ticking noises from seagate hdd

[IsmaeelTheUnheardOf]

Hi there,

i'd appreciate some help with my 80GiB seagate drive(ST380011A). Its about 3 years old, previously used in p4 computer with ntfs and win xp. The drive was very quiet. Now i installed this hdd in a pentium1 system and im using it with debian linux, ext3 filesystem, and the drive started to make wierd noises. The noises last for about 30 secs, and it has two components, 2~3 times louder background hdd noise level, and a ticking sound just like a clock ticking. (blattering, clacking)
I noticed that it usually does this when the drive is idle. I have never heard this noise before, when it was in the P4 pc.
i ran the simple test in the seagate diagnostic program and it said the drive has no problems.
also i didnt find any errors in smart values but im not sure because i dont understand all of them.
So is this some kind of mindless repetitive task for the drive to entertain itself when its bored ? Or is it the last breath of the dying ?

thanxx in advance,
Ismaeel, The Unheard-Of

 

[schtek]

i would back up the hard drive as soon as possible!!!
it could be on its way outwithin 1-3 monthsi had this problem with a few hard drives all makes!!

"Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing."

 

[IsmaeelTheUnheardOf]

thx for the comment