Question An HDD on my PC shows up as RAW at almost every startup after using data recovery software, and persists even after a fresh Windows install ?

[hywaystar]

So I ran "TestDisk" 5 days ago, wanting to recover data on my HDD, D drive. Did not get it but I noticed afterwards on reboots the D drive was missing.

I had to go into disk management to assign a letter to it.

Well I did a fresh Windows install and formatted my PC and the problem still persists!

How is this possible? What could be my issue?

 

[Lutfij]

Welcome to the forums, newcomer!

Signs of a failing drive.

Moved thread from Systems section to Storage section.

 

[evermorex76]

Why were you needing to "recover" data? Did it just randomly disappear or were you just trying to restore something you deleted? Why was doing a fresh install of the OS necessary on a presumably completely different hard drive?

The problems afterward do seem to point toward the drive failing, and running testdisk may have simply pushed it over the edge due to it being an intense workout. Do you hear any extra noises from the drive, like a repeated clicking or whining? (You may have to put your ear right next to it.)

Use software tools like Crystal DiskInfo or PassMark DiskCheckup to view the SMART information from the drive, which should show if there are errors, reallocated sectors or other issues. Check Windows Event Viewer for events related to the drive, such as NTFS or the source "disk" or anything else drive-related.

 

[hywaystar]

Why were you needing to "recover" data? Did it just randomly disappear or were you just trying to restore something you deleted? Why was doing a fresh install of the OS necessary on a presumably completely different hard drive?

The problems afterward do seem to point toward the drive failing, and running testdisk may have simply pushed it over the edge due to it being an intense workout. Do you hear any extra noises from the drive, like a repeated clicking or whining? (You may have to put your ear right next to it.)

Use software tools like Crystal DiskInfo or PassMark DiskCheckup to view the SMART information from the drive, which should show if there are errors, reallocated sectors or other issues. Check Windows Event Viewer for events related to the drive, such as NTFS or the source "disk" or anything else drive-related.

I deleted some video files I needed by accident. Did not recover them, only subtitle files.

Used Crystal DiskInfo, states "Good" and everything looks normal

Event Viewer showed nothing pertaining to drive and getting no noise from drive, never heard one in 4 years from it

It is a WD Blue

 

[evermorex76]

I deleted some video files I needed by accident. Did not recover them, only subtitle files.

How long ago did you delete them? On an HDD or an SSD, if you run recovery software fairly soon after deleting files, you can usually recover them. It depends on how much additional data was written in the intervening time period. With an HDD, you often have a considerable amount of time to recover them if there hasn't been too much writing. With an SSD, even if you haven't been writing much, the internal functionality of the SSD means the blocks will fairly soon be wiped completely and can't be recovered.

I still don't know why wiping the entire operating system and reinstalling Windows was necessary or how you thought that was going to help make a secondary drive's data be recoverable or resolve issues with the drive not functioning properly. It seems like you jumped to the most drastic and destructive and unrelated solution that anybody on the Internet suggested.

At this point, if the files are important, it seems like you ought to consider professional data recovery services. If they're not too important, you can keep playing with it but you may be risking further corruption and loss. You can try other tools like Recuva to try to scan the drive. Are you still needing to reassign a drive letter every time you reboot? Is the data that you didn't delete still there?

Upload an image of the DiskInfo information (expand it so as much of the SMART attribute data is visible as is possible or use two screenshots). Use imgur.com to host the file.

 

[TerryLaze]

So I ran "TestDisk" 5 days ago, wanting to recover data on my HDD, D drive. Did not get it but I noticed afterwards on reboots the D drive was missing

I had to go into disk management to assign a letter to it

Well I did a fresh Win install and formatted my PC and the problem still persists!!!


How is this possible? What could be my issue?

What exactly did you do with testdisk?!
If you messed with the partition information then that would make the drive become raw.
After assigning the letter to the drive did it show up correctly with all files intact?
Using a partition tool to restore a previous version of the partition table might fix it but it might also make it worse.

The safest bet would be to do a full copy of the data to a different drive and then repartition and format the disappearing one.

 

[hywaystar]

What exactly did you do with testdisk?!
If you messed with the partition information then that would make the drive become raw.
After assigning the letter to the drive did it show up correctly with all files intact?
Using a partition tool to restore a previous version of the partition table might fix it but it might also make it worse.

The safest bet would be to do a full copy of the data to a different drive and then repartition and format the disappearing one.

Drive is empty now due to my total format and fresh OS install. Still only shows about about half the time on reboot but Crystal DiskInfo shows "Good" and no errors.

Not sure what I did with TestDisk. I think I ran the part that searched for lost drive

But still, after a total format and fresh install, how in the world would the problem persist like this?

 

[evermorex76]

Drive is empty now due to my total format and fresh OS install. Still only shows about about half the time on reboot but Crystal DiskInfo shows "Good" and no errors.

Not sure what I did with TestDisk. I think I ran the part that searched for lost drive

But still, after a total format and fresh install, how in the world would the problem persist like this?

Dear God, you truly did have a mosquito in the house and dropped a nuclear bomb on it as a solution, after first spraying the entire house with whatever chemicals you had laying around, didn't you? Why would you completely wipe the D drive just to reinstall Windows on the C drive as a fix for an issue with the D drive?

How in the world? A failing drive, as has been said.

 

[hywaystar]

Dear God, you truly did have a mosquito in the house and dropped a nuclear bomb on it as a solution, after first spraying the entire house with whatever chemicals you had laying around, didn't you? Why would you completely wipe the D drive just to reinstall Windows on the C drive as a fix for an issue with the D drive?

How in the world? A failing drive, as has been said.

I do a fresh install once a year, it has been 11 months, my issue had nothing to do with it tbh. The lost data is no big deal at all. The D drive not being recognized is what I am trying to fix. So you did write a nice funny comment, haha but can you help?

 

[evermorex76]

but can you help?

No more than saying the drive has failed, you don't need the data, smash it with a hammer so the platters aren't readable and recycle it (if possible). Even if it's a big expensive drive, repairing it likely is more expensive in time and effort and tools than the cost of a new one, as you're almost certainly looking at stuff like replacing the PCB or internal components, requiring a clean room or needing to solder chips swapped from another board.

Also Windows hasn't needed annual reinstalls for more than a decade.

 

[SkyNetRising]

I do a fresh install once a year, it has been 11 months

That's a weird thing to do.
Who told you, you have to reinstall every 12 months?

The D drive not being recognized is what I am trying to fix.

Please show screenshots:

Disk Management,​

Crystal Disk Info,​

Device Manager - disk drives, storage controllers sections expanded.​

(upload to imgur.com and post link)

List specs of your system.
Mainly interested in motherboard model and storage device model names.

 

[hywaystar]

That's a weird thing to do.
Who told you, you have to reinstall every 12 months?

Please show screenshots:

Disk Management,​

Crystal Disk Info,​

Device Manager - disk drives, storage controllers sections expanded.​

(upload to imgur.com and post link)

List specs of your system.
Mainly interested in motherboard model and storage device model names.

That's a weird thing to do.
Who told you, you have to reinstall every 12 months?

Please show screenshots:

Disk Management,​

Crystal Disk Info,​

Device Manager - disk drives, storage controllers sections expanded.​

(upload to imgur.com and post link)

List specs of your system.
Mainly interested in motherboard model and storage device model names.

Here is my PC after a reboot, and it shows my D as "new volume" and I DID NOT assign letter, left it this way to get screens for you

Disk Management

Crystal DiskInfo

Device Manager

 

[evermorex76]

You could try doing "clean" from diskpart on a command line to completely clear all partitioning and formatting, or perhaps better would be using a tool to write all zeroes to the drive (not recommended for an SSD but fine for an HDD), and see if the problem persists.

 

[SkyNetRising]

Here is my PC after a reboot, and it shows my D as "new volume" and I DID NOT assign letter, left it this way

I don't see any signs of drive failure.
Just assign a drive letter.
That's it.

Could be - Testdisk removes drive letter during testing and then doesn't put it back.

 

[hywaystar]

I don't see any signs of drive failure.
Just assign a drive letter.
That's it.

Could be - Testdisk removes drive letter during testing and then doesn't put it back.

TY yeah thought same thing but how in the world after a total format of PC would that issue remain? Just a mystery to me haha

 

[BFG-9000]

If you messed up D: then formatting C: should logically make no difference whatsoever, and neither would formatting C: 100 times.

Use the drive manufacturer's disk utility to zero-fill/secure-erase the drive with Full Overwrite and return it to an as-factory-new state.

 

[hywaystar]

If you messed up D: then formatting C: should logically make no difference whatsoever, and neither would formatting C: 100 times.

Use the drive manufacturer's disk utility to zero-fill/secure-erase the drive with Full Overwrite and return it to an as-factory-new state.

When I install WIN fresh every year or so, I delete ALL partitions I have, wipe them out and start fresh

 

[BFG-9000]

Deleting partitions does not wipe things stored in the service tracks/area by weird disk utilities or RAID bioses. Note if your disk stores SMART data on those tracks too then that will also be erased by a zero-fill.

I would strongly advise against installing Windows with more than one drive attached, or you will eventually run into a situation where at least two disks are needed to boot because the stupid installer decides to put the boot partition on another disk.

 

[evermorex76]

When I install WIN fresh every year or so, I delete ALL partitions I have, wipe them out and start fresh

Are you a masochist or just super-bored and have nothing else going on in your life? Aside from unnecessarily reinstalling Windows and all your applications and having to reconfigure everything to your liking again, why would you wipe partitions that just have data on them?

 

[dwd999]

In Disk Management, if you right-click on the left side where is says Disk 1, then select Properties, and then Volumes, does the dialog box indicate that the Partition Style is GPT? If not the disk may need a new partition table header.

 

[evermorex76]

In Disk Management, if you right-click on the left side where is says Disk 1, then select Properties, and then Volumes, does the dialog box indicate that the Partition Style is GPT? If not the disk may need a new partition table header.

If it's got a readable NTFS partition, and is just missing the drive letter, which OP can apply, then it really doesn't matter if it's GPT or MBR, but it is one or the other. The header must be there and valid for a partition to exist.

 

[fzabkar]

The drive is an SMR model which supports TRIM.

https://hddscan.com/blog/2020/hdd-wd-smr.html

That explains why no data is recoverable after file deletion or formatting. In fact, you shouldn't need to zero the drive. A quick format should do the same thing.

 

[evermorex76]

The drive is an SMR model which supports TRIM.

https://hddscan.com/blog/2020/hdd-wd-smr.html

That explains why no data is recoverable after file deletion or formatting. In fact, you shouldn't need to zero the drive. A quick format should do the same thing.

I imagine that allowing TRIM/garbage collection to complete on a mechanical SMR drive that had a lot of data takes a REALLY long time (especially on the huge capacities where they've needed to use SMR in the first place, though obviously this one isn't that big). An SSD controller can erase multiple blocks at a time at basically the speed of electricity, while a mechanical drive can only erase one sector at a time. In this case the drive has been powered on for plenty of time by now for it to complete, but we never learned how long it was in use past the time when the data was deleted and the recovery was attempted, and TRIM may not have been triggered during that time.

 

[fzabkar]

I imagine that allowing TRIM/garbage collection to complete on a mechanical SMR drive that had a lot of data takes a REALLY long time (especially on the huge capacities where they've needed to use SMR in the first place, though obviously this one isn't that big). An SSD controller can erase multiple blocks at a time at basically the speed of electricity, while a mechanical drive can only erase one sector at a time. In this case the drive has been powered on for plenty of time by now for it to complete, but we never learned how long it was in use past the time when the data was deleted and the recovery was attempted, and TRIM may not have been triggered during that time.

A TRIM-capable hard drive will begin serving up zeros immediately after receiving a TRIM command from the OS. The original data can still be recovered by professional tools, but not by DIY software. Nothing needs to be erased because hard drives can simply overwrite old data with new data.

An SSD can serve up zeros or the original data or some other data pattern, depending on the DRAT and RZAT bits. The old data may still be recoverable by pro tools if the SSD is immediately powered down and then accessed in factory mode.

 

[evermorex76]

A TRIM-capable hard drive will begin serving up zeros immediately after receiving a TRIM command from the OS. The original data can still be recovered by professional tools, but not by DIY software. Nothing needs to be erased because hard drives can simply overwrite old data with new data.

But the OS doesn't send the TRIM command constantly, or even that often. By default, the Windows "optimization" setting in the defrag dialog is once a week. It's possible that a particular drive controller may initiate garbage collection internally according to its own schedule, but vendors don't tell us about that, nor is it possible to tell when it actually last occurred. If you delete a file on a TRIM-capable drive, be it an HDD or SSD, an hour later it very well could be recoverable, or even 3 or 4 days or up to 6.9 days if the OS scheduling works properly, and if the write activity didn't force the drive to re-use a block due to space constraints. (Of course with an SSD it is even less likely to be recoverable because the controller will soon re-map the "deleted" logical block to a fresh, already-erased physical block for performance, or for wear-leveling, so the software can't actually access the original block to read the data. That's when pro tools that can directly access all blocks would be required.)

Reading further, I guess SMR drives don't actually go and "erase" the blocks that have been marked by TRIM the way SSDs do. The controller just records that the block is cleared for re-use where it otherwise would not re-use it because of the SMR format, as magnetic recording doesn't need to physically empty the bits to maintain performance like an SSD does. However that should mean that software that scans the drive bit by bit can recover that data, without needing professional tools or specialty software, as the SMR drive isn't re-mapping the physical sectors like an SSD.