Hard Drive On Last Leg?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Pokerskatershark
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Pokerskatershark

Hello All,

I have a feeling my hard drive is on its last leg. When I turn it on,
it makes a VERY loud grinding noise. I could be wrong, but it
certainly doesn't sound like it's too happy! It is almost two years
old and is a Dell XPS 400. (Not sure if that info is needed)

I have backed up everything on an external hard drive. The problem I
am having is, when and if the HD does crash, is it possible to just
slap a new internal HD in my computer?

I realize that I will have to have an OS on it. My computer did not
come with any recovery CD's. I followed Dells' "recovery" process....
1) Go to the Start menu 2) All Programs 3) Dell Accessories 4)
Recovery. Problem is, there is no #4 option in my start menu.

I called Dell and I am not joking when the tech said to me "It should
be there" I purchased the computer via the Dell website and not
through a retailer. After a long discussion (1.5 hours) the tech's
final response was "I'm not sure what happened, but it should be
there. I am not sure where it is" I told him that this was the very
first time I had tried to do a recovery and where could "it" have
gone. No answer.

They are refusing to send me any recovery CD's and obviously I don't
have an XP disc lying around. Is there anything I can do? I am VERY
frustrated right now.

Thanks so much for any help.
 
Pokerskatershark said:
I have a feeling my hard drive is on its last leg. When I
turn it on, it makes a VERY loud grinding noise. I could
be wrong, but it certainly doesn't sound like it's too happy!
Click to expand...

Its more likely to be an internal fan, not the hard drive.
It is almost two years old and is a Dell XPS 400.
(Not sure if that info is needed)
Click to expand...
I have backed up everything on an external hard drive.
The problem I am having is, when and if the HD does crash,
is it possible to just slap a new internal HD in my computer?
Yes.

I realize that I will have to have an OS on it. My computer did not
come with any recovery CD's. I followed Dells' "recovery" process....
1) Go to the Start menu 2) All Programs 3) Dell Accessories 4)
Recovery. Problem is, there is no #4 option in my start menu.
Click to expand...
I called Dell and I am not joking when the tech said to me "It should be
there" I purchased the computer via the Dell website and not through
a retailer. After a long discussion (1.5 hours) the tech's final response
was "I'm not sure what happened, but it should be there. I am not sure
where it is" I told him that this was the very first time I had tried to do
a recovery and where could "it" have gone. No answer.
Click to expand...
They are refusing to send me any recovery CD's and obviously
I don't have an XP disc lying around. Is there anything I can do?
Click to expand...

Yes, you can do a full image backup of the hard drive using something like
Acronis True Image, burn what it calls the rescue CD. Then if the hard drive
does die, boot that rescue CD and restore the backup to the new hard drive.
 
Hello All,

I have a feeling my hard drive is on its last leg. When I turn it on,
it makes a VERY loud grinding noise. I could be wrong, but it
certainly doesn't sound like it's too happy! It is almost two years
old and is a Dell XPS 400. (Not sure if that info is needed)

I have backed up everything on an external hard drive. The problem I
am having is, when and if the HD does crash, is it possible to just
slap a new internal HD in my computer?

I realize that I will have to have an OS on it. My computer did not
come with any recovery CD's. I followed Dells' "recovery" process....
1) Go to the Start menu 2) All Programs 3) Dell Accessories 4)
Recovery. Problem is, there is no #4 option in my start menu.

I called Dell and I am not joking when the tech said to me "It should
be there" I purchased the computer via the Dell website and not
through a retailer. After a long discussion (1.5 hours) the tech's
final response was "I'm not sure what happened, but it should be
there. I am not sure where it is" I told him that this was the very
first time I had tried to do a recovery and where could "it" have
gone. No answer.

They are refusing to send me any recovery CD's and obviously I don't
have an XP disc lying around. Is there anything I can do? I am VERY
frustrated right now.

Thanks so much for any help.
Click to expand...

Use an Acronis TrueImage bootdisc to backup your HD and then restore it on
a new HD.
 
Pokerskatershark said:
Hello All,

I have a feeling my hard drive is on its last leg. When I turn it on,
it makes a VERY loud grinding noise. I could be wrong, but it
certainly doesn't sound like it's too happy! It is almost two years
old and is a Dell XPS 400. (Not sure if that info is needed)

I have backed up everything on an external hard drive. The problem I
am having is, when and if the HD does crash, is it possible to just
slap a new internal HD in my computer?

I realize that I will have to have an OS on it. My computer did not
come with any recovery CD's. I followed Dells' "recovery" process....
1) Go to the Start menu 2) All Programs 3) Dell Accessories 4)
Recovery. Problem is, there is no #4 option in my start menu.

I called Dell and I am not joking when the tech said to me "It should
be there" I purchased the computer via the Dell website and not
through a retailer. After a long discussion (1.5 hours) the tech's
final response was "I'm not sure what happened, but it should be
there. I am not sure where it is" I told him that this was the very
first time I had tried to do a recovery and where could "it" have
gone. No answer.

They are refusing to send me any recovery CD's and obviously I don't
have an XP disc lying around. Is there anything I can do? I am VERY
frustrated right now.

Thanks so much for any help.
Click to expand...
 
Pokerskatershark said:
Hello All,

I have a feeling my hard drive is on its last leg. When I turn it on,
it makes a VERY loud grinding noise. I could be wrong, but it
certainly doesn't sound like it's too happy! It is almost two years
old and is a Dell XPS 400. (Not sure if that info is needed)

I have backed up everything on an external hard drive. The problem I
am having is, when and if the HD does crash, is it possible to just
slap a new internal HD in my computer?

I realize that I will have to have an OS on it. My computer did not
come with any recovery CD's. I followed Dells' "recovery" process....
1) Go to the Start menu 2) All Programs 3) Dell Accessories 4)
Recovery. Problem is, there is no #4 option in my start menu.

I called Dell and I am not joking when the tech said to me "It should
be there" I purchased the computer via the Dell website and not
through a retailer. After a long discussion (1.5 hours) the tech's
final response was "I'm not sure what happened, but it should be
there. I am not sure where it is" I told him that this was the very
first time I had tried to do a recovery and where could "it" have
gone. No answer.

They are refusing to send me any recovery CD's and obviously I don't
have an XP disc lying around. Is there anything I can do? I am VERY
frustrated right now.

Thanks so much for any help.
Click to expand...

If it were me, provided the existing drive is still functioning, I'd get a
new hard drive possibly larger than what you have now, and install it in the
machine. On another machine, download the free trial of Acronic Migrate Easy
and copy it onto a CD or memory stick. Turn on your machine, install the
Migrate easy, and let it copy everything to the new drive, then scrap the
old drive
 
In addition to what others suggested about making a backup
of the system, two other things you can do are:

1) Buy new drive, connect both and use the drive
manufacturer's utility to dupe the old drive to the new.
Only after that had finished, boot windows with old drive
disconnected.

2) Determine which version of XP you have and get the disc
(copy it if you want to keep a copy) from someone else. It
should be an OEM disc of same type your system had, Home vs
Pro, and possibly same release (Sp1 vs Sp2 integral). With
2 year old system it should be SP2. You can do this because
the license is not tied to the installation media, it is to
the type of windows you end up running. The sticker that
came on your system is the installation key, it should work
if you have the right windows disc - though in some cases
you may have to call MS and have them give you the
activation code. Since this is a valid not pirated license,
if you need to call for the code you should give minimal
information instead of leaving them an excuse to deny
activation. I write this because while some have no trouble
getting reactivated, some CSRs dont' understand that license
does not require the specific piece of plastic (CD) that
your OEM (supposedly) shipped. License does not disappear
if you don't have the original media to install from.
Click to expand...

This is a lot of very useful and great information. Thanks to
everyone!!

I will get that software and also buy a new internal HD. Does
everyone concur that I should buy a new fan as well?

Now, what would you all suggest as far as the model of internal HD I
should get? What about the fan? In the past I have used New Egg, but
curious if there are better sources out there.

Thanks again for all the help!!!
 
Pokerskatershark said:
This is a lot of very useful and great information. Thanks to
everyone!!

I will get that software and also buy a new internal HD. Does
everyone concur that I should buy a new fan as well?

Now, what would you all suggest as far as the model of internal HD I
should get? What about the fan? In the past I have used New Egg, but
curious if there are better sources out there.

Thanks again for all the help!!!
Click to expand...

There may be a number of good PC part sources, but none better than Newegg.
Check the user ratings on whatever size and type drive you need. I've been
using nothing by Seagate drives for the last five years and have never had
one go bad, although I just ordered a WD caviar about an hour ago, so, we'll
see
 
There may be a number of good PC part sources, but none better than Newegg.
Check the user ratings on whatever size and type drive you need. I've been
using nothing by Seagate drives for the last five years and have never had
one go bad, although I just ordered a WD caviar about an hour ago, so, we'll
see
Click to expand...

Great. Thank you very much!
 
Pokerskatershark said:
Hello All,

I have a feeling my hard drive is on its last leg. When I turn it on,
it makes a VERY loud grinding noise. I could be wrong, but it
certainly doesn't sound like it's too happy! It is almost two years
old and is a Dell XPS 400. (Not sure if that info is needed)

I have backed up everything on an external hard drive. The problem I
am having is, when and if the HD does crash, is it possible to just
slap a new internal HD in my computer?

I realize that I will have to have an OS on it. My computer did not
come with any recovery CD's. I followed Dells' "recovery" process....
1) Go to the Start menu 2) All Programs 3) Dell Accessories 4)
Recovery. Problem is, there is no #4 option in my start menu.

I called Dell and I am not joking when the tech said to me "It should
be there" I purchased the computer via the Dell website and not
through a retailer. After a long discussion (1.5 hours) the tech's
final response was "I'm not sure what happened, but it should be
there. I am not sure where it is" I told him that this was the very
first time I had tried to do a recovery and where could "it" have
gone. No answer.

They are refusing to send me any recovery CD's and obviously I don't
have an XP disc lying around. Is there anything I can do? I am VERY
frustrated right now.

Thanks so much for any help.
Click to expand...

first thing to do is look inside the case and identify the source of the
noise ... maybe a wire is touching a fan .. maybe a fan is worn .. you can
certainly, by listening and observing carefully, eliminate these
possibilities..

If your hard drive was about to fail I would think you would experience
problems using the computer .. slow system for example, BSOD
 
code_wrong said:
first thing to do is look inside the case and identify the source of
the noise ... maybe a wire is touching a fan .. maybe a fan is worn
.. you can certainly, by listening and observing carefully, eliminate
these possibilities..
Click to expand...
If your hard drive was about to fail I would think you would experience problems using the computer .. slow system for
example, BSOD
Click to expand...

Not if its just bearing noise, that can go on for years just being noisy.
 
Not if its just bearing noise, that can go on for years just being noisy.
Click to expand...

The noise has only been going on for a few days. I haven't noticed in
slowing of speed or any error messages coming up. It's not noisy
after it boots up either.

I will open the case and see if I can figure out where the noise is
coming from. Is it all right to have the case open when I turn it
on?

Thanks again for all the help!
 
Pokerskatershark said:
The noise has only been going on for a few days. I haven't noticed in
slowing of speed or any error messages coming up. It's not noisy
after it boots up either.

I will open the case and see if I can figure out where the noise is
coming from. Is it all right to have the case open when I turn it
on?

Thanks again for all the help!
Click to expand...

It's fine, just make sure you're grounded before you touch anything, and if
it it the hard drive making the noise, don't keep running it until you get a
replacement drive
 
The noise has only been going on for a few days.
I haven't noticed in slowing of speed or any error
messages coming up. It's not noisy after it boots up either.
Click to expand...

Thats much more likely to be a fan than the hard drive.
I will open the case and see if I can figure out where the noise is coming from.
Click to expand...

The simplest way to do that is to put something insulating thru the
fan on the power supply, before turning it on. That stops that fan
rotating, so you can see if the noise is coming from that fan.

Dont leave that stopping the fan rotating for long, just long enough
to check if the noise still happens as the system is turned on.
Is it all right to have the case open when I turn it on?
Click to expand...

Yes, but you dont need to open the case to
check the case fans, just do what I listed above.

Dont to that with the cpu fan, even a short time stopped can kill the cpu on turnon.

The best check for whether its the hard drive is to unplug the power to the hard drive
and see if the noise still happens at startup. You should get no noise and an error
message saying that no bootable drive is available if the noise is due to the hard drive.
Thanks again for all the help!
Click to expand...

No problem, thats what these technical newsgroups are for.
 
Thats much more likely to be a fan than the hard drive.


The simplest way to do that is to put something insulating thru the
fan on the power supply, before turning it on. That stops that fan
rotating, so you can see if the noise is coming from that fan.

Dont leave that stopping the fan rotating for long, just long enough
to check if the noise still happens as the system is turned on.


Yes, but you dont need to open the case to
check the case fans, just do what I listed above.

Dont to that with the cpu fan, even a short time stopped can kill the cpu on turnon.

The best check for whether its the hard drive is to unplug the power to the hard drive
and see if the noise still happens at startup. You should get no noise and an error
message saying that no bootable drive is available if the noise is due to the hard drive.


No problem, thats what these technical newsgroups are for.
Click to expand...

Well, it is definitely the hard drive. I just hope I can get a new HD
ordered and installed before the bomb goes off!

When I put the new drive in, will I still have all my old programs or
do I have to reinstall? The reason I ask is a few of my programs
require activation codes and I know that one program for sure (Final
Draft) does not have any activations left.

Keeping my fingers crossed that I can actually pull this off!!

Thanks again everyone!!
Justine
 
Well, it is definitely the hard drive. I just hope I can get a new HD
ordered and installed before the bomb goes off!

When I put the new drive in, will I still have all my old programs or
do I have to reinstall? The reason I ask is a few of my programs
require activation codes and I know that one program for sure (Final
Draft) does not have any activations left.

Keeping my fingers crossed that I can actually pull this off!!

Thanks again everyone!!
Justine
Click to expand...

One other quick question. I have narrowed down these three drives.
How do I know which one I need for my system?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...Description=Western+Digital+Caviar&name=750GB

Thanks again for all the help!!
 
Well, it is definitely the hard drive. I just hope I can get a
new HD ordered and installed before the bomb goes off!
Click to expand...

If its the hard drive bearing, it should last that long fine.

If the noise is the drive recalibrating, it may not.
When I put the new drive in, will I still have all my old programs
Click to expand...

Yes, if you use Acronis True Image etc to clone the old drive to the new one.
or do I have to reinstall?
Click to expand...

Only if you choose to go that route.
The reason I ask is a few of my programs require activation codes and I know
that one program for sure (Final Draft) does not have any activations left.
Click to expand...

Then clone the old to the new drive. You should make the image now,
before the new drive shows up, in case the old drive dies before then.
Keeping my fingers crossed that I can actually pull this off!!
Click to expand...

You have to grovel to some god or other too. Just dont do that in
public tho, they might decide that you are a muslim or something |-(
 
The old drive should still have the warranty on it.
Click to expand...

Well, it was not the hard drive. It is the fan and now I'm having to
start all over again to try to figure out what the heck to do. :-(

This might be beyond what I can manage.

Thanks again for all the advice and help!!!
 
Well, it was not the hard drive. It is the fan and now I'm having to
start all over again to try to figure out what the heck to do. :-(
Click to expand...

Just replace it.
This might be beyond what I can manage.
Click to expand...

In some ways its easier to replace a fan than a hard drive unless its the cpu fan.
 
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