Logical Hard Drive Failure.

A logical failure occurs when the hard drive is healthy but

you cannot boot into the operating system. This can be caused by many different factors.
A virus, system driver conflict, human error or a software malfunction can cause a logical
hard drive crash.
None of those things can harm a drive. On one hand, drives do die cause its their time -
drive lifetimes usually follow a bell curve - it just happens no matter how carefully you
coddle your drive.
"What are the reasons for failure Hard Disc Drive"

Sometimes it just happens. The manufacturing process is not perfect for any computer
component, and sometimes, you just get bad drive, even right out of the box. Usually in a
case like that, it is electronic in nature, but in your case, since you have had it for a while,
it sounds physical. Electronic problems, especially as time goes by, are usually related to
inconsistent power...spikes in power and brown outs, either of which is not particularly
good for a drive.

Typically, when a person has a physical problem, it is also due to power. This often leads
to what was called a "head crash", which when the computer lost power, the heads often
hit the platters causing physical damage. I actually thought that most modern drives had
addressed this problem, but not according to the following article, although some have.
Any Superuser users' comments regarding this would be welcome. Of course, sometimes
people drop or bump drive, especially in laptops. This can also render a drive unusable.

THE MOST COMMON CAUSES FOR HARD DRIVE FAILURE

When it comes to our hard drives, we trust them to keep our stored items permanently
safe. Unfortunately, this is a mistake, as computers can experience problems with a dead
hard drive or you can get an error telling you hard drive failed. In either situation, data
recovery can be very difficult or even altogether impossible. The question to be answered
here, though, is why do hard drives fail? The answers below will provide you with the
three most common causes for hard drive failure.
Fluctuations of Power
One reason for hard drive failure is fluctuations of power. Power surges can be dangerous
for the delicate electronic equipment in your computer. If a power surge does occur, then
chances are that you can kiss your hard drive goodbye, as well as any important
documentation that you have on the computer. For this reason, you should make the small
investment of a power surge protector to help safeguard your computer system. Backing
up important information can also be invaluable so that if there is a hard drive crash, you
have a way to perform data recovery.
Shock
The hard drive of a computer is a very delicate thing made with great engineering
precision. There are rotating platters moving at high speeds and the hard drives head
writes and reads all data from a floating disk. The makeup of this piece of equipment can
be compared to a single strand of human hair; that is how delicate it is! Continuous
vibration can cause additional shock on the system and cause a catastrophic hard drive
failure.
Excessive Heat
The hard drives used today are made to withstand a high amount of heat. However, too
much exposure to heat can cause massive failure. This is something that happens a lot
when it comes to laptops. Because laptops do not have the same airflow that is present in
desktop models, overheating is a common issue with them. The only things that you can
do to help prevent hard drive issues are to keep the ventilation system cleared out and
purchase a cooling system to place under your laptop to help keep it cool enough to
prevent a crash.
The bottom line is that hard drives can crash no matter how many precautions we take.
The most important thing you can do is be sure to have a data recovery system in place.
Hard Drive Failure, what to do when your hard drive fails
Hard drive failure is a nerve wracking event. But if it happens to you, all is not
necessarily lost -- even if you don't have a backup to fall back on.
Hard drive failure occurs when the hard disk drive fails to function properly and
information stored on your computer can no longer be accessed. Hard disk drives fail for
a number of reasons, ranging from hardware life expectancy to human error.
Data Loss - What to do?

In the event of a hard drive failure do not panic; it is critical to remain calm and not to
take improper steps which can lead to severe damage. If you begin to hear clicking noise,
clattering, whirring or screeching sounds, or your computer S.M.A.R.T function indicates
an error, we strongly recommend stop using the hard drive to avoid further damage and
immediately contact a Data Recovery Labs specialist. Data Recovery Labs has a team of
professionally trained data recovery engineers and operates one of the largest research
and development centers in the United States, which constantly researches, reverse
engineers and analysis all file system types and file formats. Our technicians and
engineers have an extensive know-how and master the necessary procedures to perform
physical and logical data recovery services. In more than 90% of the cases, we are able to
recover the data; although note the 1st attempt is the most important for success.
Furthermore, Data Recovery Labs carries thousands of hard drives of all manufacturers
series in inventory to be used as spare parts which enables us to provide an immediate
data recovery solution in the event of an emergency.
Data Loss - What you should NOT do under any circumstances!

Do not restart! Turn off the computer.

In almost all cases of data loss, it is important to turn off and not to re-activate the
system. This is true for all types of systems whether PC, Apple, Server, NAS or RAID.
Logical Damage
Even with logical damage, such as the accidental deletion of files or directories,
reformatting, running OS recovery or file system errors, a reboot can lead to fatal
consequences. As you operate the computer the system creates temporary files and swap
data. This can overwrite critical data sectors necessary to complete a successful data
recovery. It is highly recommended to stop using the computer and immediately contact a
data recovery specialist.
Freezer Trick
A common online myth! Do not place your hard drive into the freezer in hope to be able
to recover the data. The consequences can include circuit board (PCB) short as well as
misaligned read/write heads and motor failure.
Opening hard drive seal
Hard drives should only be opened in dust-free clean room lab facility! If a hard drive is
opened outside of a professional data recovery lab, the damage can be massive and the
cost of data recovery can be many times higher not to mention can lead to permanent
failure.
RAID is not failure proof!

The engineers at Data Recovery Labs have more than 30 years of server and RAID
reconstruction experience. One thing is certain: RAID is not failure proof whether you
are dealing with RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 6 or RAID 10. Our engineers
reconstruct RAID arrays daily on those considered safe systems. The simultaneous failure
of multiple disks, incorrectly configured systems or simply bugs in the RAID controller
firmware can result in RAID systems data loss. Just in case of failure of a RAID system,
the pressure on IT managers is enormous: Often a business or group is shut down thereby.
The understanding that a RAID system can fail, is not usually given. The result is panic
reactions: hard drives are swapped, rebuilds started and disks forced online. The
manufacturer's support recommends the worst case to delete the RAID configuration and
attempt to re-create the raid - resulting in a fatal error (this is actually regularly reported
by our customers)! Another point through which is worse in a RAID failure, damage are
so-called "fatal rebuild". These arise, when the RAID is forced online and a rebuild starts
causing Data to be overwritten in the worst case on all disks.
In case of failure of a RAID system:

If a drive is making unusual mechanical noises, turn the system off immediately
and contact a data recovery specialist
Do not replace a failed drive with a drive that was part of a another RAID system
Zero out the replacement drive before using
Label the drives with their position in a RAID array
Do not run volume repair utilities or defragmenter utilities on suspected bad
drives
Four basic types of hard drive failures:

Software or firmware damage may cause the disk to become unreadable, resulting
in the inability to interact properly with the computer
Problems with the controller board on the hard disk may result in electronic
failure
Mechanical failure can occur when components on the disk become faulty such as
motor and read/write head assembly
And logical corruption may occur when there is a problem with the information
on the disk

The most common causes of hard drive failure:

1 Heat: The primary cause of hard drive failures is hardware overheating.

Inadequate ventilation and cooling in and around your computer hardware can cause
severe damage to the equipment. Overworked hardware with little or no downtime
and smoke or fire damage can wreak havoc on a system.
2 Physical damage to your computer: Any type of physical force, such as bumping,
jarring, or dropping your computer may lead to physical damage to the hard drive. If
your computer is in use at the time of the impact, the read/write heads may touch or
gouge the disks, causing damage to the platters magnetic surfaces where the data is
embedded. This is known as a head crash, and the damage can be significant. Even if
your computer is powered down, the likelihood of jarring your computers
components is still present.
3 Power Voltage Surges: A power surge can be caused by lightning strikes,
interference with power lines, or by any event which causes the flow of energy to be
interrupted and then restarted. Power surges can result in data loss when the
read/write heads fail to function properly, and in the worst case, a complete computer
crash.
4 Water Damage: Moisture caused by flooding or even by spilling a liquid onto
your computer is almost assuredly bad news. The casing that holds the hard disk drive
is not designed to be a barrier against water penetration. Water will have damaging
effects on a computers electronic parts and disk components, possibly even causing
unwanted electrical currents which can further damage your computer.
5 Corrupted files: Improperly closing a program, turning of your computer before
closing files, and installing new software can cause files to become corrupted. Power
failures and accidental computer shut downs can contribute to corrupted files, and
causing damage to the hard drive.
6 Human error: The functions of the hard drive can be impaired by human
tampering with the system files. Accidental deletion of files imperative to the disk
drive is not uncommon. Improper installation and removal of files from your
computer can cause the hard disk to malfunction. Activities conducted during a
forensic investigation of a computer may also compromise the hard drive.

These common destructive forces can destroy your hard disk drive in an instant, and
recovery of important information may be difficult. Backing up your data, and using
simple preventive techniques can help to save you from the headache of a hard drive
crash and prevent having to contact a data recovery specialist.

What does Data Recovery Labs specialize in?

Complex RAID and Enterprise systems

Failure of multiple disks simultaneously, reconstruction and recovery of destroyed logical
RAID systems, rescuing damaged virtual servers, data recovery for damaged Logical
Volume Managers (LVM), reconstruction and repair of damaged file systems, restoring
defective databases.

Mechanical hard disks

Swapping read / write heads, repairing stuck or damaged motor assembly, repair of
surface damage, replacement of a defective hard disk bearing, transplanting whole
magnetic disk stacks, troubleshooting electronic defects, correction of firmware errors,
PCB/controller repair.

SSDs and other flash storage media (USB stick, compact flash)
Correction of electronic errors in controllers, desoldering individual memory cells (also
in sandwich construction) and the reading of the content and composition in valid user
data (keyword wear leveling).

Optical media
Reading defects (eg scratches, sunlight).

Tape media
Reconstruction in mechanical defects of tapes (for example, cracks, wrinkling,
misalignments).

Floppy, floppy
Reconstruction mechanically defective disks or floppies.
..............
Extremes of temperature (too hot or too cold)
Loss of power while in use
Mechanical failure brought about by manufacturing fault
Moisture
Movement of disk (e.g. if the computer is moved while the disk is in use
Vibration
Wear and tear (check the manufacturer specs for life expectancy)
.............
Don't forget basic wear and tear. John Gardeniers Aug 8 '09 at 11:48
1
mechanical failure due to friction on the bearings and other parts that move... Bart
Silverstrim Aug 8 '09 at 12:08

+1 for heat, probably the most common problem. Johan Aug 8 '09 at 17:41
1
If a hard disk loses power while it is reading or writing, the head will not be in a parked
state, so physical damage could occur. This problem is not as common as it used to be,
but is still possible. Techboy Dec 7 '09 at 10:46
1
Not so much. Modern drives usually have enough capacitance built into the drive to park
the heads in the event of power loss. I suppose it's possible, in the same way that anything
is possible - it's just VERY unlikely with modern gear.
A hard drive is basically an electromagnet record player sealed in a case. All it's control
systems are attached to a circuit board outside the case, and the platters, spindles, and
drive heads are inside the case. So there are really two major buckets for hard drive
damage: electronics issues and physical issues.

Electronics Issues

The circuit board on the outside of the drive can fail for many reasons.

Defect
Temperature Extremes
Electrostatic Discharge
Anything else that causes a circuit bored to fail
A dead board will pretty much kill the affected drive, but the data should be unaffected.
Control boards can be replaced but are custom to the exact drive you are using so you'll
need the exact board AND firmware. Otherwise you'd need to work with a professional
recovery services.

Physical issues

A hard drives platters spin at very high speed with the drive heads being in very close
proximity. One of my profs explained it thusly, "Imagine a 747 flying maximum speed
about nickel's diameter above ground, and you've got the right idea."

There are several classes of potential damage here:

Motor failure
Over time small drops, walking around with a running laptop, power outage while
the drives are spinning as the actuator arms with heads are engaged will cause the
heads to hit the platter and causes cuts or scrapes.
Catastrophic case damage (eg. I dropped my laptop off a 5th floor window)
Excessive bad sectors will cause the drive to say that its failing
The majority of disk failure is due to either damage to the magnetic layer, wear or
damage to the spindle bearings or failure of the electronics.

Damage to the magnetic layer is most often caused by the head touching the surface of
the platter, either through mechanical jarring of the drive or contaminates getting between
the two.

Damage to the spindle bearings is generally through simpe wear and tear, which normally
takes quite a few years, of mechanical jarring.

Damage to the electronics can be caused by power spikes of poorly regulated supplies but
is most commonly simple device failure.

Some hard drives simply fail because of worn out parts, others fail prematurely. HDD
manufacturers typically specify aMean Time Between Failures or anAnnualized Failure
Rate (AFR) which are population statistics that can not predict the behavior of an
individual unit. These are calculated by constantly running samples of the drive for a
short amount of time, analyzing the resultant wear and tear upon the physical components
of the drive, and extrapolating to provide a reasonable estimate of its lifespan. HDD
failures tend to follow the concept of thebathtub curve.[dubious ] HDDs typically fail
within a short time if there is a defect present from manufacturing. If an HDD proves
reliable for a period of a few months after installation, the HDD has a significantly
greater chance of remaining reliable. Therefore, even if a HDD is subjected to several
years of heavy daily use, it may not show any notable signs of wear unless closely
inspected. On the other hand, an HDD can fail at any time in many different situations.
The most notorious cause of HDD failure is a head crash, where the internal read-and-
write head of the device, usually just hovering above the surface, touches a platter, or
scratches the magnetic data-storage surface. A head crash usually incurs severe data loss,
and data recovery attempts may cause further damage if not done by a specialist with
proper equipment. HDD platters are coated with an extremely thin layer of non-
electrostatic lubricant, so that the read-and-write head will simply glance off the surface
of the platter should a collision occur. However, this head hovers merenanometers from
the platter's surface which makes a collision an acknowledged risk. Another cause of
failure is a faulty air filter. The air filters on today's HDDs equalize theatmospheric
pressure and moisture between the HDD enclosure and its outside environment. If the
filter fails to capture a dust particle, the particle can land on the platter, causing a head
crash if the head happens to sweep over it. After an HDD crash, particles from the
damaged platter and head media can cause one or more bad sectors. These, in addition to
platter damage, will quickly render a HDD useless. An HDD also includes controller
electronics, which occasionally fail. In such cases, it may be possible to recover all data.
The phenomenon of disk failure is not limited to HDDs. Other magnetic media types are
prone to failure; in the late 1990s the click of death, so called because affected drives
would endlessly click when disks were inserted into them, plagued many users of
Iomega's 100 megabyte Zip disks. 3-inch floppy disks can also fall victim to disk
failure. If either the drive or the media is dirty, users may experience thebuzz of death
when attempting to access the drive.
sometimes it is a manufacturing fault some hard drives fail becaus of worn out parts,If
there is manufacturing problem then it can be failed with in a short period,If you are
using it daily from many years then it is quite difficult to search the problem because it
may not show ant notable signs.Head crash is the main reason of hard drive failure,it will
make data lose in your laptop.Geeks on site will help you if you will face this kind of
hardware issue in your laptop.
Firmware or Manufacturer Faults
Heat
Electronic Failure or Power Surges
Mechanical or Internal failure
Corrupted Files
Human Errors