| Hard Drive Failure?Generally a clicking sound | | | | offer.) After CHKDSK finishes, restart your |
| coming from your hard drive is a Bad Omen. It | | | | computer normally and see if the dreaded |
| could be a harbinger of horrific hardware | | | | click of doom returns. If so, the drive is |
| happenings, so my immediate advice is "BACKUP | | | | most likely damaged, and should be replaced |
| YOUR HARD DRIVE!" as soon as possible. If the | | | | as soon as possible. If you decide to |
| drive fails, you're out of luck. In fact, | | | | purchase a new computer, see Copying Old Hard |
| even if you don't suspect a problem with your | | | | Drive to New PC for help with transferring |
| hard drive, it's wise to make regular backups | | | | your files.Are You On The Level?But before |
| so you can survive a hard drive failure with | | | | you trash your troublesome drive, you should |
| only minimal inconvenience.See my article | | | | try one more thing... Some hard drives are |
| Backing Up Your Files to learn about backup | | | | very sensitive to non-level surfaces, and |
| strategies, hardware and software. And if | | | | will not function properly if they're sitting |
| you're curious about which hard drives noises | | | | on a slant. Shut down your computer, make |
| you should be concerned about, listen to | | | | sure your system unit is on a flat surface |
| these clicking sounds made by dying hard | | | | (use a level to make sure), and then restart. |
| drives.Scan Your DriveOn Windows XP, you can | | | | I was all set to give up on an older computer |
| check your hard drive for errors by running | | | | that was doing the click/whir routine, but I |
| the CHKDSK utility. Restart your computer and | | | | noticed it wasn't sitting on a level surface. |
| hold down the Ctrl key while it's booting up. | | | | As soon as I fixed that, the problem was |
| When you see the option to start your system | | | | gone!That clicking sound MAY signal impending |
| in Safe Mode, select it and continue. Click | | | | hard drive failure, but keep in mind you |
| the Start button, then click Run, then type | | | | don't always get such a warning. So play it |
| CHKDSK C: /F /R then press Enter. The /R | | | | safe... back up your files on a regular |
| option tells CHKDSK to scan for bad disk | | | | basis.BOB RANKIN... is a tech writer and |
| sectors, and the /F option means to fix any | | | | computer programmer who enjoys exploring the |
| errors found. (On a Windows 98 system, use | | | | Internet and sharing the fruit of his |
| the SCANDISK command instead of CHKDSK.)If | | | | experience with others. His work has appeared |
| CHKDSK offers to "convert lost chains to | | | | in ComputerWorld, NetGuide, and NY Newsday. |
| files", recover lost data, or fix something | | | | Bob is publisher of the Internet TOURBUS |
| else, you should accept. (If CHKDSK tries to | | | | newsletter, author of several computer books, |
| sell you a cheap Rolex, politely decline the | | | | and creator of the website. |