Hard drive about to fail after Windows XP test?

[3dColor]

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/helpandsupport/learnmore/tips/kbtip.mspx

My computer all of a sudden started running very slow.

I did all the usual stuff to speed it up - but didn't help.

The last thing I did ways run a Scan Disk as described in the URL above and that fixed the issue.

The hard drive is 2.5 years old. Should i be thinking that this drive might fail soon?

 

[electronicsfreak]

No, overtime any windows os things like that build up from time to time. It is imporant to run chkdsk and defrag around once a month. That is why they are on there so to use them. Also reccomend keeping temp folders emptied as well.

 

[3dColor]

Where do I find the temp folders?

 

[electronicsfreak]

Will need to have hidden files showing in order to get to the last 2.

C, windows or winnt, temp (empty everything inside, just dont delete the temp folder itself but all files and folders inside it delete)

c, documents and settings, administrator, local settings , temp

c, documents and settings, username of account or accounts, local settings, temp

 

[3dColor]

I went reboot my system and it took about 10-15 minutes for it to load windows all the way. Once it is loaded it is fast.

Could this be a bios issue?

 

[ElTech]

You may also Wanto to check you Windows Event Viewer
(Right-click on my computer and select manage, expand the Event Viewer + sign and look for red error in the application and system log). It will tell you about error that you may be unaware of.

Here are some of the utilities that I use to speed up a Windows system:



CleanUp - To clean up temp files, etc

http://www.stevengould.org/software/cleanup/faq-install.html#LatestVersion

RegCleaner - To delete invalid reg keys and hidden start up programs

http://ftp.anadolu.edu.tr/Utility/RegCleaner_4.3.0/RegCleaner.4.3.0.780.exe

 

[3dColor]

I tried the Event Viewer (cool info there).

And I am noticing 14 errors and 6 warmigs during the time of boot up which took about 10 minutes:

"The device, \Device\Harddisk1\D, has a bad block."

"The device, \Device\Ide\IdePort0, did not respond within the timeout period."

6 Warnings, saying:

"An error was detected on device \Device\Harddisk1\D during a paging operation."

"The driver has detected that device \Device\Ide\IdePort0 has old or out-of-date firmware. Reduced performance may result."

Does this mean the hard drive is about to die?

 

[linney]

To check your Hard Drive.

The drive manufacturer will have free diagnostic software to check your drive for problems.

You can also load the Recovery Console and run ChkDsk /r to check for problems.

HOW TO: Install and Use the Recovery Console for Windows XP (Q307654)

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q307/6/54.asp

Might be a good idea to check your RAM too?

http://www.memtest86.com/

http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp

Any errors logged in the Event Viewer can be expanded by double clicking on the error line.

Take any event error I.D. number and search for it on these sites.

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/tr.../prodtechnol/winxppro/support/EE_winxppro.asp

http://www.eventid.net/events.asp

 

[3dColor]

Looks like I narrowed the issue down to a bad hard drive.

Interesting enough, it is the slave hard drive causing the issue that i never use.

I tried to run a CHK DSK on it but hit hangs on step 4 (8% done).

So, since it can't be fixed, which is ok since there is nothing on it I want to pull it out of my machine or at least disconnect it. (past the 1 year OEM warranty)

Do i change the BIOS first to disable it, then remove the power and ribbon cable next?

 

[wolluf]

Just remove the power & IDE cables - the bios will just not detect it. Hope that sorts your slow start up. If not you might want to visit the mobo's manufacturer site & see if there are any drivers (which can inmprove performance) for it.