Original Post
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Edited April 20, 2024
at 07:57 AM
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USE CODE: SHOPGREEN
Product Details
Reliable, high-capacity storage for ultrafast data transfers.
Product Features
High Capacity in a Compact Design
Improve PC Performance
Plug-and-Play Simplicity
USB 3.0 And USB 2.0 Compatibility
WD Quality Inside And Out
Compatibility
Windows 10+
Reformatting required for use with MacOS
In The Box
WD Elements Desktop hard drive
SuperSpeed USB-A cable (5Gbps)
AC adapter
Quick Install Guide
CERTIFIED REFURBISHED DIRECTLY FROM WESTERN DIGITAL
https://www.ebay.com/itm/295922418435
Store: eBay
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Featured Comments
Most people who would invest in a large HDD know enough to have a backup battery set up. I know I do. This is also more theoretical than a frequent or likely scenario.
The point of an external desktop HDD is, you leave it on the desk. It's odd that you criticize it for risks associated with transporting it as though you think people would be carrying this thing around. Of course portable SSD is more suitable for that.
On a separate note, it says seller pays for return shipping, so this may be a risk-free deal. If you find anything wrong, return for free.
This is flat out false. Unless there is something wrong with your machine's cooling system, leaving it on for a week will not cause it to overheat. Many people leave their PCs on 24/7. Some argue that leaving them on continuously actually increases their lifespan, due to the lack of thermal cycling.
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While you technically could run Linux from one of these, modern operating systems perform poorly when installed on a hard drive. Running an installed OS from an external drive also increases the likelihood of various issues. Things like sleep could cause issues. Also, any flakiness with the USB bridge could cause serious corruption. Overall, it's just not a great idea.
Encrypting the data, in case the drive has to be returned but can't be wiped, is a good idea. Installing Linux on the drive and using it to encrypt the drive and transfer files between it and the host OS (Windows?) may work but it would be convoluted. Unless you're well versed in Linux, and understand the potential pitfalls, I would not recommend this method. It would be much simpler to use a method of encryption that is compatible with Windows, such as Bitlocker or Veracrypt.
As for WD recommending against partitioning external drives, I'm inclined to agree with the people from that link who say it's likely WD trying to protect themselves from support being inundated with complaints from people who don't know what they're doing. Technically, there's no reason you can't partition an external drive. However, some operating systems can get a little grumpy about partitioning external drives. That may have something to do with the specific issue being discussed in that thread. I'm not familiar enough with Mac OS to help.
NO NO NO!!!
This would be of no diagnostic value, but moving a running hard drive can potentially damage it. Abnormal noises (regardless of orientation) can be a sign of issues but most people aren't going to know what are normal vs abnormal for these drives. Modern drives often make unexpected noises that most people would assume are abnormal.
I'm not a fan of that list. It includes a number of outdated and proprietary programs. Samsung and Fujitsu haven't even made hard drives in like a decade.
I would not bother using chkdsk to scan for bad sectors (the /r switch). It will only check the specified volume. I'd suggest using something like HDDScan or Victoria, which will scan the entire drive, while also reporting slow/weak sectors. chkdsk /f would be useful for finding and repairing filesystem issues but isn't directly related to hardware.
Aside from the fact Avast is trying to sell you generally unnecessary programs, most of those links contain at least some incorrect information.
I couldn't be happier. Even got to peel the film from it.
Looks new, tests new, and shows up in the SMART as new.
Heck of a deal.
I couldn't be happier. Even got to peel the film from it.
Looks new, tests new, and shows up in the SMART as new.
Heck of a deal.
Here's the list of software you can check disk health with: https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoar...ve_h
Here's the list of software you can check disk health with: https://www.reddit.com/r/DataHoar...ve_health/ [reddit.com]
ARGH. So now I have to start over.
ARGH. So now I have to start over.
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Bought the drive and it took a while to arrive. Model: WDC WD160EDGZ-11B2DA0 7200 RPM. Made some clicky, klunky noises a few times, but not really all that loud. But yes, louder than my older 3.5 inch SATA 1TB drives when then noises occurred. Otherwise, and most of the time, pretty quiet.
I could not find anything per se to tell me it was a refurb or o/w not a new drive. The serial number is not listed on the case.
Ran Crystal Disk Info. No issues. CD Mark, default 1GB 5 passes: reads and writes: 215 or so MB/s Read and Write x 2 and 1.4 ish 4.4 ish R Wr x2.
HDDScan died around 70% through. Unknown reason. Did not run it a second time.
But Victoria scan seems ok.
Relatively fast disk check scans were all ok. (Could not find any WD scan tools for this model)
D:\>chkdsk D: /x /f /r wanted over 300 hours to complete.
Details below.
Disk was empty, though formatted when it arrived and showing 14.5 TB (not 16TB) available, for reasons as discussed on the net.
HDDScan died at 70% or so. No decipherable reason.
Then ran Victoria, took 25 hours. Directions seem non existent and not intuitive to a noob.
start to end LBA 0 to 31 251 678 255 (I added spaces) (LBA: 31251693568 (16000 GB) from HDDScan)
slower timings listed as (? in ms):
25 15 243 989 about 1 in 2000 sectors
100 15 571 about 1 in 2 000 000 sectors
250 50 about 1 in 600 000 000 sectors
1 and 3 seconds etc all 0
Only a guess on my part, but I think these values (all below 0.750 seconds) are ok.
Victoria scan results said no warnings and no errors. Speed seemed fastest early on, over 200 MB/s but slowed to just over 100 MB/s towards the end.
So seems good.
Then ran cmd as admin, sfc /scannow Very quick to scan and no issues.
Ran check the disk via Properties, fast, no issues.
C:\Windows\System32>dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth No issues. Maybe I messed up as WD Elements 16TB was listed as my D drive. LOL
Then ran:
D:\>chkdsk D: /x /f /r Stages 1-4 seemed to go ok and were very fast. Drive was empty, blank. Stage 5 wanted to run for over 300 hours. The DT computer has an i7-13700F chip from last fall, NV 4070 graphics and ran via USB 3.2 Gen 2 port to the WD Elements external hard drive.
Stage 5: Looking for bad, free clusters ...
Progress: 127 321 599 of 3 906 316 286 done; Stage: 3%; Total: 3%; ETA: 345:12:44 .
I stopped it after about 6 hours.
HxD showed drive as mostly blank even after running all of these tests.
Do folks think the drive is ok or bad? Should I re-run any test or try other software? Why so long for the chkdsk to run? Thx in advance.