Hello,

I have WD model WD400BB-60DGA0. The drive is correctly detecting in bios, SMART status is OK. I use DLGDIAG for DOS v.5.04c to test the drive. In quick test the drive return 0000 code wchich means no problem. But the problem is when I try to perform extended test, because disk is not responding , and no any errors are displayed. When I tried to create partition using FDISK the problem is the same, checking integrity is hanging on 0% and the drive seems to not responding. I have changed electronic board from the same model and the problem still occurs. So i guess that electronic board is ok. I created partition in Win XP using quick format, so the Win created it. When I copy something into this disc (using XP), it seems to work very good with average transfer about 37MB. But the problem come back again, when I try to copy something from this drive - hdd is hanging about 5 sec, then drive started to copy with speed only 3 MB/s! I cannot understand what the problem is:( I try to test the drive using MHDD. When I use scan command (F4), the drive seems not responding. But when I try to put READ command, the disc is working, but can read with only just 3MB/s. Is anyone who can explain me what to do or has any idea how to detect and resolve this problem???

DAMON

USE LOW LEVEL FORMAT T HDD OR FILL ZEROS TO DRIVE BY DLGDIAG.
IF THE PROBLEM DONT REPAIRED USE DISKMANAGER AND MAKE SEQUENTIAL READ/WRITE TEST

Damon,

Last year I had the following problem with a WD disk. I could format it with FAT 32, but not NTFS: it would hang at 67%. I used several diagnostic apps, including dlgdiag, but they would always hang at that point. It could be some specific hardware issue in the PC, so I moved it to my computer, but it kept hanging at 67%.

Than I discovered MHDD, which was the only program that was able to analyse completely the disk surface, and found screwed sectors beyhond 67% that were not able to be repaired with erase waits.

The disk has another problem, however, because the surface scanning looked like a fucking grey rainbow. Probably not the heads, but something else, including mechanical problems, and/or servo data analysis, and/or calibration problems (and there is a lot to be calibrated in factory...), and/or etc., etc., etc.

Anyway, I have reasons to suppose you are dealing with physical bad sectors. Did you try MDHH with erase waits? If you tried it with no results, I don't think zero fill will be any good, but... who knows? Please, try it and let us know.

Regards,

Daniel

1. what mean "surface scanning looked like a fucking grey rainbow"? Did you sure it's a problem? Take another drive with such speed and test it...

2. mhdd is a free software, so it do only minor repair. It can remove "software bad block" and sometimes "hardware bad block", but if you have serious problem with surface free software don't help you

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1. I mean: the access times were completely irregular. I've never seen a disk like that one before.

Most times I get a black map with a few grey blocks on a regular basis (which doesn't necessarily mean that the head is failing, probably just a small difference in electric or magnetic properties of the head, or an imperfect calibration).

But the color map of that disk was amazing. It had just too many grey blocks. The odds weren't against the heads. You just don't get an head set like that one. I believe the problem was more like overdamping of the arm. Or something else among a dozen things.

2. In my case, the disk had a hard bad block, but in such a way, that most low level software just couldn't overpass it. I wonder know why... In Damon's case, it could be just a soft one with such a bit sequence that even the controller screwed up completely. After all, there are disks with bugs that make the controller screw around with data encoding. Why not the other way? That's why I suggested erase waits to clean the mess.

I didn't even know that MHDD could deal with some hard bad blocks. But it's nice to know

A final word about that WD disk: I cut the disk size at 60%.

Regards,

Daniel

P.S.: Talking about free software... at the time I tried Spinrite 6 (which I've been using with nice results, although GRC propaganda is based a lot on wishfull thinking). It also failed. Since then, my first analysis is always made with MHDD. Thank you, Dmitry.

Posted 22/3/2005, 21:06:

A correction: at the previous post, I was thinking about underdamping, not overdamping. Altough an overdamped arm would also increase seek times.

Daniel

Hello Guys,

First of all i would like to thank you for your support. I have tested this hdd in another few ways and below are the facts:

I filled the drive with zeros using DLGDIAG and it didn't help.
I connected this drive to another 2 computers and the problem is the same.
I tried to check the drive surface using F4 key (SCAN) in MHDD and as I had wrote in my first post the drive hangs on the start, busy is hilighted constantly (but the drive is not reading). I can press Escape to cancel, but then I cannot use F2 key to detect the drive anymore ("Drive not Ready") until I reset computer.

BUT I tried to use READ command in MHDD instead of F4, and the drive reads the surface with about 5MB/s using PIO4. Reading took almost 2h to finish, but I can tell you now, that I'm not dealing with any bad sectors, because surface of this disk is 100% OK!!! So what the hell is causing that situation? Is anyone who have more proposals to resolve this problem?

MAYBE YOU DMITRY? By the way, your program is great. I have started to use it from only 2 weeks ago, but your knowledge is impressive. So Master Dmitry, What is the difference between F4 and READ command? Have you got any idea???

Please help me, it would be shame to put "good" drive into recycle bin:(

Best Regards
DAMON

I would suggest you to:
1. disable overclocking
2. remove all jumpers from the drive
3. change IDE cable
4. check IDE pins on the HDD (sometimes people broke one pin near the center of IDE port which is related to DMA)

Otherwise I don't know

Hi,

Thanks Dmitry for your answer.

I don't use overclocking.
Drive has been plugged into another 2 computers = another 2 cables.
Pins are ok + I tried to resolve problem replacing electronic board on another good one from the same model and it didn't help.

I also disabled UDMA in BIOS for this HDD and the drive still was not responding when I use F4 scan. So why it can be read using READ command?

BUT Dmitry, why the drive is working with READ command, but not with F4 scan? Do you think that this HDD has problem with UDMA issues?

Have you got any more idea or have you got such or similiar problem?

DAMON

I have never seen such a thing...

the problem is that wdc is a shit completely month I have from 800 to 1000 hdd wdc the one that it works works only 15 to 30 days later beat head excuses my expression but it is true

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