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Thread ID: 105617 2009-12-08 11:16:00 Hard drive clicking raydan42 (13837) Press F1
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837759 2009-12-08 11:16:00 I am not sure what to call this, so it is difficult to search for similar problems to this issue, even though I have tried .

Recently I reinstalled Windows XP to a 40GB hard drive, but have a 120GB as well, that I had my old copy of Windows on . That installation is still on, and taking space, but is not the problem . My problem is why I had to swap drives .

My old installation was reeeeeally slow, and just before I reinstalled, was so slow, that it took 5 minutes to open My Computer, and not to load the pictures, but just to load the frame . I thought this could not possibly be because my installation is old, because my father's pc is not as well specced as mine, but has been running on the installation for 6-7 years, while I have only had my pc since February!

On the new installation, which is 2 weeks old now, I have noticed out of place pauses on a extremely fast pc, which I was surprised by, because my pc was always slow . During these pauses, I would here a speeding up whirring, like a hard drive starting up, and then a high, almost loud click . After the click, the computer would rush on at normal speed again . This has happened quite a number of times now, and more often then not has been while in some way accessing the C: drive, which in this case, is the 120GB . (Because of the old, existing installation)

I immediately suspect that my C: drive is giving in, and hope it isn't so, as that is the only hard drive I have that is bigger than 40GB . :crying

My computer, specced:


Intel 2 . 33GHz Core 2 Quad CPU
Asus P5Q Motherboard
120GB & 40GB Hard drives (IDE)
SATA DVD ROM 20x
ATI HIS Radeon 4850 Graphics Card
430W PSU

Plus a numerous number of Peripherals, including:

about 6-8 USB connected devices, like keyboard, mouse, joystick, scanner, etc .
Speakers - run on own power, and connect through front right speaker to pc


(Anything else you need to know, I can happily provide, especially if you can help)

I hope you can help, this would be greatly appreciated . I just hope it is not giving in! 		raydan42 (13837)
837760 2009-12-08 11:40:00 I had a hard drive that was clicking and causing the computer to freeze. I'm pretty sure it was faulty but it was too long ago and I didn't know what I know now so I can't be certain.

The same problem could also be caused by a loose power connector or overloaded\bad PSU (though this would probably be causing your PC to crash)

Check the power plug (tighten the connectors or use a different one) and check the drive SMART status with program like SpeedFan

The thing is this is a critical issue - if the drive really is faulty it could be ready to die at any moment. If you have any important files on it I would be backing them up now! 		Agent_24 (57)
837761 2009-12-08 11:59:00 Thanks! Problem - I have about 45 GB of 'stuff' that I want to keep, and I am slowly wading through the crap, but I might be able to remove 10-15GB at the most. These are all the harddrives in the house:

1x 40GB(My current drive - full)
1x 20GB(filled)
1x 100GB(my dad's, and he has filled it over the years, so no chance of space there)
1x 120GB(the problematic drive)
1x 30GB(Too small, and in my brother's pc)
1x 10GB ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

:( There is probably no chance of getting another drive till after christmas, and my internet cap is not big enough to upload to an online backup site.

I have a new 550W PSU being delivered, as I have been skeptical that the one I have is to small/bad (430W - Came with CoolerMaster 331 case). Power plug - check. It's been unplugged, and replugged.

The SMART status:

i778.photobucket.com 		raydan42 (13837)
837762 2009-12-08 12:09:00 Prepare to lose everything.

Prepared yet?

Anytime.......now 		Metla (12)
837763 2009-12-08 12:19:00 Thanks anyway Agent_24, I will remove it, and install it when I have a replacement. raydan42 (13837)
837764 2009-12-08 18:09:00 Personally if that is the case, and you don't want to lose those files. Don't use the PC until then. You're far less likely to lose it if it is hardly used.

So, bit of a risk there mate. 		Chris09 (15218)
837765 2009-12-08 18:43:00 I have about 45 GB of 'stuff' that I want to keep,

There is probably no chance of getting another drive till after christmas

So take it out.
Leave it alone, don't even have it connected.
Get another drive then clone it. Ghost will clone a drive with errors. 		pctek (84)
837766 2009-12-08 19:25:00 Take the HDD out, throw it in a freezer for a few hours, then take it out & slave it to another machine to take all the data you need off it before it warms up too much & starts clicking again. fnphoto (2434)
837767 2009-12-08 22:35:00 Take the HDD out, throw it in a freezer for a few hours, then take it out & slave it to another machine to take all the data you need off it before it warms up too much & starts clicking again.

I wouldn't do that. At the moment it's still working even if it's clicking. That might kill it 		Agent_24 (57)
837768 2009-12-08 22:39:00 I have a new 550W PSU being delivered, as I have been skeptical that the one I have is to small/bad (430W - Came with CoolerMaster 331 case). Power plug - check. It's been unplugged, and replugged.

The SMART status:

i778.photobucket.com

I hope it's a decent brand PSU

As for the power plug on the drive.. is it very easy to take in\out? It might just be a loose connector inside.

I have seen this problem often, you just need to take a small flathead screwdriver or other similar tool and insert it into the plug between the plastic and one side of the metal tube.

This socket\tube has a split down it, you can use the screwdriver to squash it a bit, which will make it tighter when you plug into the drive. Might be all that's needed.

SMART doesn't show anything interesting as far as I can see, but with speedfan it's usually best to click "perform indepth online analysis" to get a better idea of what's going on. 		Agent_24 (57)
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