about hdd bad sector

[extreme]

i downloaded the program powermax from maxtor.com to fix my hdd bad sectors.
it worked. but what im interested is that how does it fixes them?? isnt bad
sectors physical problems on hdd?? and i don't think my hdd space went
smaller.

thanks.

 

[Rod Speed]

i downloaded the program powermax from maxtor.com to fix my hdd bad
sectors. it worked. but what im interested is that how does it fixes them??

Basically by using the spares.

isnt bad sectors physical problems on hdd??

Usually, but not always. You can get one with a power glitch etc.

and i don't think my hdd space went smaller.

Yeah, because there were enough spares.

Make sure you backup what you'll slash
your wrists if you lose, even if you have to
run out and buy a cdrom burner to do that.

 

[Arno Wagner]

i downloaded the program powermax from maxtor.com to fix my hdd bad sectors.
it worked. but what im interested is that how does it fixes them?? isnt bad
sectors physical problems on hdd?? and i don't think my hdd space went
smaller.

The secort is not fixed. Rather another one is used that was
designated as "spare" before. This si a pretty standard process
today. The same happens when you read a bad sector until it was
read correct once (sometimes possible). The bad sectyor will
seemingly be gone afterwards, simply because the disk knew to
move the data to a spare sector when it was read correctly, but
wrong before.

The sapre sectors are not visible, that is why disk-size stays
unchanged. The only problem with this mechanism is that if
you had secred data in that bad sector you can now only delete it
by physical destruction (melting the platers, dissolving
them in acid, using a belt-sander on them, etc.)

Arno

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

The secort is not fixed.

Nope, it can just as well be fixed.

 

[Rod Speed]

oh i never know that haha, so how much
spare spaces does it normally has??

Varys with the drive model.

or does it depends on the hdd capacity??

Yep, that too.

and so when the spare spaces runs out, it
wont be able to fix it anymore is that right??

Nope, thats when it starts to see reduced size. But if you
are getting that many bads, the drive is dying anyway.

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

i downloaded the program powermax from maxtor.com to fix my hdd bad
sectors. it worked. but what im interested is that how does it fixes them??

Could be as simple as to write data to it that is correctly written where
before it was not. Or the drive performs a writecheck and decides to
reallocate the sector to a spare sector.

isnt bad sectors physical problems on hdd??

That is what the word implies implies but the harddrive has no (optical)
means to detect that. So it uses the Error Correction Code mechanism to
detect a bad sector. However, that ECC can be written bad or not writ-
ten at all in some cases, making the drive seemingly have a bad sector.

and i don't think my hdd space went smaller.

That's why they are called "spares".

 

[Arno Wagner]

oh i never know that haha, so how much spare spaces does it normally has??
or does it depends on the hdd capacity??

It depends and size, technology and manufacturer.

and so when the spare spaces runs out, it wont be able to fix it anymore is
that right??

Exactly. From then on bad sectors will stay bad.

Arno

 

[Folkert Rienstra]

It depends and size, technology and manufacturer.


Exactly. From then on bad sectors will stay bad.

Unless they return to good status without reallocation.
Probably not though, given the state it must be in.