2 Samsung drives with the same exact error? Or is ESTOOL broken?

[soundasleep]

So I ran Samsung's ESTOOL on the 2nd and 3rd drives for my new system and I'm getting the same exact problem with both of them. I was about to RMA my 1TB F3 HD103SJ but then last night I got the same thing with a 2TB F4 HD204UI, so now I'm suspicious.

All tests get a Pass! except for WRITE VERIFY, which gets a COMMAND TIMEOUT and RAM VERIFY TEST, which also gets a COMMAND TIMEOUT. Service Code => AJ41 : RAM Error

For the 1TB, I then did a low-level format and ran the test again, as instructed by ESTOOL. Same results.

Anyone see a similar thing with ESTOOL, that turned out to be wrong? I don't want to RMA both of these and then get the same exact error. Could some other component be causing this?




i5 2500k + CM Hyper 212+
Gigabyte GA-H67A-UD3H-B3
Crucial 2x4GB CT2KIT51264BA1339
G.Skill 2x4GB F3-10666CL9D-8GBRL
Intel 320 SSD 120GB
Cooler master Silent Pro M 600W
ASUS 24X SATA DVD-RW
nMediapc card reader
Antec P183 V3

 

[soundasleep]

Also, what's a good testing tool for a brand new hard drive, besides Samsung's ESTOOL?

 

[Zap]

Service Code => AJ41 : RAM Error

...
Could some other component be causing this?

???

You can also just do a full format under Windows.

Normally I don't even bother testing brand new drives unless they are suspect for some reason (such as having been dropped).

 

[soundasleep]

Hmm. Well, I had the time to run the manufacturer's diagnostic tool so I went ahead and did it. And now I'm glad I did. I'm sure the drive would be usable, but I assume if there are errors at the outset (in this case, seemingly with the cache), the drive's longevity/reliability will be affected. I would like to start off with an error-free drive (going for stability and longevity here).

My question about other components...I was wondering if maybe something like the motherboard could throw off ESTOOL. Like they're not playing nice or something. A longshot probably, but just a though.

Anyway, like I said, I'm suspicious that these errors are false. What are the chances that two different drive models from two different retailers have that same specific error? Not impossible, I know, but...

Anyone know if it's OK to use other manufacturer's diagnostic tools? I would think it's ok...

 

[bryanl]

I believe you need version Estool version 3.01V or newer. Samsung may still be distributing older versions, and even 3.00P or 3.01P are incompatible with their 2TB drives.

 

[soundasleep]

Yeah, this was 3.01v and the error occurred with both the 1TB drive (7200rpm) and the 2TB drive (5400rpm).

UGH. Either way, this is a PITA. Either I have to RMA two drives, or I have to figure out why the test isn't working correctly.

 

[soundasleep]

It was the same SATA port used for both drives. Maybe try another port? Seems unlikely but I'll try that tomorrow I guess.

 

[Ayah]

Was it the same cable too? Port or cable could be causing your problemos.

 

[Dahak]

I would try the above suggestions, the different port and different sata cable, also you could try to set the sata controller to ide/compatibility. I know some of them used to have issues detecting the drive when on AHCI or raid. It should not make a difference but who knows.

 

[bryanl]

I'd test again, but with the G.Skill memory removed

 

[soundasleep]

The 1GB drive was tested before the G.Skill modules were installed, so I doubt it's that. Interesting sidenote...I checked yesterday and the G.Skill modules are actually on Gigabyte's "tested & compatible" list but the Crucial sticks are not.

I checked my BIOS settings and my ports are actually already set to IDE/compatibility, so that's not it.

I am a little hopeful because I switched ports this morning and ran a "quick" diagnostic on each drive (skipping the full surface scan) and i did not get the COMMAND TIMEOUT on the WRITE VERIFY TEST either time (the WRITE VERIFY TEST happens BEFORE the FULL SURFACE SCAN, so ESTOOL didn't know I was going to skip it). I have the 1TB running a full surface scan right now, hopefully it will pass everything. Then the question will be...do I RMA for a bad SATA port?

 

[soundasleep]

Passed the ESTOOL diagnostic on another SATA channel. As it turns out, the two SATAIII channels cause this error in ESTOOL but the SATAII channels do not.

So...not clear whether ESTOOL doesn't like these SATAIII ports, or if something's actually wrong with the ports. Both drives are SATAII, OS drive is an Intel SSD SATAII drive, not sure if that's being affected in any way.

I hate this crap.

 

[soundasleep]

Apparently SeaTools works with any brand. Gonna try that, see if anything happens using a SATAIII port.