Increasing number of reallocated sectors

[animadversor]

Hello,

I have the following drive:

Hitachi HDS721010CLA330
Drive Revision: JP4OA3MA
Drive Serial Number: JP2911N03RSB3V
World Wide Name: 5000CCA39AF49E5C

Pasted below are log entries from my disk diagnostic utility, Hard Disk Sentinel (HDS), in reverse chronological order:

4/7/2016 11:39:59 PM,#196 Reallocation Event Count 15 -> 16
4/7/2016 11:39:58 PM,#5 Reallocated Sectors Count 13 -> 14
2/23/2016 2:27:48 AM,#196 Reallocation Event Count 14 -> 15
2/23/2016 2:27:41 AM,#5 Reallocated Sectors Count 12 -> 13
2/9/2016 8:33:28 AM,#196 Reallocation Event Count 13 -> 14
2/9/2016 8:33:28 AM,#5 Reallocated Sectors Count 11 -> 12
1/14/2016 5:05:58 PM,#197 Current Pending Sector Count 1 -> 0
11/15/2015 11:39:54 AM,#197 Current Pending Sector Count 2 -> 1
11/15/2015 11:29:38 AM,#197 Current Pending Sector Count 1 -> 2
11/11/2015 7:08:09 PM,#197 Current Pending Sector Count 0 -> 1
12/9/2014 6:24:08 PM,#196 Reallocation Event Count 10 -> 13
12/9/2014 6:24:08 PM,#5 Reallocated Sectors Count 8 -> 11
12/9/2014 6:19:08 PM,#196 Reallocation Event Count 5 -> 10
12/9/2014 6:19:08 PM,#5 Reallocated Sectors Count 5 -> 8
12/9/2014 6:14:08 PM,#196 Reallocation Event Count 4 -> 5
12/9/2014 6:14:08 PM,#5 Reallocated Sectors Count 4 -> 5
7/2/2014 3:25:18 AM,#196 Reallocation Event Count 3 -> 4
7/2/2014 3:25:16 AM,#5 Reallocated Sectors Count 3 -> 4
4/18/2014 3:42:24 PM,#196 Reallocation Event Count 2 -> 3
4/18/2014 3:41:45 PM,#5 Reallocated Sectors Count 2 -> 3
​

As you can see, there have been some changes in the number of bad sectors. However, from 12/9/2014 to 2/9/2016 the reallocated sectors count was stable at 11, but since then, the count has begun to increase more frequently again, as it did before on and before 12/9/2014. Ought I to be concerned that the disk is going bad? Thanks very much.

 

[Digerati]

I am not able to view any of the files in your zip files but to answer your question, I am always concerned my disks may be going bad. All hard drives WILL FAIL - eventually. So I keep current backups, just in case.

It is also true that sectors will go bad as the drive ages so what you see is not unusual - especially when just 1 or 2 at a time. I don't use 3rd party apps on my drive. Windows own Error Checking (or chkdsk /r from an elevated command prompt) are just fine. Or use the drive maker's own diagnostics. Here a nice tutorial.

As long as any errors can be corrected, the drive is still usable. But if the numbers start to climb rapidly, or errors cannot be corrected, I would replace the drive. And for sure, don't wait until after the drive fails before you backup your data.

 

[animadversor]

Just a belated word of thanks for the help. I do keep a good backup—indeed several—but I shall probably not reformat, etc. I did know that some bad sectors are normal, but I wasn't sure at what point one might take immediate action to replace the disk. It would seem that one would need to see a real cascade of reallocation events and considerably more sectors involved. Again, thanks!

 

[Digerati]

The problem is, it really is impossible to predict when a disk will fail. Certainly, in terms of downtime, it is always best to replace a drive before it fails. Perhaps this is a good excuse to start shopping around for a SSD!