Delicate problem, probably hardware...

[Ralse]

I have been experiencing a very annoying and critical problem lately.
It happened to my D: disc and i think that is the sole problem.
But the only thing that happened was the power dying, there wasn't even a scandisc afterwards.

The problem is, a lot of videos (of any kind, also image files from DVD) are getting mixed up terribly.
For example, i had the movie Indiana Jones on disc from original DVD, but now all the sudden my copy of ffvii avc is containing scenes from Indiana Jones.
Also, some vids have random scenes from Natalia (Belgian artist), Indiana Jones, music from Sensation White (had an mpeg of that) and so on...

This can be a very delicate problem if i convert a VHS to DVD for people, and the scenes get mixed up...

I had this problem with each of the vids on my D: disc, so i deleted most of them (the ones that had mistakes) and completely formatted the drive and kept using it.
But now the problem is reoccuring, even though i have a new operating system now (Win2k Server).

Is there anyone that has heard of this problem or anything similar?
I really wouldn't like to have to toss my 200g WD...

Thanks in advance.

[Nelson37]

Yes, I have.

Need more info on "power dying". Power outages are often accompanied by surges which can do both obvious damage and hidden damage which will become more obvious over time. These can make the entire PC an unreliable collection of useless parts.

Unusual that the problem continues after a complete fdisk and reformat. Can you save a video to the C: drive without problem? Can you obtain a substitute drive for testing?

It is possible the drive is toast, or the controller circuit on the mobo, the cable could be slightly loose (blasted off by a power surge), or the PC power supply is bad.

APC surge protectors. Get one.

[Ralse]

well i'm glad at least someone else had teh same experience

power dies here usually when too many things are on
i now have a ups thing that helps out
in the mean while i have switched the power supply, removed and re attached cable, so it can't be that i think

i guess my pc is completely unreliable then...i can't get my father to understand that the power outtages cost me a lot of money
i have been plannin on getting a new leet machine, but it's expensive
and i'll need a really good ups

thanks for your reply...i'll use teh drive with trial and error

[Skith]

what drive make/model is it? you could try running a SMART utility to test the drive (most drive manufacturers provide such a utility, there are also some free and shareware versions available on the net.

google is your friend.

here is a wiki on what SMART is, along with some links to software utilities:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-Monitoring,_Analysis_and_Reporting_Technology

To test if the controller is responsible, you could get a PCI Controller card (IDE or SATA, whichever your drive is), and switch the second drive to that.

Good Luck!

[kschang]

Yeah, sounds like the HD's completely crosslinked. If you got Norton, I'd run NDD on it. Though the Windows built-in SCANDISK may help as well.

[Nelson37]

I see you formatted, but no fdisk. Format alone will not solve a scrambled partition table.

Completely delete the partition, reboot, format, reboot, then test.

If error continues after removing and re-installing the partition, you may very well have other damage on the motherboard controller.

Unless your surge protector is an APC or a Panamax, get rid of it and get one of those two. APC much more cost-effective. Warranty covers DIRECT HIT by lightning strike, all others I have seen void the insurance in such a case. Have personally seen the checks delivered after lightning damage. I'm the technician that certified that the damage was caused by a power surge. These units are the best.

Surge damage can be like cancer. You solve the immediate problem, then another part fails, then another, and so forth. Diags do not find the part that is about to fail, the damage is hidden. Components stressed beyond limits, still working but lifetime drastically shortened.