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2709 Members
20 Forums
1731 Topics
6299 Posts
Max Online: 297 @ Sun Jul 29 2007 01:05 AM
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#6231 - Thu Feb 14 2008 03:09 PM
Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
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tricenza
journeyman
Registered: Wed Jan 07 2004
Posts: 69
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Peculiar Hard Drive Problem.
I am more than a little confused about what I am observing with my hard drive. On checking the properties of the drive, I am seeing a blue coloured drive with no “used” or “free” bytes. Additionally my system is behaving most peculiar by not allowing me to install some windows updates; I am also having difficulty in restoring files backed up under the windows backup utility.
Can anyone assist me?
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#6232 - Fri Feb 15 2008 04:15 AM
Re: Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
[Re: tricenza]
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nowpc
old hand
Registered: Fri Jul 06 2001
Posts: 906
Loc: Felixstowe, UK
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Hi tricenza, hope you're well. My first question is whether you've tried running scandisk? Run a full check, including a surface scan.
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#6234 - Sun Feb 17 2008 10:25 AM
Re: Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
[Re: nowpc]
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tricenza
journeyman
Registered: Wed Jan 07 2004
Posts: 69
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I feel the need to elaborate some more, so here goes: I decided to format my hard drive and initially created a backup of my important files. As far as I am able to ascertain everything went well until I attempted to restore the backup file(s) to its/their original location. Now then, from all observations the restoration appeared to have taken place, but could not be observed on the system, so I kept on repeating the operation several times which I believe "saturated" (for want of a better word) the hard drive.
Experience has taught me to keep a spare hard drive and so I installed the spare , doing what I believe to be the corect things and had everything working fine, but the identical problem has occured. It has now reached the point where the hard drive will not accept product upgrades and Windows updates.
Let me repeat that when checking the properties of the drive it appears totally "blue" in colour, in other words "no" free space and most peculiar "no" used space either.
I have already reformatted the original drive ready for re-installation, but I need to know where I am going wrong when I reach the point of restoring the files previously backed up on my 300GB external hard drive using the Windows XP sytem.
I know this is a bit long, but I think it was necessary for me to give chapter and verse of the problem
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#6236 - Mon Feb 18 2008 01:28 PM
Re: Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
[Re: tricenza]
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nowpc
old hand
Registered: Fri Jul 06 2001
Posts: 906
Loc: Felixstowe, UK
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Hmm, possibly...- your backup data are corrupted
- your Windows Back/Restore software is corrupt(unlikely)
- you're restoring from a backup to a different version of Windows - perhaps Service Pack version?
It could be worth running Scandisk(chkdsk) and AV checks on the external hard drive you used for backup. If you feel confident with a console application, you could check out the following free tool: http://www.fpns.net/willy/msbackup.htm. It will allow you to take a look at your backup file and check that your data is at least available for recovery!
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#6239 - Tue Feb 19 2008 10:43 AM
Re: Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
[Re: nowpc]
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tricenza
journeyman
Registered: Wed Jan 07 2004
Posts: 69
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Many thanks for your suggestions; however, I need for you to give some guidance on how do I use the "chkdsk" command to check the external drive designated "E" on my system. A check on the "C"drive has proved inconclusive.
The "console application" free tool is totally new to me, but nevertheless I have downloaded and saved it, hopefully to study and use when I become more comfortable with its contents.
The rather strange thing about all of this is that I am able to use the computer normally other than being denied using Widows explorer to access its contents as well as the previously mentioned problems.
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#6241 - Wed Feb 20 2008 12:52 PM
Re: Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
[Re: nowpc]
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tricenza
journeyman
Registered: Wed Jan 07 2004
Posts: 69
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Perhaps you might just be beginning to understand just how I am feeling. Before I answer your specific questions let me attempt to further clarify what exactly has happened or is happening with the hard drive. (a) When checking the properties of the drive by right clicking on the “C” in My Computer a totally blue disc results with the pink coloured box (free spaces)exhibiting 0 bytes, blue box also exhibiting 0 bytes and Capacity 0 bytes, yet I am able to still use the drive.
(b) The backup and other saved files are clearly exhibited on the external drive where they have been saved; now then, when I attempt to restore the backup file everything seems to work normally e.g. number of files and bytes transferred and so on and so forth; however, whenever the hard drive is accessed I am unable to find those files anywhere; as a matter of fact I am unable to see any files other than those in “my document.” Additionally, I receive an “access denied” message when I attempt to open the “C”drive or use windows explorer on it. Remember that this has happened on two separate hard drives. Now, to your specific questions:
I obviously didn’t know how to use scandisk correctly, because all I did was to type in the command chkdsk on “run” on the “start” menu. I have since read that the recovery console is a feature which can be obtained from the OE CD. So you should ignore my “inconclusive” response.
I am unable to obtain any indication of the “free” or “used” space or even the capacity of the drive.
Disc clean up, defragmentation or any of the available tools do not work as a matter a fact whenever I select defrag not only am I denied that operation but the disc is not even identified as is the norm.
As previously stated I really do not know if the files have been restored because I am unable to gain access to them.
Believe it or not I am using said computer to send these messages, but I intend to gen myself up on how to use scandisk via the recovery console.
Hope the foregoing is as clear as I believe it is.
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#6243 - Thu Feb 21 2008 11:49 AM
Re: Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
[Re: tricenza]
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nowpc
old hand
Registered: Fri Jul 06 2001
Posts: 906
Loc: Felixstowe, UK
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Curiouser and curiouser, said Alice! It'll be interesting to see what chkdsk via the Recovery Console will bring up. Quick thought, have you looked in BIOS to see if your disk is being reported properly there? (Hit DEL, possibly F2 or F12 during the BOOT screen sequence to access your computer BIOS.)
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#6244 - Thu Feb 21 2008 06:38 PM
Re: Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
[Re: nowpc]
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tricenza
journeyman
Registered: Wed Jan 07 2004
Posts: 69
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Very many thanks for all the assistance you have afforded me; however, I am going to have to give this up as a bad job and simply reformat the drive at a convenient time.
I read up on the “recovery console” as much as I could, but the system would not allow me to extract and install it from the setup CD, therefore I feel I am up against a brick wall.
I have made screen prints of both the “blue” C drive as well as the refusal to install Recovery Console message. No doubt these files will be too large to be included in the space allotted for responses to these forums, so I might just keep them as exhibits for posterity.
As a matter of interest, perhaps you could tell me what I should be looking for in the BIOS. I did in fact look, but saw nothing unusual.
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#6254 - Mon Mar 03 2008 01:14 AM
Re: Peculiar Hard Drive Problem
[Re: tricenza]
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nowpc
old hand
Registered: Fri Jul 06 2001
Posts: 906
Loc: Felixstowe, UK
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Ok, hope the reformat sorts the problem out.
"perhaps you could tell me what I should be looking for in the BIOS"
Sure: when you go into BIOS the main menu will present you with something like: "Standard CMOS Features". In there, you'll see listed the IDE drives - Primary Master, Primary Slave, Secondary Master and Secondary Slave. Wherever you have physically installed a drive on your IDE channels BIOS should clearly indicate the corresponding serial number (for hard disk) or description for an optical drive.
Select a particular drive in BIOS, say the Primary Master, which will (barring any OS setup options you may have made) be your C: drive. Hit enter to go into the properties. There will be a description of your drive, which should match what you know about the drive - perhaps most particularly its size in MB. If it doesn't, there's clearly a problem!
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Moderator: clinton
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I have a nagging feeling that I'm missing something simple here, but since I can't bring it to mind (!!!) I'm sorry but I'll have to thrash about in the dark a bit more... 
