Current pending sector error

[becool773]

Hi,

About this thread https://techenclave.com/threads/error-1073740791.206710 somehow I was not convinced that this is caused by some Windows related errors, virus or anything. This machine is very normally used for typing work etc. In the first week of June I checked crystal disk info the hdd was fine. Now Crystal disk info app was giving this error 1073740791 while opening as it requires admin rights. Today opened it via task manager and boom here is the result

https://imgur.com/a/dFe7eFl

I know there is not, but is there any way to fix this current pending sector error before this makes it kaput? Why does this current pending sector error occur? Now here is some other issue, current specs of the system

Ryzen 5 1600
Zotac GT 710
Asus PrimeB-350 Plus
Corsair RAM 8gb 2666mhz (3200 mhz supported by mobo, 3200 mhz was oos when this pc was built) and it is used in slot 2. In CPU Z the frequency is mentioned 1197.60 mhz though, why?
Antec vp550p 550w (The previous gpu was Zotac 1060 6gb, so that is why this psu. 710 was bought about a year back)
Corsair Spec 1 case
The ups is a very old local one with some excide battery. Gives a backup of 10-15 minutes atleast
The monitor is from LG 21" or 22" not sure

This WD hdd was a rma product and was covered under warranty till last week of last month, it had to go kaput just a month later Anyways the previous hdd went kaput due to this reason only about 2 years back. We have an external hdd which we use to take backups form other machines and then copy in the hdd of this system, hence the need for 2tb space. As you can see from the crystal disk info ss, this unit was not that much used.

Now major queries-

1. Is there any more hdd diagnostic software which we can run just to make sure? Maybe something by WD itself?

2. Why are the drives going the current pending sector error way? Both the internal and external one? The external one is also used to take backups like once or twice from all machines and then copy in this system. BTW this external one too showed current pending sector error and was rmaed. Is this current pending sector error happening because of very less usage? I have read that if ssd's are not powered on once in 60-90 days then they loose all the data. Is that true?

3. We need atleast 1.5tb space for backups in this system. Is ssd supported by this setup?

4. Which drive, ssd/hdd would you suggest?

Any other inputs?

@OMEGA44-XT @tech.monk @Kaleen Bhaiya @lockhrt999 @enthusiast29

Thanks

Edit-

5. Went to a local shop to check the prices of the hdd offline. The shopkeeper was pushing Toshiba over WD and said that the former comes with 3 year warranty vs 2 years on the WD, they had the purple one. Met another guy who was their to confirm the rates. He said that if the hdd is going kaput via the same error current pending sector count then there is something wrong with the rig, either with the main electricity point, ups or psu or faulty cables or something else in the rig. He said that I should find the problem first before buying a new hdd. He's right, got the original internal hdd in july 2017, usage was moderate with light gaming as it had gtx 1060 then. Current pending sector came in April 2019 and was rmaed. After that when the system was downgraded to gt 710 usage became even less, thanks to corona too. The external hdd from wd, went through the same between this timeline only. So, how to find out the culprit and how to rectify the same? We have two old systems at home assembled circa 2010, with p4 80 gb hdd's etc. The drives of the same are fine with no current pending sector error as of now, touchwood. I have a feeling that the ups might be an issue. How? IDK. Here to find the science behind it.

6. Can zero filling the drive fix this issue?

7. If an external hdd, pendrive etc. is used with this drive to copy data then can this drive somehow ruin those external storage drives too?

 

[lockhrt999]

I know there is not, but is there any way to fix this current pending sector error before this makes it kaput? Why does this current pending sector error occur? Now here is some other issue, current specs of the system

You have bad sectors. And the solution is still the same as mentioned in previous thread. You need to scan the disk.

If I read correctly, you have bad sectors on 4 hdd in total? I think there's something wrong either with computer or your usage. You should move your setup to the SSDs. And no, you don't get bad sectors due to low use.

 

[becool773]

You have bad sectors. And the solution is still the same as mentioned in previous thread. You need to scan the disk.

If I read correctly, you have bad sectors on 4 hdd in total? I think there's something wrong either with computer or your usage. You should move your setup to the SSDs. And no, you don't get bad sectors due to low use.

Scanning seems not possible as admin rights are lost. Reinstall windows and then scan?
Where is it mentioned about 4 bad sectors?
Check the last few points added in the original post just now
Edit-

Checked the system from as per the commands here, ran cmd as admin via task manager

Redirecting

C:\Users\xxxx>Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth

Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool
Version: 10.0.19041.844

Image Version: 10.0.19044.1741

No component store corruption detected.
The operation completed successfully.

C:\Users\xxxx>Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth

Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool
Version: 10.0.19041.844

Image Version: 10.0.19044.1741

[===========================85.8%================= ]
Error: 605

The specified buffer contains ill-formed data.

The DISM log file can be found at C:\WINDOWS\Logs\DISM\dism.log

C:\Users\xxxx>Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool
Version: 10.0.19041.844

Image Version: 10.0.19044.1741

[===========================53.2% ]
Error: 605

The specified buffer contains ill-formed data.

The DISM log file can be found at C:\WINDOWS\Logs\DISM\dism.log

C:\Users\xxxx>sfc/scannow

Beginning system scan. This process will take some time.

Beginning verification phase of system scan.
Verification 2% complete.

Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation.

C:\Users\xxxx>sfc/scannow

Beginning system scan. This process will take some time.

Beginning verification phase of system scan.
Verification 2% complete.

Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation.

Have run chkdsk /r /f also, will get back what it says after restart. Don't have high hopes from this, as cannot go back to a restore point, it gives an error. Windows have downloaded some updates, while shutdown or restart it starts to install them but them says cannot install and undos everything. Yes Windows seem corrupted too. I am fine with the reinstallation now, it is the current pending sector error in the hdd which is worrying me.

 

[lockhrt999]

If you have important files applications on the current windows drive then install windows on a different drive.

Or scan your hdd in a different machine.

 

[becool773]

If you have important files applications on the current windows drive then install windows on a different drive.

Or scan your hdd in a different machine.

Scanned drive in different pc, crystal disk is showing same current pending sector error

The pc restarted after the chkdsk /r /f command, it took about 2 hours for the scan to be completed. By the time I was back the system was already booted up. Now it has become very very slow. Takes like an eternity to boot up. Opening even a folder takes like 10 minutes. Why does this current pending sector happening again and again in this machine? Did you check point 5?

 

[enthusiast29]

Sounds like a dying hard drive. Can't do much. Shift to a small 120GB SSD already, they are pretty affordable and avoid so much hassle and saves so much time.

Also Microsoft is trying to kill hard drive as boot device by 2023.
Sources:

Report: Microsoft Wants to Kill HDD Boot Drives By 2023 - ExtremeTech

The Windows maker supposedly wants computers to no longer ship with spinning boot drives, moving all PCs to solid state drives (SSDs) by 2023. OEMs are apparently nonplussed with the request, fearing it could drive up costs in machines that are aimed at budget-conscious buyers.

www.extremetech.com

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/microsofts-reportedly-trying-to-kill-hdd-boot-drives-for-windows-11-pcs-by-2023

Microsoft wants Windows to boot only on SSDs, reportedly pushing OEMs to get rid of HDD boot drives by 2023

Microsoft could be mandating all OEMs to ditch HDDs and opt for SSDs as the primary Windows boot drive by 2023. Currently, Windows 11 can be installed just fine on both SSDs and HDDs but going forward, Microsoft wants all PCs, including budget ones in emerging markets, to transition their boot...

www.notebookcheck.net

 

[Kaleen Bhaiya]

Sounds like a dying hard drive. Can't do much. Shift to a small 120GB SSD already, they are pretty affordable and avoid so much hassle and saves so much time.

Also Microsoft is trying to kill hard drive as boot device by 2023.
Sources:

Report: Microsoft Wants to Kill HDD Boot Drives By 2023 - ExtremeTech

The Windows maker supposedly wants computers to no longer ship with spinning boot drives, moving all PCs to solid state drives (SSDs) by 2023. OEMs are apparently nonplussed with the request, fearing it could drive up costs in machines that are aimed at budget-conscious buyers.

www.extremetech.com

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/microsofts-reportedly-trying-to-kill-hdd-boot-drives-for-windows-11-pcs-by-2023

Microsoft wants Windows to boot only on SSDs, reportedly pushing OEMs to get rid of HDD boot drives by 2023

Microsoft could be mandating all OEMs to ditch HDDs and opt for SSDs as the primary Windows boot drive by 2023. Currently, Windows 11 can be installed just fine on both SSDs and HDDs but going forward, Microsoft wants all PCs, including budget ones in emerging markets, to transition their boot...

www.notebookcheck.net

I concur with how Windows 10+ has becomes so slow on mechanical drives. I use SSD at home and when I replicate the same on the office pcs, it takes ages to complete a task. Patience really thins out when hdd becomes a bottleneck. +1 for getting a 128 or 256 gb SSD.

 

[enthusiast29]

I concur with how Windows 10+ has becomes so slow on mechanical drives. I use SSD at home and when I replicate the same on the office pcs, it takes ages to complete a task. Patience really thins out when hdd becomes a bottleneck. +1 for getting a 128 or 256 gb SSD.

I really pity people using hdd as boot device in 2022. I mean either they don't value time or they like trouble.
I mean it's like being stuck with slow 2G speeds in the modern throughput hungry era of internet and complaining why my videos keep buffering.

 

[becool773]

Sounds like a dying hard drive. Can't do much. Shift to a small 120GB SSD already, they are pretty affordable and avoid so much hassle and saves so much time.

Also Microsoft is trying to kill hard drive as boot device by 2023.
Sources:

Report: Microsoft Wants to Kill HDD Boot Drives By 2023 - ExtremeTech

The Windows maker supposedly wants computers to no longer ship with spinning boot drives, moving all PCs to solid state drives (SSDs) by 2023. OEMs are apparently nonplussed with the request, fearing it could drive up costs in machines that are aimed at budget-conscious buyers.

www.extremetech.com

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/microsofts-reportedly-trying-to-kill-hdd-boot-drives-for-windows-11-pcs-by-2023

Microsoft wants Windows to boot only on SSDs, reportedly pushing OEMs to get rid of HDD boot drives by 2023

Microsoft could be mandating all OEMs to ditch HDDs and opt for SSDs as the primary Windows boot drive by 2023. Currently, Windows 11 can be installed just fine on both SSDs and HDDs but going forward, Microsoft wants all PCs, including budget ones in emerging markets, to transition their boot...

www.notebookcheck.net

Brother the only reason why I am digging deep into this is because I really want to know why every hdd is giving current pending sector error in this system. Hence I posted the system specs plus other details also. Please check this

5. Went to a local shop to check the prices of the hdd offline. The shopkeeper was pushing Toshiba over WD and said that the former comes with 3 year warranty vs 2 years on the WD, they had the purple one. Met another guy who was their to confirm the rates. He said that if the hdd is going kaput via the same error current pending sector count then there is something wrong with the rig, either with the main electricity point, ups or psu or faulty cables or something else in the rig. He said that I should find the problem first before buying a new hdd. He's right, got the original internal hdd in july 2017, usage was moderate with light gaming as it had gtx 1060 then. Current pending sector came in April 2019 and was rmaed. After that when the system was downgraded to gt 710 usage became even less, thanks to corona too. The external hdd from wd, went through the same between this timeline only. So, how to find out the culprit and how to rectify the same? We have two old systems at home assembled circa 2010, with p4 80 gb hdd's etc. The drives of the same are fine with no current pending sector error as of now, touchwood. I have a feeling that the ups might be an issue. How? IDK. Here to find the science behind it.

This guy was certain that the next drives will go kaput this way only. Moreover my friends bought wd drives with me together and their drives are working fine. Any way to find the root cause behind this?

Coming to ssd, the drive in this system was used to keep backups of data from different machines hence the need for 2tb of space. 2tb ssd's are way out of budget. So, we will be needing a hdd besides a 120 or 240gb ssd. Have you seen ssd's going kaput with this current pending sector error?

 

[enthusiast29]

Check your power supply, if using a cheap one shift to a low wattage branded PSU like corsair CV/CX or Cooler Master. Also check and replace your SATA cables.
SSDs don't have such issues because they don't have moving mechanical parts. Even if everything's fine with power and all, HDDs are still prone to mechanical failures due to vibrations and moving parts inside.

Also I never said use 120/240GB ssd only and don't use HDD. My point was to use it for a boot drive so that you don't complain everything is so slow and takes time.

 

[becool773]

Check your power supply, if using a cheap one shift to a low wattage branded PSU like corsair CV/CX or Cooler Master. Also check and replace your SATA cables.
SSDs don't have such issues because they don't have moving mechanical parts. Even if everything's fine with power and all, HDDs are still prone to mechanical failures due to vibrations and moving parts inside.

Also I never said use 120/240GB ssd only and don't use HDD. My point was to use it for a boot drive so that you don't complain everything is so slow and takes time.

The psu is Antec vp550p 550w. It seems fine, plus let's say it was faulty then wouldn't the same had messed up other parts in the system too? How to diagnose the electrical socket+ups?
Replace all sata cables? Any branded one's that you can suggest?
Brother the system is kept on a table. No vibration no nothing in this room.
For this system we never opted for a ssd as the boot time was surprisingly fine plus as it is rarely used so we were fine with it. My point was that since ssd's are expensive and we need more storage space in this system as it is used for backups, so we can only go for 120 or 240 gb ssd. A hdd will be needed.
If we connect an external drive to this system and try to copy the contents then can this system "infect" the external storage drive with the current pending sector error? I know that this is not a virus that will be transferred but just confirming if any of the bad sectors or anything mess up the external drive?

 

[enthusiast29]

The psu is Antec vp550p 550w. It seems fine, plus let's say it was faulty then wouldn't the same had messed up other parts in the system too? How to diagnose the electrical socket+ups?
Replace all sata cables? Any branded one's that you can suggest?
Brother the system is kept on a table. No vibration no nothing in this room.
if any of the bad sectors or anything mess up the external drive?

Multimeter.
No brands, they are all generic.
Vibrations and movement of parts inside the drive itself. You can't stop that.
No, as you said it's not a contagious plague.

 

[lockhrt999]

Why does this current pending sector happening again and again in this machine? Did you check point 5?

Like I said previously, there's something wrong with your computer or your usage.

We have two old systems at home assembled circa 2010, with p4 80 gb hdd's etc. The drives of the same are fine with no current pending sector error as of now, touchwood.

Different system so unfair to compare. But all other things equal, older HDDs were much reliable. After the flood in thailand the reliability went down hill for HDDs.

The psu is Antec vp550p 550w. It seems fine, plus let's say it was faulty then wouldn't the same had messed up other parts in the system too?

If the PSU is faulty then HDDs are the first to go bad. Other stuff is more resilient to bad voltage supply.

I had a bad PSU. The fan inside PSU had stopped working which I didn't notice for 6 months and ran the system just like that. So after a while it used to get overheated. Overheating caused voltage fluctuations and that made my HDD go wonky. It took me long time to realize that something was wrong with the system because I was running stuff off SSD and HDD was rarely used. When PSU overheated, the HDD got super slow and for the longest time, I blamed it on my slow internet speed.

If you want to keep 2TB hdds for backups, that's fine but get at least 120gb ssd to boot your system. That'll increase the life of your HDDs exponentially.

 

[becool773]

Like I said previously, there's something wrong with your computer or your usage.


Different system so unfair to compare. But all other things equal, older HDDs were much reliable. After the flood in thailand the reliability went down hill for HDDs.


If the PSU is faulty then HDDs are the first to go bad. Other stuff is more resilient to bad voltage supply.

I had a bad PSU. The fan inside PSU had stopped working which I didn't notice for 6 months and ran the system just like that. So after a while it used to get overheated. Overheating caused voltage fluctuations and that made my HDD go wonky. It took me long time to realize that something was wrong with the system because I was running stuff off SSD and HDD was rarely used. When PSU overheated, the HDD got super slow and for the longest time, I blamed it on my slow internet speed.

If you want to keep 2TB hdds for backups, that's fine but get at least 120gb ssd to boot your system. That'll increase the life of your HDDs exponentially.

Like I said previously, there's something wrong with your computer or your usage.
Please explain the usage part. Should I share the list of the installed apps here? Nothing fancy just FF, MS office. It is just that it is very rarely used. Once or twice in a month for an hour or two and sometimes not even for a month. We are using it for like 7-8 hours a day from the past month, month and a half though.

Is there any way to test/measure the temps of a psu? Which multimeter to buy and test the same?

I am too thinking for a ssd (will the current mobo+case support a 2.5"ssd? Full specs in the first post)+hdd but only after finding the root cause here. Are Toshiba hdd's more reliable than wd hdd's? Or any other reliable brand for hdd's?

 

[lockhrt999]

Please explain the usage part.

Usage like turning off computer without proper shutdown.

Which multimeter to buy and test the same?

The cheapest will do.

will the current mobo+case support a 2.5"ssd?

Does it not have SATA port?

Are Toshiba hdd's more reliable than wd hdd's?

No idea. But reseller suggested that because there's more profit margin with Toshiba.

 

[Kaleen Bhaiya]

Are Toshiba hdd's more reliable than wd hdd's? Or any other reliable brand for hdd's?

It's a mixed bag these days with hdd. One brands same model may work well with one user, but not with the other.
Just sharing my experience, I have Toshiba P300 2TB hdd for movies and media. Got it in 2020, running good for now.

 

[becool773]

Usage like turning off computer without proper shutdown.

Kabhi nahi hua aisa.

Does it not have SATA port?
It has but the case is corsair spec 1. Is a caddy needed to fit the ssd?

It's a mixed bag these days with hdd. One brands same model may work well with one user, but not with the other.
Just sharing my experience, I have Toshiba P300 2TB hdd for movies and media. Got it in 2020, running good for now.

5400 rpm? How much did you pay for it?

 

[Kaleen Bhaiya]

7200... I think it was for ~5000. Got it from Prime.

 

[becool773]

7200... I think it was for ~5000. Got it from Prime.

How much is the warranty? Is the after sales service good? I have used WD blue one's all my life. They come with 5400rpm and with 3 year warranty. Is there only 1 model of toshiba hdd's or several like blue, black etc.? Planning to go with Toshiba this time.

 

[Kaleen Bhaiya]

It has 2 years warranty. Regarding ASS, haven't used it but from reviews it is good for my city. Do check in your area.
Regarding models, for desktop they have P series model and for external they have canvio series. They also have some series for surveillance level but didn't bother to look much into it.