Once the Command Prompt appears, enter the following command: chkdsk C: /f /r /x. Replace C with your hard drive letter if it’s something else.
- Hit the Enter key.
- The system might instruct you to schedule the scan for the next restart if you use the drive currently.
Try Windows S.M.A.R.T Check
For your information, Windows S.M.A.R.T status checks can predict failures. Here’s how to check if your hard drive is not working using Windows S.M.A.R.T. status check:
- Access a Command Prompt window with admin privileges.
- Next, type the following command: wmic diskdrive get status. Ensure you hit Enter.
- The scan starts.
Wait for the scan to finish. If the status comes out OK, then it means that your hard drive is healthy. However, in case the status reads ‘Pred Fail’ then the system has detected at least an error on your hard disk drive. In short, you are dealing with a hard drive failing. So, consider backing up your hard drive right away.
If you need a detailed S.M.A.R.T. report, then enter the command below: wmic/namespace:\\root\wmi path MSStorageDriver_ATAPISmartData.
Backing Up Drive on Windows
To back up your data, use File History. Here’s how you can initiate a backup:
- Plug an external storage device into your laptop.
- Then, search for file history and select the same.
- Click on Select Drive from the left-side menu.
- Afterwards, choose which drive you want to back up. Select the drive and hit OK.
- Next, choose the backup frequency. Also, customize other configurations through Advanced Settings and Exclude Folders.
How to Check if Your Hard Drive is Failing Mac?
Like Windows, Mac users also have multiple options to see if the hard drive is failing. Let’s check out how to check if your hard drive is failing Mac.
Run Disk Utility
The first check is through Mac’s integrated tool to manage and repair disks. By the way, go through the instructions as follows:
- Navigate to Applications → Utilities → Disk Utility.
- Under Disk Utility, choose the hard drive from the sidebar.
- Next, click on First Aid.
- Hit Run to begin the check and repair procedure.
If Disk Utility recognizes errors it can’t fix, you must back up the hard drive immediately. As soon as you are done backing up data, replace the hard drive.
Verify S.M.A.R.T Status Under Disk Utility
Here’s another way to check if your hard drive is failing Mac using Disk Utility.
- Access Disk Utility on your Mac.
- After that, choose your hard drive from the sidebar.
- Check out the ‘S.M.A.R.T. Status’ from the bottom of the window.
If the status reads ‘Verified’ then it means that your drive is healthy. However, you should back up your drive and replace it if the status comes out ‘Failing’. You can use Time Machine to back up your drive.
Backing Up a Hard Drive on Mac
You learned how to check if your hard drive is failing Mac. Now, see how you can use Time Machine on a Mac for useful data backup practices.
- First, connect an external storage drive to your Mac.
- Navigate to the Apple icon and choose System Settings.
- After that, select General from the sidebar.
- Then, choose Time Machine from the right panel.
- Click on Add Backup Disk or the + button.
- Now, select the external storage device from the list.
- Click Set Up Disk.
- You are allowed to erase the disk and get fresh regular backups. Otherwise, you can retain old backups on the disk.
How to Maintain Hard Drive Health?
A hard drive failing is a nightmare. Well, you can maintain your hard drive in its best condition through the following steps:
- Consider regular backups.
- Make sure you handle laptops and external hard drives with care.
- Keep your computer cool.
- Defragment hard disk drives regularly.
- Additionally, update firmware from time to time.
- Utilize a surge protector.
- Also, run regular checks for a hard drive failing.
- Ensure you properly eject external devices to avoid data loss.
- Upgrade to an SSD if you still use an HDD.
When to Seek Expert Intervention…
Do you experience missing files despite hard drive checks? Then, you must opt for data recovery for laptops. Apart from that, look for signs such as clicking or grinding noise, file system errors, or drives not being recognized by the system.
