A defective hard drive can become an absolute nightmare for you. Especially if you have important data, photos or other valuable memories stored on it.
The good news: A hard drive usually announces its impending death with various warning signals. We list the most important signs here so that you can react in good time and save your data.
1. Extremely slow file access
Do you know that? You click on a folder or file and have to wait until something finally happens. Of course, a slow hard drive can also have other causes? for example, when it is almost completely full. However, if these delays occur regularly even though there is still enough storage space available, you should pay attention.
The cause is usually hardware problems: The reading head or the magnetic disks (platters) may be damaged, which leads to extended reading times.
Bad sectors on the hard drive can also be the reason, especially if certain files or folders are affected.
2. The hard drive is no longer recognized
A particularly alarming sign is if your computer temporarily or no longer recognizes the hard drive. This can manifest itself in different ways:
- If there is a boot hard drive, the message “No boot device found” appears.
- A second hard drive no longer appears in Windows Explorer
- The drive sporadically disappears and then reappears later
Sometimes it helps for a short time to reconnect the SATA and power cables. But before you label the cables as the culprit too quickly: Such detection problems are often the harbinger of an imminent hard drive failure. By now you should think about backing up your data and buying a new hard drive.
3. Strange noises coming from the case
Mechanical hard drives are never completely silent? A quiet buzzing or occasional clicking noise when accessed is normal.
It becomes dangerous if unusual or loud noises suddenly occur. A characteristic rhythmic and loud click in particular is a clear warning signal. It indicates that the mechanical components inside the hard drive are severely damaged.
Such acoustic warning signs are usually accompanied by other problems:
- Slowed system performance
- Long access times to files
- Freezes or crashes when accessing files
4. Increased file corruptions
If the error messages that files are corrupt or no longer readable are increasing, this indicates serious problems. After years of use, individual sectors or entire areas of the hard drive can become damaged. This leads to:
- Files suddenly “disappear”
- Folders can no longer be opened
- Data is incomplete or incorrect
Windows tools such as “CHKDSK”, “SFC” or “DISM” can help with minor problems. However, if the errors occur frequently, there is usually a profound hardware problem that can no longer be resolved.
5. Programs crash frequently
Another warning sign is programs that suddenly refuse to work properly. Especially if it always affects the same applications, it could mean that they are installed on damaged areas of the hard drive. A new installation usually only brings short-term improvement.
If you use the affected hard drive as a system drive, this can lead to particularly annoying problems:
- Regular program crashes
- Errors starting certain applications
- Programs quitting unexpectedly
6. Frequent blue screen crashes
The dreaded “Blue Screen of Death” can have many causes. However, if the crashes become more frequent and you are using an older hard drive as the system drive, this could be the culprit.
It becomes particularly critical when:
- The system no longer starts
- Regular blue screens occur
- Windows is in an error loop when booting
Because the operating system is constantly accessing the hard drive, bad sectors or other hardware problems can cause system-wide instability. Even if you run programs from another hard drive, crashes can occur because Windows still needs to access system files.
7. Confirmed bad sectors
The clearest evidence of a dying hard drive is proven bad sectors. With tools like »CrystalDiskInfo« or other hard drive diagnostic programs you can check the health status of your hard drive. If defective sectors are displayed here, it is essentially a death sentence for your hard drive.
A distinction is made between:
- “Soft Bad Sectors”: Can be partially repaired using Windows tools
- »Hard Bad Sectors«: Permanent physical damage that cannot be repaired
Important note on precaution
Even if SSDs are considered more reliable today? no storage medium lasts forever. Therefore, follow the 3-2-1 backup rule for important data:
- Create 3 copies of your data
- Saves them on 2 different storage media
- Keeps 1 backup in another location
The 3-2-1 method in detail
The sooner you recognize the warning signs of an aging hard drive, the higher the chance of saving all important data. Plan to replace a hard drive that is more than 4?5 years old from the outset. Investing in a new hard drive or SSD is significantly cheaper than professional data recovery in an emergency.
