CHKDSK fails on my USB 250GB

[videocheez]

I'm not sure if this is a coincident but I just recently reformatted the hardrives of my main comp. I backed up a lot of data and programs onto my Maxtor 5000XT 250GBUSB drive.
I can watch movies and play mp3's from the drive but I can't consistetly move files from the 5000XT to other drives on my system.
Sometimes a small file will move with no problem other times a 3MB file may say that it will take 10minutes to xfer and it the xfer fails.
I ran CHKDSK with the following command:
chkdsk /f /r G:

CHKDSK says that it will do a five step process. After step three says 100%, I get the following message:
unable to read the security diescriptors data stream

I don't think this is a good message.

So then i try to do a defrag. The defrag prog says that it can't run becaus chkdisk is scheduled. I check the system schedule and there is no indication that chkdsk is waiting to run. The defrag prog. also says that CHKDSK will run after I reboot. I reboot several times and CHKDSK never runs.
I wouldn't be so upset except that I have been using this removable drive as my back-up storage and no I cant reload stuff back to fresh clean main comp.
I have two questions:
1. Is my drive toast?
2. If it isn't, what can I do to fix the problem

Thanks in advance,

VC

[Capmaster]

I'm not sure if this is a coincident but I just recently reformatted the hardrives of my main comp. I backed up a lot of data and programs onto my Maxtor 5000XT 250GBUSB drive.
I can watch movies and play mp3's from the drive but I can't consistetly move files from the 5000XT to other drives on my system.
Sometimes a small file will move with no problem other times a 3MB file may say that it will take 10minutes to xfer and it the xfer fails.
I ran CHKDSK with the following command:
chkdsk /f /r G:

CHKDSK says that it will do a five step process. After step three says 100%, I get the following message:
unable to read the security diescriptors data stream

I don't think this is a good message.

So then i try to do a defrag. The defrag prog says that it can't run becaus chkdisk is scheduled. I check the system schedule and there is no indication that chkdsk is waiting to run. The defrag prog. also says that CHKDSK will run after I reboot. I reboot several times and CHKDSK never runs.
I wouldn't be so upset except that I have been using this removable drive as my back-up storage and no I cant reload stuff back to fresh clean main comp.
I have two questions:
1. Is my drive toast?
2. If it isn't, what can I do to fix the problem

Thanks in advance,

VC

1) It sounds like it
2) You may be able to salvage it by running the vendor's diagnostic appy and let it move the data to good sectors while marking the bad ones. I've gotten more life out of HDs by doing this. Of course, be prepared to scrap the drive since that error message and the symptoms sound serious.

[DVD_Ripper]

Make sure there are no other USB devices plugged in (even if they are off... unplug them - for these tests)

Is this a USB2 Port you are pluging into?

Does the drive support Fwire (1394) too? If so try that.

Try some alternative 'testing' proggies on it like Norton Utilities (disk doctor)

[ofbarea]

I wouldn't be so upset except that I have been using this removable drive as my back-up storage and no I cant reload stuff back to fresh clean main comp.
I have two questions:
1. Is my drive toast?
2. If it isn't, what can I do to fix the problem

Probably your disk is OK.

Something similar happened to my External 40 GB Maxtor disk. I do not recall the exact error, but at the end, files on the disk were not readable and I was not able to some stuff from the device to my PC.

To fix the problem I removed the drive from its case and installed it as a secondary internal drive and ran CHKDSK D: /F/R/X

This fixed some logicals errors on the disk. Later I placed the disk back into its case. After I rebooting the system the disk was working properly.