Computer Hard Drive Making Weird Noise
midwe...@yahoo.com
Pentium 4 processor, 2) 256 MB of RAM, and 3) 40 GB of hard-drive
space.
The computer is running Windows Millennium Edition (ME), and I have
had the computer since 2001.
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Over the years, if 1) the computer froze and 2) ctrl + alt + del did
not work and 3) pressing the off switch on the hard drive did not
work, then I would press the off switch on the surge protector.
The hard drive and the monitor would then be turned off. Then, I would
turn the surge protector back on, and the hard drive would reboot, and
the monitor would come back on.
However, a few weeks ago, something weird happened. The computer
froze, I turned off the surge protector, I turned the surge protector
back on, the monitor got stuck on the first screen of the booting
process (the screen showing the Gateway logo), and the hard drive
started making a weird noise: ka-thunk ka-thunk ka-thunk ...
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I thought that the hard drive had crashed, that all my data was gone,
etc. I became really nervous. However, to make a long story short, I
discovered that, if I turned off the surge protector and waited an
hour or so, I could then turn the surge protector back on, and the
bootup process would occur normally, with my data intact.
Since then, if the computer has frozen, I turn the surge protector
off, wait an hour, then turn the surge protector on again. Also, even
if I am able to shut the computer down normally (start + shutdown), I
must still wait an hour before rebooting the computer; otherwise, the
ka-thunk starts again.
----------
So, what is going on with my computer? And please don't just say that
I have to buy a new computer. I know that my computer is old. I just
want to know what the problem is and what can be done about it.
Please send all responses to the newsgroup. The email address attached
to my post is full of spam.
Thank you very much in advance for any help.
Unknown
Shutting off via
the surge protector is bad practice. Equivalent to yanking out the line
cord.
What do you mean 'off switch on the hard drive'??
<midwe...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:f1478b2a-3edf-4d0d...@e18g2000vbe.googlegroups.com...
midwe...@yahoo.com
> Do you press and hold the power on switch for 4 seconds when shutting down?
Until I saw your post, I did not realize that should be done. I would
press the power-on switch, and nothing would happen. I did not know
that I was supposed to hold the switch for 4 seconds.
> Shutting off via
> the surge protector is bad practice. Equivalent to yanking out the line
> cord.
I know. And that is why I did that only as a last resort.
> What do you mean 'off switch on the hard drive'?
"Off switch on the hard drive" means the switch that causes the
computer to start booting; in other words, the switch on the hard
drive is the "power-on switch" that you mention above.
By the way, after I read your post, I had the computer freeze on me
again. CTRL + ALT + DEL did not work; so, I held the power-on switch
for 4 seconds, and the computer did shut down properly. Unfortunately,
when I tried to reboot the computer without waiting for an hour, the
hard drive started going ka-thunk again.
So, do you have any ideas why the ka-thunk is happening and what can
be done about it?
Nate Grossman
>So, do you have any ideas why the ka-thunk is happening and what can
>be done about it?
Replace the drive.
G. R. Woodring
is a component _inside_ of the case. The case contains several components that
can make noise: the power supply, CD/DVD drives, floppy drive and fans to cool
the Power supply, CPU, Graphics processor, chipsets and to force air through the
case itself. If you can't identify what is the actual source of the noise,
back-up all data (a full drive image is good) then take to a trusted repair shop.
--
G. R. Woodring
J. P. Gilliver (John)
<d3afe38a-c20c-4814...@c2g2000yqi.googlegroups.com>,
midwe...@yahoo.com writes:
>On Jul 14, 9:580 >> Do you press and hold the power on switch for 4 seconds when shutting down?
>
>
>Until I saw your post, I did not realize that should be done. I would
>press the power-on switch, and nothing would happen. I did not know
>that I was supposed to hold the switch for 4 seconds.
>
switch for a few seconds will power it off, then it should turn itself
off anyway when you tell it to shut down - from Windows 9x on, anyway;
the sort that had to be turned off at the power switch (which was a real
switch) were on the way out in around 1995-8. (They're known as "AT"
power supplies - connect to the motherboard by two connectors, one long
line of pins. The sort that can turn themselves off - or need the switch
held in for a few seconds - are called "ATX" supplies, and connect to
the motherboard by a two-row connector. They're pretty universal these
days.)
[]
>> What do you mean 'off switch on the hard drive'?
>
>"Off switch on the hard drive" means the switch that causes the
>computer to start booting; in other words, the switch on the hard
>drive is the "power-on switch" that you mention above.
>
_contains_ the hard drive, but also various other things. The hard drive
itself is a small component compared to the case - it contains one or
more 3.5" platters, and is thus about 4" x 1" x about 6". Usually
mounted below the floppy drive (if there is one), or below the CD drive,
though sometimes screwed to the front or "floor" of the case, or in a
few other places. If you've never opened the computer, you won't ever
have seen it.
>
>By the way, after I read your post, I had the computer freeze on me
>again. CTRL + ALT + DEL did not work; so, I held the power-on switch
>for 4 seconds, and the computer did shut down properly. Unfortunately,
By "properly", I presume you mean the power went off (all noise
stopped). That's not a proper shut-down - it would at least lead to a
scandisk (if you're using Windows 9x or Me) at next startup, assuming
all the hardware was well, which it sounds like it isn't.
>when I tried to reboot the computer without waiting for an hour, the
>hard drive started going ka-thunk again.
>
>
>So, do you have any ideas why the ka-thunk is happening and what can
>be done about it?
>
Sounds like your hard drive (the actual drive I mean, not the whole
computer) is indeed dying. What needs to be done about it is to dump as
much as possible to CDs and/or DVDs if you ever get the system going
again, and then get another hard drive - or computer. If it won't come
to life again enough for you to start up Windows, it's a matter of
taking the drive (just the drive, not the whole computer) to someone who
has a suitable box and/or lead, and _hope_ they can rescue data from it.
If you do intend to continue using the computer containing the failing
hard drive, you'll need to re-install Windows and all your applications
onto the new drive when you get it, which is a tedious business; if it's
Windows Me or '9x, you _might_ just be able to copy everything over from
the failing drive to the new one, but I suspect enough files are
corrupted on it that this won't be viable.
Any such copying should be done on a computer other than the failing one
- you can't easily copy when the operating system is running from the
drive being copied, even if it is not failing. The computer you posted
this from is a possible host for the copying.
(As to _why_ it's happening - well, these things don't last for ever; if
they detect that they're having difficulty reading a sector [they have a
certain amount of intelligence built into the drive itself, or rather
the electronics in it], they tend to go back to the index track, and
start from there again. Repeatedly. It's a little arm, rather like the
one on a record-player; it is that repeatedly moving back to the dud
sector you are hearing. Probably; it could be some other part of the
computer, but a repeated clunking is most likely to be the hard drive.
It _might_ just be - especially since you imply it works if left to cool
- that the computer is just overheating, and clearing out the fluff from
the fans and all vents might cheer it up a lot; however, I suspect that
even if that is the case, it would be advisable to consider the HD to be
on the way out, and take steps accordingly.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G.5AL-IS-P--Ch++(p)Ar@T0H+Sh0!:`)DNAf
** http://www.soft255.demon.co.uk/G6JPG-PC/JPGminPC.htm for ludicrously
outdated thoughts on PCs. **
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