S.M.A.R.T. Warning in Bios but not XP Comp.Management

dummy77 · 04-12-2009, 05:35 PM

Hi there..

I've been running XP Pro Sp2 on this 80gb Maxtor (SATA) for going on five years. For the first time, my bios popped up this warning:

Primary master hard disk S.M.A.R.T. status bad.
WARNING: Immediately back up your data and replace your hard disk drive. A failure may be imminent.

It still loaded into XP fine.. I went into computer management and it reports all the S.M.A.R.T. status as fine. Could my bios be wrong? Or could windows be wrong? Is there anything else that may have set this off (I did happen to boot with a 32gb flash drive in a cheap USB hub this time - i doubt that could throw it off..)

Or should I push the panic button and hit New Egg and plan a mass evacuation? Any feedback or support would be greatly appreciated.. thanks guys.

Edit:
Now that I think of it, it has been making an occasional nasty sound sometimes during boot up or shut down.. It sounded more like a dirty fan getting stuck but now I'm not so sure. It's very inconsistent. No clicking sounds or anything I've had with previous failures though.

**simpswr** · 04-12-2009, 05:42 PM

and welcome to the Forum

XP has no error checking similar to the SMART you are seeing in BIOS. That drive is failing ! ! if you have any data you cherish, be sure to back it up now while you can.

Once you have your data backed up, you can run diagnostics on the hard drive ( click here )

dummy77 · 04-12-2009, 05:45 PM

ahhh, god.. thanks for your reply...

panic ON:

Tumbleweed36 · 04-12-2009, 07:13 PM

There are two kinds of drives; Those that have failed and those that are going to fail....Simpswr gave you good advice, so don't walk, but run to back up that data!

What the heck, you got 5 years out of that drive, you are a lucky person, most don't last that long, and to top it off, many don't give any warning...they just die!

04-12-2009, 05:35 PM	#1 (permalink)
dummy77 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 4 OS: xp pro sp2	S.M.A.R.T. Warning in Bios but not XP Comp.Management Hi there.. I've been running XP Pro Sp2 on this 80gb Maxtor (SATA) for going on five years. For the first time, my bios popped up this warning: Primary master hard disk S.M.A.R.T. status bad. WARNING: Immediately back up your data and replace your hard disk drive. A failure may be imminent. It still loaded into XP fine.. I went into computer management and it reports all the S.M.A.R.T. status as fine. Could my bios be wrong? Or could windows be wrong? Is there anything else that may have set this off (I did happen to boot with a 32gb flash drive in a cheap USB hub this time - i doubt that could throw it off..) Or should I push the panic button and hit New Egg and plan a mass evacuation? Any feedback or support would be greatly appreciated.. thanks guys. Edit: Now that I think of it, it has been making an occasional nasty sound sometimes during boot up or shut down.. It sounded more like a dirty fan getting stuck but now I'm not so sure. It's very inconsistent. No clicking sounds or anything I've had with previous failures though. Last edited by dummy77; 04-12-2009 at 05:38 PM.

04-12-2009, 05:42 PM	#2 (permalink)
simpswr Moderator Hardware Team Join Date: May 2007 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 12,219 OS: XP, Vista, Win 7	Re: S.M.A.R.T. Warning in Bios but not XP Comp.Management and welcome to the Forum XP has no error checking similar to the SMART you are seeing in BIOS. That drive is failing ! ! if you have any data you cherish, be sure to back it up now while you can. Once you have your data backed up, you can run diagnostics on the hard drive ( click here ) __________________ Rich MemTest86 \| BenchTest \| Virus/Trojan/Spyware Help How to post a Screen Shot \| PC running slow?

04-12-2009, 05:45 PM	#3 (permalink)
dummy77 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 4 OS: xp pro sp2	Re: S.M.A.R.T. Warning in Bios but not XP Comp.Management ahhh, god.. thanks for your reply... panic ON:

04-12-2009, 07:13 PM	#4 (permalink)
Tumbleweed36 Asst Manager Hardware Join Date: May 2005 Location: USA Posts: 19,650 OS: XP Professional	Re: S.M.A.R.T. Warning in Bios but not XP Comp.Management There are two kinds of drives; Those that have failed and those that are going to fail....Simpswr gave you good advice, so don't walk, but run to back up that data! What the heck, you got 5 years out of that drive, you are a lucky person, most don't last that long, and to top it off, many don't give any warning...they just die! __________________ ---------- I don't receive email notifications of replies to subscribed threads. (Internet provider policy) Therefore, if I don't respond to your post within 24 hours, please send me a reminder PM and include the link to your thread.