What's That Sound Coming From Your Hard Drive?

To be a computer owner means at some point your hard drive will break down. Whether it’s the result of old age, early life failure, accidental dropping, sharp impact, viruses, or user error that causes the drive to go out, it is important  to keep in mind the steps to try and protect any data that may be retrievable as a proactive measure.

Also important, is to keep an eye on the symptoms of an imminent hard drive issue so you have a chance to back-up your data and get a professional to intervene. Some symptoms of a potential imminent fail are:

Symptom:

 Abnormal Noises Coming From the Hard Drive

• Clicking
• Clunking
• Thrashing
• Knocking
• Drilling

Missing Data

• Documents you saved are missing
• Programs suddenly stop working

Hard Drive Error Messages

• “Can Not Detect The Hard Drive”
• “Hard Drive Not Found”
• “Disk Read Error”
• “Drive Verify Failure”
• “Imminent Hard Disk Failure”
• “Serious Disk Error Writing Drive”

Computer Crashes

• Sudden automatic rebooting
• Windows “blue screen of death” a.k.a “Stop Error” (computer reverts to the blue screen after encountering a critical error.)
• Computer screen freezes, especially when trying to access files

Monitor Problems

•  Flickering 
•  Dimming 
•  Color Distortions
• Fails to refresh after closing a program
• Remains black after powering on

Lengthy Access Time

• Takes an exorbitant amount of time to access files or do simple tasks

Action:

• Never Open The Computer or Hard Disk Drive
  Hard Disk Drives tolerate very little mishandling. Even a 3 inch drop, or the smallest speck of dust or other contaminants can disrupt the balance of the drive’s ecosystem. This could eliminate the possibility of recovering the drive.

• If you are able to back up data at all, act very quickly—you probably don’t have much time.
• Contact your computer services technician immediately.
  
  

When you consider all of the important details you may have on your computer; confidential details, personal, or business related documents – it is vital to have a data backup system in place.   

Today, the most popular trend is to use an online backup service, that not only automatically backs up your data in case of equipment failure, but backs up your data off-site in the event of a theft, fire, flood or other catastrophe at your house or business.   

In the event of a drive failure where you do not have a backup system, it can be very costly to recover data.  Attempting to fix the hard drive yourself may lead to more damage, so it is best to leave the hard drive powered off and call a professional to assist.