Re: bad clusters != bad sectors? CHKDSK. How many is normal?

From: philo (philo_at_privacy.net)
Date: 02/08/04 

Date: Sun, 8 Feb 2004 16:35:23 -0600

"qazzaq" <nettrash@subdimension.com> wrote in message
news:61cb689e.0402081407.57208233@posting.google.com...
> Hi all,
>
> This is regarding my main PC, which I've had for about 2.5 years.
> From the beginning, WinXP has always needed to do CHKDSK, every 2 weeks
> or so, and it often finds bad clusters and errors in the MFT. "Minor
> inconsistencies" are even more frequently found. This computer never
> BSODs, and is very rarely subjected to abrupt power cuts.
>
> Interestingly, CHKDSK always reports zero bad sectors, which suggests
> that bad sectors != bad clusters. So what are bad clusters really? The
> bad clusters are often found in scary looking OS system files, but as
> long as I let WinXP do CHKDSK about once a month, the system seems to
> behave OK, lasting a year or so between reinstalls.
>
> I don't think it's the harddrives because I have RMAed (exchanged) two
> WD400BB's and the problems remained exactly the same.
> Recently I bought a new 160GB Deskstar 7K250, so I did an OS reinstall,
> but 1 week later, I am having the same old problems.
>
> I am using an IWill KK266+R mainboard, and the supplied 18inch flat
> ATA100 cables.
> Will shorter cables will help? Is it the motherboard?

I'd do a comprehensive RAM test

Relevant Pages

  • Re: bad clusters != bad sectors? CHKDSK. How many is normal?
    ... > From the beginning, WinXP has always needed to do CHKDSK, every 2 weeks ... and it often finds bad clusters and errors in the MFT. ... > Will shorter cables will help? ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support)
  • bad clusters != bad sectors? CHKDSK. How many is normal?
    ... and it often finds bad clusters and errors in the MFT. ... Interestingly, CHKDSK always reports zero bad sectors, which suggests ... The type of the file system is NTFS. ... A disk check has been scheduled. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support)
  • bad clusters != bad sectors? CHKDSK. How many is normal?
    ... and it often finds bad clusters and errors in the MFT. ... Interestingly, CHKDSK always reports zero bad sectors, which suggests ... The type of the file system is NTFS. ... A disk check has been scheduled. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.perform_maintain)
  • Re: Bad Clusters
    ... >present on the disk after chkdsk finished. ... If bad clusters were found, ... Bad clusters contain physically bad sectors, ... BIOS can report S.M.A.R.T. ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)
  • Re: Bad Clusters
    ... >>present on the disk after chkdsk finished. ... If bad clusters were found, ... > even though the summary says "OK", there have been x sectors that had ... So an elective test may report ...
    (microsoft.public.windowsxp.general)