Is my HDD about to kick the bucket?

[Addikt]

So I was trying to open up Windows Live Mail and I get BOSD. Then, I try to restart the computer I get the error: A disk error occurred. Press ctrl alt del to restart. I pop in my XP CD and try a repair, doesn't work the windows install doesn't show up. Then I try the recovery console, no use it's lagging, A LOT. So I open up the side of my case and I can hear my boot drive whirring with no cracking sounds of it reading from the drive. At this point I almost die of a heart attack because losing my data would be akin to losing an unborn child. I let the computer sit for a few minutes and restart it, same problem.

It would probably be important to mention right about now that recently I've been having a little heat problem. But the problem isn't really a little heat, it's a lot of it. More info can be found in this post.

I let the computer cool off for a little longer, about 15 minutes. I restart it, and lo and behold I get a windows screen. Very nice. Then Windows wants me to run a CHKDSK. I comply and the results are good, no problems detected. My baby is okay! I thank the Gods but find that it's all in vein when the computer hangs at the Windows loading screen. I wait a while and the system finally loads. It all comes up at a rather quick pace and I am unable to explain the uncharacteristically long Windows load time.

So, I take this to be a sign that I have major problem on my hands. Not really something that I wish to turn a blind eye to, and in the back of my mind I have the nagging feeling that the culprit is overheating. So what's going on here, does it sound like a heat-related problem, or does my drive need to take a trip to the scrap yard?

Moved to appropriate forum - Moderator Rubycon

 

[funkymatt]

you'll probably get more results posting in gen hardware or computer help. what are your ambient temps? how many fans do you have in your case? are you sucking cold air in the front and blowing the hot air out the back?

 

[PlasmaBomb]

Try this to check if the disk is dying.

 

[Addikt]

So I've got more info about it. Everything was working fine, but now it seems that there are errors on the C: drive. Every time it loads and application I get pop-ups in the systray letting me know that there was this read error, and that read error.

Also, windows is running very slowly when I load something. Web pages stall, the task manager doesn't even open. It's as if anything that's cached cannot be read properly afterwards. Also, one time I booted up, one of my other drives didn't show up. The computer froze up and so I couldn't see if I could detect it through Disk Managment. I restarted, and it showed up.

Also, randomly I'm still getting the same error message I got before, "A Disk Error Occurred. Press ctrl alt del to restart."

Am I looking to replace this thing? Pretty sure I still have warranty on it, and normally I'd just buy a new disk but it's a WD Raptor, so I think I'll see if I can get it RMA'd.

 

[Elixer]

Use WD's utility CD to check the HD.
If it reports bad, RMA it.

Make sure S.M.A.R.T is enabled in BIOS as well, in the rare case that it may actually show something before the drive dies.

Might also be a loose cable/connector, so check that as well.

 

[SergeC]

back up everything. immediately. I can't believe that you're having possible disk issues,and haven't done this yet!

 

[Addikt]

It's just my system drive, I don't really need any of the information on it. All my data is spanned across other drives and properly backed up.

The only thing that really perplexed me was when I booted the computer and one of the other non-system drives didn't show up.