Unable to Format Hard Drive

[PresterJohn]

Quote:

Originally posted by rrcn
so does that mean that there is a bad cluster? if so, is there a way to skip over that cluster and ignore it so that I can install windows with out any problems?

thank you all.

the problem isn't so much that it's one or two bad sectors..but when you start seeing a whole slew of them, then you should start to worry.

did that format ever finish?

from the problems you're telling me, go to the seagate site and download their drive diagnostics. if it passes and the format works, load your OS and see if the drive is stable for 2-3 weeks...

[rrcn]

the format is still going. its now at allocation 875,791. I downloaded the diagnostic utility and am waiting for the format to finish so that I can run it.

[Bill in SD, CA]

For what it's worth, A LLF will mark bad sectors on the drive.

Bill

[rrcn]

I'm sorry Bill, but what's a LLF?

[Bill in SD, CA]

I posted it earlier.

Low level format.

Should be available on the manufacturer's diagnostic disk as a zero-fill utility.

Quote:

Hard drive manufacturers have created for modern drives replacements for the old LLF utilities. They cause some confusion, because they are often still called "low-level format" utilities. The name is incorrect because, again, no utility that a user can run on a PC can LLF a modern drive. A more proper name for this sort of program is a zero-fill and diagnostic utility. This software does work on the drive at a low level, usually including the following functions (and perhaps others):

Drive Recognition Test: Lets you test to see if the software can "see" the drive. This is the first step in ensuring that the drive is properly installed and connected.

Display Drive Details: Tells you detailed information about the drive, such as its exact model number, firmware revision level, date of manufacture, etc.

Test For Errors: Analyzes the entire surface of the hard disk, looking for problem areas (bad sectors) and instructing the integrated drive controller to remap them.

Zero-Fill: Wipes off all data on the drive by filling every sector with zeroes. Normally a test for errors (as above) is done at the same time.

http://www.pcguide.com/ref/hdd/geom/...ilities-c.html

Bill

[rrcn]

Well the HD passed the format, finally. I was able to put Windows 2000 on it and am gonna see how it holds up.

I thank you all for you patience and help.

In a couple of weeks I will post how its holding up.