General failure error readiong drive C

[PCSolutions]

Ohh, I am in a LIVID mood tonight!
I need some fast documentation on General Failure Error Reading Drive C
Someone just sold a client of mine a system with a bad hard drive & I need to PROVE to the seller that the hard drive is bad
You transported it you broke it!
Not hardly Charlie
Its a Seagate ST5250A & crapped out as soon as we got it to the clients.
I should have taken my bag of tricks & run vendors diags in front of the seller.
We have a bad hard drive. The system is 3 hours old. Scandisk marks bad sectors
Vendor says scandisk in windows will find & fix any errors with the drive. I say you are wrong! Only the thorough scandisk tests the platens for physical errors. I need docs on that fast!
If you get general failure on a reboot its a bad drive period case closed, now replace it
I also say if it fails vendor diags the drive is bad.
This is what happens when you buy used stuff!
I have known my client for years. Its his first PC I wanted it just to go & go right BUT NO!
Anyone got the fast docs that I can show this vendor?
It will be fixed to my clients satisfaction. Period
case closed
Thanks
again Im sorry, Im just so MAD!!!


[This message has been edited by PCSolutions (edited 08-09-2000).]

[kbrown4]

try booting from an emergency repair disk and running scandisk on the drive. If it runs real slow then you probably have problems, also seagate site can download a seagate hard drive diagnostics to run on it. Usually though if you get a general reading error and the cables ARE plugged in and jumpered corectly it is a bad drive. However you might want to type "sys c:\" from the dos prompt if you get one, also it could just be your master boot record is corrupt, try fdisk and then format, if no help it is a bad drive.

[PCSolutions]

Been there done that
Im a tech from way back
The microsoft site has been unusual at best in finding what I thought was reliable tech information
I need the documentation on the questtions that I asked
Fast
The system goes back tomorrow
No refunds
bull****!!

[Topdog]

I used to have a similar problem whenever I took my computer to work(I was real busy in those days). To rectify the problem I would unplug the IDE cable at both ends and plug it back in, and away it would go, until I took it back home, same problem, same fix. I did this for some time before my brain clicked into gear and I squirted some CRC or similar into the plugs and sockets. Never a problem since. You did say the problem started as soon as you got home.

[Paleo Pete]

This is abou tall I can find, nothing definite though. Wish I could find more.
Here is the link it came from.

DESCRIPTION A read or write to a device has caused a data error message, this message usually refers to a physical defective spot on the disk or a faulty disk drive.
ACTION If this occurs on a floppy disk, try to retrieve and back up as much of your data as possible, then re-format the floppy disk (or better still, discard that particular disk), and restore the data to a 100% error-free diskette.

If this occurs on your hard disk, back up your hard disk, immediately, and run your disk diagnostic's software on the failing hard disk. If that does not show up any errors, check that your BIOS CMOS settings are correct for your particular hard disk. Many machines are shipped with the wrong hard disk CMOS settings, but with a setting that will work until your disk starts to fill up.

Excellent disk diagnostic utilities are available, e.g. PC-Tools and Norton Utilities.

It is recommended that you run your diagnostic software in the following circumstances:

a) When you suspect that you may have a problem with your hard disk (i.e. If it suddenly becomes noisier than usual).

b) When you receive one or more of the following error messages occurring unexpectedly, that refer to your hard disk:

17h Data error (CRC).

19h Seek error.

1Ah Unknown media type (non-DOS disk).

1Bh Sector not found.

1Dh Write fault.

1Eh Read fault.

1Fh General failure.

For example:

General failure reading drive C:
Abort, Fail, Retry, Ignore.

NETWORK Same, but refers to the server's disk. On some networks, the above errors may be returned if you disconnect the network cable from a server.

OTEX LAN always returns the correct error, as it would be displayed locally. If you disconnect a cable from a OTEX LAN server, DOS will display one of the error messages listed at the end of this section.

RIGHTS Not Applicable.

18h Bad request structure length




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How come the gene pool has no lifeguard?

[Paleo Pete]

OK, I lied...founs anouther one with similar response...Here

Error: General Failure reading drive C:
What went wrong: Uh, oh. This could be bad. Very bad. It has the potential to mean that your hard drive has crashed. Let's hope this one is actually a rare (or non-existent) and not a common occurrence. I'm just throwing this error in the mix so you can put the other errors in perspective.

What to do: Try restarting by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Del a few times. Try not to bang the keys to death. If drive C: still doesn't work, hope like heck you are still under warranty and contact the people from whom you bought your system. You did back up your files, right? Right?

This is it, plus a couple references to virus or boot sector virus.



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How come the gene pool has no lifeguard?

[Wirehead]

here's a link to Seagate's diagnostic tools
http://www.seagate.com/support/npf/d...ostic_run.html

Sorry, Mosaic, missed the link in your post .

If scandisk is marking bad sectors, the drive should be replaced. If we get ONE bad sector on a client's hdd, it is replaced. This guy sounds like an unethical businessman, and you have every right to be pissed. If you can, get a hold of Spinrite 5.0, THE definitive drive diagnostic tool.

Good luck



[This message has been edited by Wirehead (edited 08-09-2000).]

[Herring]

Spinrite

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Just trying to give others a friendly hand.

[PCSolutions]

I fixed this issue
The seller says I dropped it
nonsense
replace it
I reported the seller to the IRS for tax evasion

[Paleo Pete]

That sucks!!
These guys sometimes get what's coming to them, but don't you wish you could be around to see it?
I'd call Better Business Bureau, and Attorney General's Consumer Fraud division for your state as well.



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How come the gene pool has no lifeguard?