Possible HDD failing on SXPS 16

So a few days ago I tried to boot up my machine and it did nothing after the BIOS screen. I had to hold the power button to get it do shut off. After a few minutes I tried to reboot and Vista tried to fix the problem which it indicated it couldn't. So I tried to do a system restore and it failed. In fact it failed on every point I tried.

The next day the system seemed to be running normally so I just figured it was a fluke. Then the next day Vista booted but I had no desktop icons, all programs initialized with errors and nothing was responding. So I rebooted and backed up my data.

I then downloaded Active Hard Disk Monitor and was shocked to see my Raw read error rate was 57% and my seek error rate was 66%! So I contacted Dell tech support and was instructed to run their diagnostics. The initial test indicated an inverter cable issue but the HDD passed all tests.

So my question is shoudl I be concerend about the SMART feedback info or should I rely on Dells diagnostics? My concern is that their diagnostics may only flag a problem if the drive is really close to death not just on its way. I plan on reinstalling the OS but don't want to spend the effort if this drive is going to be on its way out.

 

That sounds like a hard drive entering its final death throes - I wouldn't listen to _Dell over your own experience and the results of other diagnostic tests. On top of which, I fail to see how a faulty inverter cable could be related to the problems you described.

First thing to do is: Backup, backup, backup, and then backup again. Second: Go the the website for the manufacturer of your hard drive (i.e., not _Dell, but the company that actually built the thing) and download the free diagnostic utility you should be able to find there. That should give you the best feedback on the actual state of the hdd. You could also d/l some of the other diagnostic apps in the Free Software thread to see what results they give.

Lastly, contact _Dell again, and tell them you want them to replace the drive under warranty and, if you feel comfortable doing it yourself, ask them to cross-ship the new one to you, or else ship the new one out first with a shipping label that you can use to send the old one back to them (after you've nuked it, of course).

 

the damn dell diagnostic is crap, they will ALWAYS ask you to run it for several hours, and its always wrong or inaccurate, you can probably tell why so many people have bad experiences with dell.

i second what shyster said, go straight and to the point when you contact dell again "my HD is failing, already did manufacturer's test and it says bye bye " because if you leave room for them to put in an excuse they will...

so far i haven't been able to get them to ship the part for me to install it, they insist on sending a tech, which is fine as long as you have a couple of hours to spare.

 

Well now I really don't know what to think.....drive is a Seagate 320GB 7200rpm (ST9320421ASG) so I downloaded Seatools and ran SMART check, short drive self test and short generic test and it passes all of them. My only concern is it is very similar to Dells app in that it runs the test and just says pass/fail, not a score. So I don't know if it looks at the SMART feedback and prorates it based on run hours or if it is now reporting something different than Active Hard Disk Monitor????

By the way, not that I have ever purchased a Dell expecting great customer service but it seems to be far worse than I remember from any of my past machines. I got an automated voice mail yesterday from Dell support about this issue, telling me to call in with case number to resolve the issue. So I call, it asks me if it has been resolved so I indicated no....then asks if I want to speak to a tech so I indicated yes and the system told me that they weren't available and hung up! It really is an incredibly frustrating experience. I think the only reason I am dealing with this is overall I like the machine and the price from the outlet was great but I think next time I may give someone else a try or build my own.

 

dell chat has worked for me, never really liked calling them.. but yeah i feel your pain dude, and so do 80% of dell users