Disk-Imaging Program Destroying Hard-Drives?

  • Thread starter Thread starter John Webster
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J

John Webster

I read the following two posts on a PC maintenance discussion forum
and would very much appreciate any input and comments from this group.

The poster is claiming that a certain manufacturer's disk-imaging
software contains a bug that destroys computer hard-drives.

I don't have the expertise to be able to make a reliable assessment of
the poster's claims although they seem very unlikely to me.

What I'd really like to know is whether there are any technical
considerations or logical inconsistencies that make the poster's claim
totally impossible.

I realise that even if there are not, it doesn't prove his claim at
all, but it would set my mind at rest if it could be positively
disproved as I use the software myself.

He claims to have filed bug reports with the company in question and
that they "don't want to know".

Suspecting that there may be some commercial motive for his
observations, I've removed all references to the manufacturer of the
program.

Many thanks for your help.



FIRST POST

I never believed that a piece of software can destroy your hardware,
namely your HDD, indirectly, by means of sustained mechanical
movements.

But reading the report on the bug in XXXX's backup program , I decided
to make some tests.

At the company where I work, I prepared 2 PCs with identical
components, the affected HDDs being 60GB Western Digital model
WD600AB-00BVA0.

The first PC had a XXXX backup program installed and the second one
had the suspect XXXX backup program.

I scheduled a system backup every hour.

Well, after one week of continuous running, guess what? The second PC
HDD died of mechanical sustained movements of the reading arm.

I'm service engineer so I could easily identify the cause of the
death, especially after the sounds and also opened the HDD case.


============================================
SECOND POST


I further investigated the matter and the destroyed Western Digital 60
GB HDD, made extra tests and a lot of electronic soldering and EEPROM
flashing..and here are the new results.

BEWARE!

All the work described here involves advanced knowledge of electronic
design, soldering, experience with loupe soldering and knowledge of
EEPROM controllers reprogramming, it's NOT for newbies! Also you need
adequate tools and equipment for doing it.

I have all of these.

More exactly: YOU DON'T NEED TO REFLASH THE EEPROM CONTROLLER of the
HDD! Only to write the boot and start sector of the hdd for full
function of the XXXX backup program.

Details: I opened the HDD in almost laboratory conditions (temperature
and dust conditions). I removed the HDD controller. I desoldered the
EEPROM and copy its content.

I did similar thing with the non-affected hdd.

I compared the content of the both EEPROMS with a similar new hdd.

The "destroyed" hdd had its content modified.

The hdd coming from the tried and tested program was similar to the
new hdd - in other words, NON-MODIFIED!

I reflashed the modified EEPROM with the original content.

I soldered back the EEPROM and the controller.

I mounted the "destroyed hdd" in a hardware duplicator and fully
erased it.

I mounted again the cleaned restored ex-destroyed hdd and did a new
clean install with Windows 2000.

All worked. I installed the hardware test programs from WesternDigital
and tested the disk.

All was ok again!

The disk was really saved from the dead!

Conclusion: do the tests for yourself and enjoy the work!

==============================

Thanks for your input,

John
 
John Webster said:
I read the following two posts on a PC maintenance discussion forum
and would very much appreciate any input and comments from this group.
Click to expand...
<snipped for brevity>

Although i'm sure it's possible that a drive could have failed after using
some disk imaging software...it's not terribly likely the software is what
caused the drive to die. I doubt if imaging a drive is going to put any more
stress on it
than defragging would.

As far as the post where someone actually removed one of the chips
on the harddrive controller, then reprogrammed it...I am rather skeptical.
The post stated that he opened the drive in near laboratory conditions. The
harddrive controller is normally exposed to the environment. You do not
"open the drive" to get at the controller portion...so my guess is that
the post was just a lot of bunk!
 
justme said:
Don't believe it. Software doesn't break hardware.
Click to expand...

I've seen (poorly designed) sytems that could be damanged with
firmware programed to invoke hardware states that a hardware guy
didn't plan for....
 
<snipped for brevity>

Although i'm sure it's possible that a drive could have failed after using
some disk imaging software...it's not terribly likely the software is what
caused the drive to die. I doubt if imaging a drive is going to put any more
stress on it
than defragging would.

As far as the post where someone actually removed one of the chips
on the harddrive controller, then reprogrammed it...I am rather skeptical.
The post stated that he opened the drive in near laboratory conditions. The
harddrive controller is normally exposed to the environment. You do not
"open the drive" to get at the controller portion...so my guess is that
the post was just a lot of bunk!
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing... the PROM is not inside the main
platter compartment but on the PCB... seems like fiction to me.
 
I've seen (poorly designed) sytems that could be damanged with
firmware programed to invoke hardware states that a hardware guy
didn't plan for....
Click to expand...

Many thanks for all the informative replies.

The poster claims that the WD hard drive is an April 2001 model in
which "You need to take apart the printed circuit board in order to
access the EEPROM of the controller".

Does that answer your point, Philo, that "the harddrive controller is
normally exposed to the environment" or is that something completely
different?

John
 
.....
Many thanks for all the informative replies.

The poster claims that the WD hard drive is an April 2001 model in
which "You need to take apart the printed circuit board in order to
access the EEPROM of the controller".

Does that answer your point, Philo, that "the harddrive controller is
normally exposed to the environment" or is that something completely
different?

John
Click to expand...


I have a few WD harddrives here...although
the controller would have to be removed to get at the "chips"...
it is not hermetically sealed...so it could be done in any normally clean
and static free environment...

however...i just realized something...and that is

WD provides a utility that you can run from a floppy which lets you
program the drive for dma 33, 66 or 100

so actually, by using that utility i have actually programmed the eprom

if the person who made that post was intelligent enough to know how to
remove an eprom and figure out how to re-program it "on the bench"
he should have been smart enough to realize that you do *not* have to
remove the eprom to reprogram it...
 
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