An unreliable or unreadable sector of an Hard Disk Drive (HDD) is usually called a bad sector or a bad block. The more bad blocks you have, the worse and slower your storage device operates. When there are more bad sectors than allows the amount stated by the manufacturer, a hard drive stops working. You can prevent damage by carrying out special software "treatment" of your computer from time to time.
Where does bad blocks come from?
You can find bad sectors even on new non-used hard drives. Moreover, they don't have to be sectors unavailable for reading/writing information by default, sometimes potential bad sectors are label as "non-operational". Thus, the manufacturer and SMART software module prevent the damage of user's data recorded on "unstable" sectors.
Apart from the factory ones, in HDD defect list you can also find storage device sectors with physical and logical, as well as upcoming defects.
Among physical defects are:
- Mechanical damage,
- servo marks destruction,
- mechanics and electronics hardware failures.
In my role as a Computer Technician in the 90's I experienced all of these from various clients. It was never nice to tell them that the data that was once there is completely lost.
To logical defects belong:
- failure of check sum due to read/write errors,
- destruction of sector headers under the influence of neighboring electronics magnetic field.
Sectors potentially dangerous in regards to errors are called upcoming.
Windows built-in utility CHKDSK is used to work with bad sectors for those who want the process to be easy and simple. In order to start scanning and recovery in an ordinary way:
Type CHKDSK [disk path, for example, C:] /F /R in the command prompt.
Press "Enter" and wait for the utility to check everything stored on your HDD.
Restart your computer.
CHKDSK can't repair hard drive bad sectors, it can only detect them and mark with flags. The system takes the marked sectors as faulty ones and doesn't attempt to read/write information onto them. But it's better to run CHKDSK at least from time to time than do nothing at all to prevent the spread of bad sectors.
Obviously there is no program that can fix mechanical damage. Even logical failures can't always be repaired. Therefore, you shouldn't think that programs designed for repairing bad sectors will always save you and treat them as tools able to prolong the operation time of your hard disk forever. Consider them as software which can prevent problems occurring after extensive use of an HDD.
HTrecover. (2018, November 6). How to repair / check for bad sectors on on hard drive (Windows 10). Retrieved June 10, 2019, from https://howtorecover.me/how-repair-bad-sectors-hard-drive-3-ways
So my thoughts about the Bad Sector Block are drawing the comparison of long term storage media's failure as the same as humans time based memory loss. The problem I suffer is that details of time are lost to me yet short term memory is fine (kind of like Random Access Memory RAM). Large computer networks run multiple Hard Disk Drives for storage as is done at SIT which also have a backup running too.
The Bad Sector Block also may have another meaning as the block in Invercargill slated for demolition could be deemed as a bad sector block (earthquake risk) also. The memory of the buildings that stood will eventually be diluted of detail as time passes.
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