Computer data storage is one of the most prone to damage during operation of items. It is on it that the files of the operating system and user are stored, therefore, if damaged, a lot is lost. In order to avoid data loss or prevent problems in the operation of the operating system, it is necessary from time to time to diagnose the conditions of the hard disk. The same applies to more modern solid-state drives that run on NAND-memory, which has a limited recording resource. For such purposes, utilities were created to check the status of drives. In addition, part of the software, in addition to troubleshooting, is able to find and fix problems in the operation of hard drives and SSDs. So which program to check the hard drive? And what needs to be done to save and restore data?
Hetman partition recovery
What program to check the hard drive? Hetman Partition Recovery is a disk recovery software. Diagnostic measures cannot be performed using Hetman Partition Recovery. It cannot be included in the rating of diagnostic applications. The software is designed to recover data after problems with the drive. You can use the program if necessary to restore the remains of data from broken hard drives. Hetman Partition Recovery allows you to download data from a computer on which it is no longer possible to start the operating system. This is done by creating separate images of all the data that is stored on the damaged disk. Further, using a bootable USB flash drive, you can restore all data to the new information storage. Thus, you can completely transfer or save files.
Verification and treatment of the hard disk is carried out in the early stages of the formation of errors. Otherwise, when trying to restore data to a specific HDD cluster, other files may be written. Thus, you can lose old information. It is necessary to use the utility before checking and restoring bad sectors to avoid damage to information. Having previously saved the data, you can use utilities for diagnostics. To do this, you can use it as built-in Windows tools, for example, using the CHKDSK disk check command or other software components. In addition, there are a number of software released by manufacturers. It includes a utility for checking the hard drive of Seagate, WD and other companies.
Hetman Partition Recovery Features
The list of features of Hetman Partition Recovery include:
- Detection of broken clusters on the hard drive, getting rid of defects that may interfere with their display.
- Creating an image containing all the data in the information store, with support for all current file systems.
- Full recovery of sectors manually and using automatic mode.
- Data transfer to external and internal drives, sending to cloud storage.
- Deletion of information with full formatting, processing by a shredder and then a new layout of the drive area.
HD Tune Pro
Checking the hard drive using special programs is carried out after saving data. HD Tune Pro allows you to diagnose the condition of the hard drive. The program will provide an opportunity to find damaged areas, to diagnose read and write speeds. It is possible to minimize the system tray and monitor the temperature. You can also conduct a full disk check using the random sampling technique. It is possible to track read and write errors. The application supports any format and type of drive, taking into account the manufacturer's specifications. Checking a hard disk for bad sectors with HDD Tune Pro is quick.
Among all programs with similar functionality, HD Tune Pro is the most comprehensive and versatile. The application does not have the ability to treat damaged sectors. But it has a huge number of testing options. Also in terms of convenience and display of the received information, HD Tune Pro outperforms all peers.
Features of HD Tune Pro
Software features include:
- Allows you to diagnose all the parameters of the hard and solid state drives.
- It makes it possible to diagnose read and write speeds.
- Displays data on used disk space in graphs.
- It makes it possible to check the disk according to its own algorithm, which was obtained by combining various scanning techniques.
- The utility includes a utility that allows you to check the speed of reading and writing hardware.
- It monitors the parameters of the device during operation and makes it possible to display data for a period.
- Allows you to get an image with the results or get a log that can be read on any computer. This is done with one click in the main window of the program.
Victoria HDD
If the storage medium is damaged, diagnostics may be required. What program to check the hard drive? You may also need to fix errors on the HDD. Victoria HDD is well suited for this. The program is one of the most popular for checking and restoring bad sectors on the disk. The software is suitable for many modern operating systems. You can check the status of the information store even on computers running the MSDOS operating system. This is accomplished through the use of the built-in command line. The program has a very large functionality.
The Victoria program has a simple interface. Support for external drives using disk emulation has also been introduced. Due to the built-in algorithm, which allows re-breaking of damaged sectors, it is possible to correct some of the errors that are happening at the moment. In addition, there are opportunities for interaction with the hardware of the hard drive. So, you can completely leave the head movement, reduce or increase the speed of the disk, and much more. Checking the hard drive for bad sectors by the program allows you to recover data.
Software Features
The program makes it possible to carry out the following types of actions:
- Allows you to scan hardware that connects through various ports (IDE, SATA, USB). This will allow scanning of both obsolete drives and modern solid-state SSDs.
- The program’s functionality includes many tests that allow you to check the status of the hardware using various algorithms.
- The program’s functionality also includes the ability to redistribute bad sectors and fix low-level errors that interfere with HDD operation.
- It is possible to back up files, subject to prior use of the function.
- There is functionality for working through the console application and for the latest versions of Microsoft operating systems.
Advantages and disadvantages
The main advantages include:
- The presence of a large number of built-in verification algorithms.
- The program includes an impressive number of additional features.
Among the shortcomings are the lack of assemblies from the developer for operating systems based on the Kernel kernel.
HDDlife
The software is designed to monitor and condition the drive hardware according to internal algorithms. In addition, you can get statistics on occupied and unallocated disk space. Health checks of sectors and SMART data are not performed. It is possible to monitor the temperature and storage. The software was developed for the safety of data stored on the HDD. The functionality of the program makes it possible to monitor and alert the user in case of deterioration.
HDDlife functionality
After installation, the program will hang in the tray. Alerts will appear when various indicators decrease (read and write speed, spindle rotation and the number of repeated calls). In this case, recommendations will appear on how to restore or transfer data to another storage.
HDDlife makes it possible to speed up or slow down the spindle head, which will make the computer work quieter. Also, statistics are displayed in the functional, for example, the number of hours of work.
HDDlife Features
The program provides the opportunity to monitor the following indicators:
- Check the hard drive for various parameters.
- When working, it gives the opportunity to receive messages or notifications, including by e-mail when subscribing and in case of critical condition of the hard drive.
- Allows you to reduce the noise from the operation of the hardware device by reducing performance.
- Allows you to track the temperature at different points in time.
CrystalDiskInfo
The software is intended for testing the health status of a hard drive. The functionality of the utility is similar to HDDlife. However, it allows you to verify SMART information. But compared to many free utilities, the functions are relatively few. There is no possibility to scan the drive surface for bad sectors and software errors. CrystalDiskInfo does not provide an opportunity to fully assess the state of the hard drive.
First of all, the application is intended for quick diagnostics. The utility for checking the status of the hard disk works on modern and outdated operating systems. It is especially useful when acquiring various equipment that was in use. For a short period of time, you can find out the status of the hard disk, the operating time, the number of starts.
DiskInfo Features
The program features include:
- The ability to assess the state of the hard drive in a visually simple form.
- There is a functional for building a graph of SMART test data.
- You can also build a temperature chart.
- It is possible to obtain information about the duration of work, the number of hours worked and the number of system starts.
- To test the performance of write and read speeds, there is a separate program - Crystal Disk Mark.
Crystaldiskmark
The program is designed to test drive parameters. You can find out the actual speed of receipt and extraction of data from the disk. There are four verification algorithms for this. Thanks to this, you can find out the read and write speed for various operations.
The program will allow you to graphically determine the various parameters by nested algorithms. 4 different subroutines with different test conditions are sewn into it. One of the algorithms is SEQ, which allows testing the speed of sequential recording of files of various sizes. This may be necessary when purchasing hardware in the secondary market to make sure that the read and write speeds are as stated by the manufacturer.
How to diagnose?
Prior to testing, it is advisable to change the volume of the tested information into 100 MB blocks in the application parameters. With this size, the time spent on diagnostics will be significantly reduced. The result remains reliable. After receiving a response, you can save the report in a convenient form. You can save it to the clipboard or export as a log.
Advantages and disadvantages
The advantages include:
- There are several types of testing that will determine the parameters of the drive.
- The application allows you to work with each type of media on the market.
The disadvantages include damage to solid-state drives during testing. Built-in memory controllers are characterized by gradual damage during operation. And although modern types of drives are characterized by a long life, tests with the help of such applications negatively affect the “health” of the hard drive.
Windows Embedded Testing
What program to check the hard drive? If such a question is encountered in the absence of the Internet, you can use the built-in chkdsk command or the existing functionality. Winchester diagnostic programs built into the operating system have a smaller set of capabilities with respect to paid analogues, but they can help save some data.
There are several ways to do this:
- The easiest way is to check using built-in tools. To do this, go to "My Computer", select the properties of the hard drive that you want to diagnose, and go to the "Tools" section. There you need to click the "Service" button.
- The second method is more effective and can help restore broken data. To do this, go to the command line as administrator. Then enter the command CHKDSK and the letter of the local or hard drive. At the same time, you can format only under NTFS or FAT32 file systems.