Needless to say, quite often in Windows you can notice inhibition and obvious problems with the appearance of crashes, seemingly not related to any user actions? The most inquiring minds do exactly the right thing, referring to the so-called error log, where they find an entry like “Invalid block on Device \ Harddisk0 \ DR0”. What is this symptom for the hard drive itself and how to fix such a problem, then we’ll try to figure it out. But you should warn readers in advance that usually the appearance of such a failure is the first sign that the hard drive has started to “crumble”. Therefore, the best solution is to replace it.
“Invalid block on Device \ Harddisk0 \ DR0” failure: what does this mean for a hard drive?
Before proceeding to explain the nature of the error and consider methods to eliminate it, it should immediately be noted that such a failure can relate exclusively to the entire main hard drive in its “iron” form, and not to some kind of logical partition. Similarly, the problem that the log indicates a failure "Invalid block on the device Device \ Harddisk0 \ DR0" applies to any drives from which a RAID array is formed on the computer (two or more HDDs or SSDs are connected).
The failure itself signals that when accessing a stationary hard drive (to its zero partition), the system detects a bad block or a damaged sector from which it is impossible to read information. A kind of request loop begins, which is why problems begin already with the OS itself. However, if it is not possible to restore data from such a block for re-reading, the system can be forced to ignore it so that it can perform further actions without resorting to a bad sector.
“Invalid block on the device Device \ Harddisk0 \ DR0”: how to fix the error with the simplest method?
Thus, it becomes quite obvious that in order to eliminate this problem, the first thing to do is to check the hard drive itself. Here are just a standard tool, called through the PCM menu from the "Explorer", it is better not to use it, but to call the command console on behalf of the administrator, and then set the scan with the command shown in the picture.
If it is reported that the active volume cannot be turned off with a suggestion to perform a scan at a subsequent restart, you must agree and reboot.
Checking system components
The previous error correction option is, in a sense, universal, but it cannot be ruled out that the “Invalid block on Device \ Harddisk0 \ DR0” error in Windows 7 (and indeed, in all Microsoft OSs) may be caused by malfunctions OS due to damage to its own components, just responsible for accessing the hard drive. Thus, as a second methodology that partially or completely eliminates the problem that has arisen, one can propose testing them.
To do this, again, it is necessary to apply the actions performed in the command console, but set the command shown above, which allows you to check and restore the failed components from working copies. The check may take quite a long time, and upon completion, the system is strongly recommended to completely reboot.
System Testing with DISM
Few ordinary users know that in all the latest versions of Windows there is another powerful tool that allows you to test or restore the system, referred to by the abbreviation DISM. To perform such operations, two equivalent methods can be proposed.
In the first case (despite the name of the team supposedly only checking the "health" of the PC), the combination shown in the image above is written out.
In the second option, you can use another line, which, when executed, restores the system components (it is shown in the second picture).
Additional utilities for scanning and recovering HDD
If for some reason you don’t like your own system tools for fixing the “Invalid block on Device \ Harddisk0 \ DR0” failure, you can use special programs to check the hard drive from third-party developers, which you can now find on the Internet just a huge amount. However, when choosing an application, it is better to give preference to that software that can be used on removable bootable media with functioning in a certain DOS-like mode, but with a graphical interface (this is necessary so that the operating system does not start, and then it will be clear whether this failure is solely a problem with the HDD). You can advise the most powerful Victoria program among all analogues.
If none of the previous methods succeeded in eliminating the “Invalid block on Device \ Harddisk0 \ DR0” failure, it is advisable to use the HDD Regenerator utility to reanimate a crumbled hard drive, which allows you to restore hard drives if the level of breakdowns has not reached critical levels (as stated by the program developer, such operations are performed by means of magnetization reversal of the drive surface). Based on the application, bootable media (for example, a flash drive) is created, and all operations are performed at startup from it even before the OS starts.
In general, it is not ruled out that this problem may arise in the future, so the best and most acceptable solution will be to create a backup copy of all the contents with the replacement of equipment that fails. You can even transfer the still running OS to a new hard drive, using either the Windows To Go system tool itself or third-party software products.
What could be more?
Finally, some experts note that indirect memory may also be implicated in the appearance of such a problem. Therefore, sometimes, as an additional action, it will be necessary to carry out its check, determining if there are any bad strips. Memtest86 / 86 + boot utilities are best suited for this. If they are not at hand, you can simply remove the strips from the slots one by one to find the bad ones. When they are discovered, they will have to be replaced.
Note: if similar failures are detected, when a different drive number is indicated in the error, the above methods can also be used. However, very often the root cause may be unofficial (so to speak, “curves”) drivers that the user is trying to install for some equipment. They need to be downloaded only from the official websites of manufacturers or trusted sources.