Disk Read Error - I keep getting a disk read error...

Half the time I restart the computer in my bedroom I get a disk read error and I get that error on startup. So I just figured as long as I don't restart nothing can go wrong right? Well...My sis just restarted that computer and now I'm getting a disk read error....It says that I should hit alt-ctrl-del and try again...Well I keep getting a error and normaly whenever I used to get it I would just reformat it...But I really don't feel like reformating it...And it has a lil data that I don't wanna lose. So does anybody know a way around this? It sounds like its corrupted...But I work more with software then with hardware...So I have no idea what to do Any help would be appreciated. Thnx

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Can you start it with a startup disk and see if you can read the content? If your FAT (M$) is corupted you may not be able to fix it. If you are on another OS I can't help you!

Nils

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I'm using windows xp home edition on it. And it's a ntfs filesystem....
And I don't have any startup disks to start it with...Well...I tried the one it came with...Some cd from emachines. But it didn't work. I will try again 2night though

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Sometimes my computer forgets which hard drive to check first during boot up.

Check your Boot Device Order and make sure that it is checking the drives in the right order. If you do'nt have a problem there, you may need to carefully reinstall WinXP.

If you find that your HDD is bad or if you wanted to upgrade, buy a new HDD and install windows on the new drive. Be sure to disconnect the old drive before installing the new drive, but leave the old drive in the computer.

Once WinXP is install on the new drive, reconnect the old drive as a slave drive and use a disk recovery program to pull any recoverable data off the old drive.

If the drive is mechanically damaged your just out of luck unless you send it to a data recovery service $$$.

There are many Trial Recovery programs that are full featured for 30 day, but after 30 day you should be ok.

vujsa

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This sounds strange.... if you ever fix it let me know, I had a computer do this to me once, but it fixed itself after a wewk (that was an old 286, though).

Just out of curiosity, how do you format a drive with it not loading? Is there an option in the BIOS?

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It depends on the problem with the drive. If the data is corrupt then the computer can't read the drive. If the hard drive has a bad sector, that would cause the problem.

If the data is corrupt then you just need to look for good data, if you have a bad sector, then reformating the drive will quarintine the bad sector and the rest of the drive will be usable.

So sometimes when the computer can't read the disk, the disk can still be written on. Just don't reformate a disk that you have needed data on until you retrieve the data.

vujsa

[Edit]

Here is a decent recovery program: http://www.data-recovery-software.net/

 

 

 

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please consider the message you are recieving is an early notice. it signs that your hd is probably going to have problems later on. if i were you, i'll find a new hd and back up all my files. what i'll do is reformat the old hd and use it only for OS and temporary files. for me, i MUST seperate OS and software into different HD instead on the same drive as my important files.why? because OS and program files are being used frequently and it increases the probability of HD crash. so what i do is that i put my important files at a secondary hd.

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What this mean is that some of the sectors that the OS is sitting on is corrupted that is why you were able to get it up before with a little trouble. But it’s now getting worse. You can get the data off it if you have another drive with an OS that will boot, set this drive as a slave or second drive if you use cable select. Set the other drive as the master or first drive cable select.

This way this drive will show as your drive D or E and you can remove what you want. You can then format and the computer will mark the bad blocks and will not write to them again. If it is an old drive the trash bin is a better place for it.

Let us know where it ends up.

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check teh forum i oppened on the same issue:
A Disk Read Error Occurred. Press Ctrl+alt+del, Get this message when booting the pc
http://www.astahost.com/index.php?act=ST&f=16&t=1655

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a disk read error occured
Disk Read Error

I can't boot up my pc. When I switch on the pc, it keep showing message a disk read error occured press ctrl+alt+del to restart. I'm setting the hard disk as primary master and dvd drive as the secondary master. Can anyone help me fix this problem...

-question by danny alpha

 

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